Cunard announces Alaska return for first time in over 20 years

Cunard announces Alaska return for first time in over 20 years

A visit to Alaska has been added by Cunard in 2019 for the first time in more than 20 years.

Queen Victoria will operate the only full world cruise in 2019, leaving flagship Queen Mary 2 and Queen Elizabeth with “greater flexibility” to travel to a mixture of destinations and itineraries, the line said.

Queen Elizabeth will run its first Alaskan cruise, crossing the north Pacific and Gulf of Alaska en route to Vancouver.

This will be the first time that any of the line’s current fleet will have travelled to Alaska.

The largest US state is featured in a newly released January to May 2019 ‘Oceans of Discovery’ programme, which includes 21 maiden calls and new destinations including Boracay in the Philippines, Akita in Japan and Goa in India.

Queen Victoria, which will undergo a refit in June, is to run a 107-night world voyage in 2019 on a western circumnavigation via the Panama Canal.

Passengers can travel on sections of lone world cruise which sees the ship end up sailing the Indian Ocean to South Africa before returning to Southampton.

Queen Mary 2’s winter 2019 deployment features ex-UK departures through the Mediterranean, Arabian Gulf, Indian Ocean to Far East and back.

The journeys range from one to three weeks in duration but can be combined through to a full 94-day voyage.

Queen Elizabeth will run 41 cruise combinations ranging from two to 38 nights.

The line’s three ships will call at 49 countries and 109 destinations in the first five months of 2019.

Ten destinations being re-introduced include Beijing, Picton in New Zealand, Abu Dhabi and Chennai.

Sales vice president, Alex White, said: “It’s an exciting time for Cunard, with a 2019 programme that offers more choice, more variety and more destinations for our guests than ever before.

“Whether you want to fly and cruise, or depart from the UK, we have a blend of iconic, world-class cities and delightful destinations with cruises that cover two to 107 nights.

“Our itineraries have been designed to offer enriching days in port as well as plenty of time on board for our guests to relax and enjoy the luxury of time, space and all that our ships have to offer.”