Depart your hometown for Vancouver, Canada. Time permitting, explore city downtown. This afternoon at 4pm embark on the Princess Cruise. Celebrate opening Mass, followed by a welcome dinner on board.

Today witness the beauty of God’s creation as you sail around Alaska. This complex labyrinth of fjords, bays, and lush green islands is home to an abundance of wildlife and whales hurling themselves into the air from the ocean. This afternoon celebrate Mass on the ship and enjoy a lecture with Father. Take advantage of the many on board activities during your day at sea. End the day with dinner and sharing of graces.

Juneau has been called “Alaska’s peak experience,” for its unparalleled glacier viewing. Following arrival at the port, the group will take a private excursion to the National Shrine of St. Therese of Lisieux, named patron saint of Alaska in 1925. Celebrate Mass and spend time in prayer, before returning to Juneau to board the ship for dinner and overnight.

In a single year from 1896 to 1897, this remote town along the Inside Passage grew from a few tents to a city of 20,000 gold seekers. Skagway was the gateway to the gold fields for the thousands who flocked to Alaska and the Yukon with the hope of striking it rich. Hotels, saloons, dance halls and gambling houses prospered. But when the gold yield dwindled in 1900, so did the population as miners quickly shifted to new finds in Nome. Today, travelers come in search of other riches – to experience yesteryear along Skagway’s charming boardwalk lined with buildings that replicate those Gold Rush days. Today, Skagway has less
than 1,000 residents.

Celebrate Mass this morning as we group sailto Glacier Bay National Park and Preserve, a United Nations World Heritage Site. Comprised of 3.3 million acres of natural wonders, it is home to magnificenttidewater glaciers, snow-capped mountains and abundant birds and wildlife.Take in the awe-inspiring scenery as you enjoy an unforgettable day of sailing through this dazzling park, where you’ll glide along emerald waters and past calving icebergs, and can breathe in the crisp, fresh air to your heart’s content.

Celebrate Mass followed by a lecture by your spiritual director as you sail south this morning toward Ketchikan. Ketchikan is known as Alaska’s “First City” because it’s the first major community travelers come to as they journey north. Located on an island, Ketchikan began life as an Indian fishing camp. The name Ketchikan comes from a Tlingit phrase that means “eagle with spread-out wings,” a reference to a waterfall near town.You’ve never tasted salmon so fresh as that from the ‘Salmon Capital of the World’. Ketchikan is also the ancestral home of the Tlingit people, with the world’s largest collection of totem poles. Take a canoe and nature trail excursion through the rain forest or a wilderness exploration followed by a sea food feast you’ll long remember.

Today see the beauty of the inside passage as you sail into complex labyrinth of fjords, bays, and lush green islands. Alaska is home to an abundance of wildlifethat you will have a chance to see. Long summer daylight will allow you to take in the breathtaking scenery as you sail. Awe at the sight of 40-ton whales hurling themselves into the air from the ocean. This eveningcelebrate group will have private cocktail reception and enjoy farewell dinner.

Disembark the ship and transfer (on your own) to the airport for return flights home

*206 Tours Disclaimer:
Occasionally local religious and national holidays, weather, traffic conditions and other events may necessitate changes in the sequence of events or the missing of certain events/places. Though every effort will be made to follow the itinerary, it should be considered as an indication, rather than a contract of events and places to be visited.