Cruise ship numbers rise in 2004: more than 800,000 passengers will be visiting Alaska this summer via luxury cruiseliners.

• Author: Pardes, Joan

The 2004 tourist season is well under way and with a record-breaking 27 cruise ships sailing Alaska's waterways this summer, the cruise industry is projecting a banner year for one of its premier destinations.

"We're anticipating that there will be a little more than 800,000 passengers on cruises to Alaska this summer, which will reflect a 5 percent to 7 percent growth from last season," said North West Cruiseship Association's President John Hansen.

Comprised of 10 cruise lines, the North West Cruiseship Association represents all the large cruise ship companies that call on Alaska. According to the association, large cruise liners bring 97 percent of all cruise travelers to the state, account for more than half of the total visitors to Alaska every summer, and should create 16,000 instate jobs and contribute $800 million to the state's economy by the end of this tourist season.

BIGGER, BETTER LUXURY SHIPS

This year, the industry introduced several new ships and a new luxury cruise line into the Alaska market. The fledgling ships are bigger and more luxurious than their predecessors and boast the newest nautical and technologically advanced systems in the world.

"We're up one ship from last year overall and we have three new vessels in the fleet, a few newer ships that will be replacing older ships and the Silver Seas--a new company that made its first voyage into Alaska this season," said Hansen. "We're looking forward to a good season. So far, we hear that the ships are full and that the land tours and shopping sales are strong."

The new ships include Princess Cruises' Diamond Princess and the Sapphire Princess that journeyed to Alaska earlier this summer for their first season at work. These sister ships are larger than their older siblings and include an Internet cafe, a wedding chapel and an Asian-themed lotus spa with a fitness center. While these state-of-the-art luxury liners boast all new amenities, they still offer the company's original Broadway and Las Vegas-style themed productions.

Another new vessel in Alaska is Royal Caribbean's Serenade of the Sea, a ship that sailed her maiden voyage in 2003 and made her debut in America's far north this summer. The ship holds 2,500 passengers and 900 crew members and includes more than three acres of exterior glass designed to optimize the view, has the highest percentage of outside cabins in the entire Royal Caribbean fleet (813 exterior rooms), as well as a 10-story glass centrum.

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