Ship: Odyssey (ZE)
Itinerary: Northern Ring of Fire: Aleutians & the Bering Sea
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Odyssey
cabins & deck plans | additional itineraries | cancellation policy | Testimonials
| Day 1 : | Arrive in Anchorage, Alaska |
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| Day 2 : | Anchorage / Seward / Embark Clipper Odyssey |
| Day 3 : | Kodiak Island |
| Day 4 : | Geographic Harbor, Katmai National Park and Preserve |
| Day 5 : | Aghiyuk Island, Semidi Islands |
| Day 6 : | Unga Island, Shumagin Islands |
| Day 7 : | Baby Islands / Dutch Harbor, Unalaska Island |
| Day 8 : | St. George Island, Pribilof Islands |
| Day 9 : | St. Paul Island |
| Day 9 : | At Sea |
| Day 10 : | Adak Island, Aleutian Islands |
| Day 11 : | Kiska Island |
| Day 12 : | Attu Island |
| Days 13-14 : | At Sea / Cross International Date Line |
| Day 15 : | Petropavlovsk, Russia |
| Itinerary continues - click for full itinerary | |
| Day 17 : | Petropavlovsk / Disembark Clipper Odyssey |
| Click for full itinerary |
| Days | Dates | Deck + Cabin Type | ||||||
| Category 1/ A-Deck | Category 2/ Main | Category 3/ Main | Category 4/ Lido | Category 5/ Bridge | Category 6/ Balcony Suite | Owners Suite | ||
| 17 | Jul 25, 2010 | $9,980 | $10,880 | $11,780 | $12,680 | $13,580 | $14,480 | $17,980 |
| Destinations : Alaska, Europe, North America, Russia Activities : Cultural Activities, Hiking, Modern History, Nature Viewing, Photography |
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- All rates are quoted in USD and are based on double occupancy. Single rates may be available at 1.7 times the share rate.
On this remarkable cruise aboard the Clipper Odyssey, explore some of the most remote places on Earth – the Aleutian and Pribilof Islands followed by the Kamchatka Peninsula – showcasing a wild and pristine Alaska few travelers get to witness. The history of WWII in Alaska unfolds as you explore Attu, Kiska, and Adak Islands and note rusted military artifacts amid fields of vividly-hued wildflowers. And, aboard Zodiacs investigate secret coves and picture-perfect bays in search of seabirds, brown bears, and Arctic foxes.
Day 1 : Arrive in Anchorage, Alaska
Independent arrival in Anchorage and transfer to your hotel. Introductions and a briefing before dinner; overnight at your hotel.
Day 2 : Anchorage / Seward / Embark Clipper Odyssey
After a morning at leisure and lunch at your hotel board motorcoaches for Seward to embark on the Clipper Odyssey.
Day 3 : Kodiak Island
Dock at the town of Kodiak, a bustling port settled by Russian fur traders in 1784. By 1792, Alexander Baranof established the town as the first capital of Russia’s North American colonies. Visit the 1794 Holy Resurrection Russian Orthodox church, with its prominent blue onion domes, and Erskine House, a National Historic Landmark built in 1809 and now housing the Kodiak Baranof Museum. Exhibits in the Alutiiq Museum detail the history and culture of these native people who lived here millennia before the Europeans arrived.
Day 4 : Geographic Harbor, Katmai National Park and Preserve
Sail along the Alaska Peninsula today, a stunning, nearly-uninhabited wilderness, stopping to investigate islands and coves. Nearly hidden at the far reaches of Amalik Bay, Geographic Harbor is surrounded by magnificent volcanic scenery; access through the narrow entrance of the harbor is tidal dependent. Cruise the area by Zodiac, watching for brown bears along the beaches.
Day 5 : Aghiyuk Island, Semidi Islands
The Semidi Islands are home to two and a half million birds. Make a Zodiac landing to walk on a small, sandy beach covered in driftwood sea-carved into intriguing silvery shapes. Also by Zodiac, trace the shores of Aghiyuk Island, home to huge colonies of seabirds: northern fulmars, common murres, and black-legged kittiwakes. In the evening search for whales in these waters, famed for seasonal migrations, as you head toward the Shumagin Islands.
Day 6 : Unga Island, Shumagin Islands
Anchor at Unga Island today; its multiple bays offer excellent Zodiac cruising opportunities to spot sea otters and birds, including peregrine falcons. Ashore, walk amid fields of wildflowers and spongy tundra. Scattered pieces of multicolored petrified wood are remnants of an ancient metasequoia forest, evidence that the region once enjoyed a warmer climate.
Day 7 : Baby Islands / Dutch Harbor, Unalaska Island
This morning sail among the Fox Islands group of the Aleutians, watching for Minke whales, the smallest baleen whale in the northern Pacific. The five tiny, volcanic Baby Islands, today’s first destination, teem with puffins and whiskered auklets.
Dutch Harbor was originally used by the North American Commercial Company to process fur seal pelts. Today, it is the busiest fishing and processing port in Alaska. Stroll among WWII relics of the U.S. Army, visit the school, and view the oldest onion-domed Russian church in Alaska.
