MIAMI, May 1, 2015 /PRNewswire/ -- Holland America Line, Carnival Cruise Line and Princess Cruises – three of the nine global brands from Carnival Corporation & plc (NYSE/LSE: CCL; NYSE: CUK), the world's largest travel and leisure company – will begin the highly anticipated Seattle-to-Alaska summertime cruising season with the first ship departing Saturday, May 2. Cruise passengers in Seattle are expected to increase by 11 percent this year to 895,055 passengers, and the Carnival Corporation brands are positioned to meet the surge in demand.
Together, the three brands will offer a total of 103 roundtrip cruises on six ships sailing between Seattle and Alaska, providing plenty of options for enjoying a vacation in one of the world's most breath-taking regions. More than 208,200 guests are expected to sail with Carnival Corporation brands from Seattle to Alaska in 2015. According to the Port of Seattle, the cruise industry overall will bring more than $400 million in economic activity to Seattle this cruise season based on a combination of supplying the vessels, money that travelers spend in the city and nearby region, and the fact that 80 percent of guests arrive through Seattle-Tacoma International Airport.
In response to increasing demand, Holland America Line added a third ship for the 2015 summer season, ms Statendam, which arrives on Monday, May 18. The line's ms Westerdam will officially begin the season on Saturday, May 2, as the first cruise ship to arrive in Seattle. ms Amsterdam arrives on Sunday, May 31. Holland America Line offers 47 roundtrip cruises from Seattle this season.
Additionally, Princess Cruises is increasing its capacity by introducing two larger ships – Crown Princess arrives on Saturday, May 16, and Ruby Princess arrives on Sunday, May 3. They replace the Grand Princess and Golden Princess. Each of the new ships provides room for 500 additional guests. Princess Cruises offers 40 roundtrip cruises from Seattle this season.
Carnival Cruise Line's Legend will arrive at the Seattle port on Tuesday, June 2. This season Carnival Cruises Line offers 16 roundtrip cruises.
"We are excited to begin another great cruise season in Alaska, taking our guests on an unforgettable vacation to the Great Land where they can experience lush forests, ice-blue glaciers, whales, puffins, orcas, and frontier towns filled with Gold Rush history, native culture, wildlife and thrilling adventures – all while only having to unpack once," said Arnold Donald, CEO and president of Carnival Corporation. "The goal for all 120,000 of our employees is to consistently exceed our guests' expectations, and these cruises to such an awe-inspiring part of the world are sure to do just that."
Carnival Corporation's roundtrip vacation options for the Seattle cruise season to Alaska are:
- Holland America Line offers 7-day cruises from Seattle to Alaska on ms Westerdam. Ports include Juneau, Sitka, Ketchikan and scenic cruising in Glacier Bay National Park, all in Alaska, as well as Victoria, British Columbia in Canada. Sailings depart Saturdays from Pier 91. Cruises start at $499 per person.
- Holland America Line offers 7-day cruises on ms Amsterdam. Ports include Juneau, Sitka, Ketchikan and scenic cruising Tracy Arm, all in Alaska, as well as Victoria, British Columbia. Sailings depart Sundays from Pier 91. Cruises start at $549 per person.
- Holland America Line also offers 14-day Alaska itineraries on the ms Statendam departing every other Monday from Pier 91. Ports include Ketchikan, scenic cruising Tracy Arm, Juneau, Icy Strait Point, Anchorage, Homer, Kodiak, scenic cruising Hubbard Glacier, and Sitka, all in Alaska, as well as Victoria, British Columbia. Cruises start at $1199 per person.
- Princess Cruises offers 7-day cruises from Seattle to Alaska on the Crown Princess. Ports include Juneau, Skagway, scenic cruising in Glacier Bay National Park, and Ketchikan, all in Alaska, as well as Victoria, British Columbia. Sailings depart Saturdays and Sundays from Pier 91. Cruises start at $699 per person.
- Princess Cruises offers 7-day cruises from Seattle to Alaska on the Ruby Princess. Ports include Juneau, scenic cruising Tracy Arm Fjord, Skagway, and Ketchikan, all in Alaska, as well as Victoria, British Columbia. Sailings depart Saturdays and Sundays from Pier 91. Cruises start at $549 per person.
- Carnival Cruise Line offers 7-day Alaska cruises on the Carnival Legend departing Tuesdays from Pier 91. Ports include Juneau, Skagway, scenic cruising Glacier Bay, and Ketchikan, all in Alaska, as well as Victoria, British Columbia. Cruises start at $729 per person.
Additional Carnival Corporation Sailings to Alaska
Carnival Corporation brands also offer additional roundtrip cruises to Alaska from Vancouver, British Columbia. Holland America Line offers 7-day cruises on the ms Noordam, ms Oosterdam and ms Volendam, as well as 14-day cruises on ms Oosterdam and ms Zaandam. Princess Cruises offers a 7-day cruise on the Crown Princess and Star Princess in 2016. The following Holland America Line ships offer one-way 7-day cruises departing from Anchorage, Alaska, to Vancouver, British Columbia: ms Oosterdam and ms Zaandam. Carnival Cruise Line will offer a special one-way 7-day cruise from Seattle to Vancouver Sept. 8-15.
Carnival Corporation & plc
Carnival Corporation & plc is the largest cruise company in the world, with a portfolio of cruise brands in North America, Europe, Australia and Asia, comprised of Carnival Cruise Line, Holland America Line, Princess Cruises, Seabourn, AIDA Cruises, Costa Cruises, Cunard Line, P&O Cruises (Australia) and P&O Cruises (UK).
Together, these brands operate 101 ships totaling 216,000 lower berths with nine new ships scheduled to be delivered between 2015 and 2018. Carnival Corporation & plc also operates Holland America Princess Alaska Tours, the leading tour companies in Alaska and the Canadian Yukon. Traded on both the New York and London Stock Exchanges, Carnival Corporation & plc is the only group in the world to be included in both the S&P 500 and the FTSE 100 indices.
www.carnival.com
To view the original version on PR Newswire, visit:http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/carnival-corporation--plc-meets-growing-demand-for-alaska-cruises-with-103-roundtrip-offerings-on-six-ships-from-port-of-seattle-300076009.html
SOURCE Carnival Corporation & plc
Roger Frizzell, Rfrizzell@carnival.com, 305-406-7862
