‘Fully vaccinated’ cruises coming to Alaska

ANCHORAGE, Alaska (KTUU) - “Fully vaccinated” cruises are coming to Alaska, according to a joint statement from Gov. Mike Dunleavy, Juneau Mayor Beth Weldon, and small ship adventure cruises company UnCruise.

UnCruise says it has six small boats the company will be operating this year for travel to and from Alaska. Crew and guests on every boat will be fully vaccinated to ensure the safety of everyone on board, according to UnCruise’s CEO.

“We are going to do everything we can at my level to let the world know that we are open for business,” Dunleavy said during a press conference on Monday. “We are a safe state, we are probably the safest state, we want visitors here, and we want everyone to enjoy Alaska.”

The small boats hold anywhere from 22 to 86 guests, and each person will be required to have their CDC cards saying they are vaccinated on hand.

Captain Dan Blanchard, CEO of UnCruise Adventures, said he’s excited about the future opportunities this coming summer holds.

“I want people to know Alaska is open, wide open,” he said. “Alaska has the highest vaccination rate in the nation, and we can’t wait to share our wild natural areas with guests. Our decision to move to fully vaccinated cruises will help our guests and crew experience Alaska in the safest way possible.”

Starting on May 10, the cruise line will launch its boats heading to Alaska. Ships will begin departing from Juneau on May 16.

“The beauty of this is, if you take these cruises, you’re probably going to see parts of Alaska in a way that you may never seen them before,” Dunleavy added. “I think the smaller cruises, are going to afford possibilities that people didn’t even think about.”