Day 8 : St. George Island, Pribilof Islands
North in the Bering Sea lies the tiny archipelago comprising the five Pribilof Islands. They were discovered in 1786 by the Russian explorer Gerassim Pribilof who successfully located what he was hoping to find: fur seals by the thousands, which the Russians later harvested nearly to extinction. Today, the northern fur seal is protected and cannot be hunted commercially. The Pribilof breeding population now numbers more than 700,000. Bird colonies abound, with some 225 species recorded in the islands.
Explore the small town of St. George whose residents include about 150 people of Aleut and Russian descent. A picturesque Russian Orthodox church commands a vista of the Bering Sea, and a cliff-top blind provides a remarkable view of a fur seal rookery. More parakeet auklets breed on St. George than anywhere else, and the nearly quarter million nesting red-legged kittiwakes make up 98 percent of the world’s population.
Day 9 : St. Paul Island
St. Paul is home to 800 Aleuts, the largest such community in the world. Enjoy a stroll through town, then walk among a profusion of tundra wildflowers, watching for Arctic foxes often spotted here. Zodiac excursions and walks to the edge of the cliffs reveal birds by the thousands—horned and tufted puffins; red-legged kittiwakes; red-faced cormorants; and crested, least, and parakeet auklets.
Day 9 : At Sea
Sail towards the Aleutian Islands while onboard experts share their knowledge about the flora, fauna, and fascinating history of this region. Birders and nature enthusiasts watch from the decks for a chance at the “Holy Grail” of North Pacific seabirds, the extremely rare short-tailed albatross, which has in recent years, substantially increased in numbers.
Day 10 : Adak Island, Aleutian Islands
Today the ship enters the long chain of Aleutian Islands, which stretch in an arc one thousand miles long, bridging the Bering Sea between Kamchatka and Alaska. Each of the 124 islands is the summit of an underwater volcano, and nearly all are part of the Alaska Maritime National Wildlife Refuge, a 3.5 million-acre preserve. The refuge is home to an estimated 40 million seabirds of 55 different species.
While the Japanese invaded and occupied the far western Aleutian Islands of Attu and Kiska, U.S. forces built facilities on Adak Island to support efforts to retake the islands and to guard against a possible counter-offensive. In 1943, 27,000 troops were stationed in Adak. In 1997, the U.S. Navy released control of the island to the Aleut Native Corporation. Only about 300 people live here today, making a living from fishing and various commercial enterprises that utilize the abandoned buildings and lengthy airstrip.
Once ashore board motorcoaches and have the choice to explore the island to get a sense of its significance in WWII, or to go on a birding excursion to look for red-faced cormorants, Aleutian terns, and gray-crowned rosy-finches. Time permitting, take Zodiacs along the shores for wildlife viewing—among the species watch for sea otters, harbor seals, and ancient, marbled, and the increasingly rare Kittlitz’ murrelets.
Day 11 : Kiska Island
This island was once the site of Japanese troop occupation in WWII. When the Americans arrived they found that the Japanese had all been evacuated under cover of fog; evidence of their existence remains in a 1,200 foot long pier, wooden boardwalk, and a grounded Japanese two-man submarine. History unfolds as you explore the island with historians and naturalists and note the evidence of Japanese presence amid myriad flowers and plants.
In the afternoon you have the opportunity to view the world’s largest nesting population of least auklets. In our Zodiacs cruise Sirius Point, a relatively recent headland created from lava flow and a special habitat for these seabirds. Hope to see thousands of auklets and other small alcids as they come and go in their feeding routines.
Day 12 : Attu Island
Massacre Bay on Attu is a remote outpost on this ruggedly mountainous, westernmost Aleutian island. The site of the only land battle fought on North American soil during WWII, Attu’s evocative heritage reveals rusty Quonset huts, the occasional spent cartridge shell, and other military artifacts attesting to the American occupation of the island after it was retaken from the Japanese in 1943. Today, a nature walk reveals placid fields of vividly-hued wildflowers carpeting the now green battlefields: lupines, Alaskan paintbrush, and iris.
On Attu, you have a chance to observe the endemic Aleutian races of rock ptarmigan and song sparrow but the island is legendary among birders for its reputation as a magnet for Asian species such as wood sandpiper and olive-backed pipit which regularly stray across the Bering Strait to make landfall on this lonely outpost.
Days 13-14 : At Sea / Cross International Date Line
Today spend a relaxing day at sea and lose a day as you cross the International Date Line.
Day 15 : Petropavlovsk, Russia
Upon arrival and clearance, set out for an exploration of Petropavlovsk, one of the oldest towns in the Russian Far East. Vitus Bering arrived in Kamchatka and laid the first foundation stone in 1740 in this huge and well-sheltered harbor. Hospitable local guides bring you to the museum of ethnography and natural history, the gold-domed Orthodox cathedral, and the marketplace.
Day 16 : Kronotskiy Biosphere Reserve
In 1934 the Soviet Union set aside this beautiful area as a reserve and since then it has been declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site. It is one of the most pristine parts of the Kamchatka Peninsula and features volcanoes, some of which are still active; hot springs; and geysers. Though not inhabited, it is still used extensively by small numbers of indigenous people.
Day 17 : Petropavlovsk / Disembark Clipper Odyssey
Today, for those not continuing on Voyage II, disembark the Clipper Odyssey and transfer to the airport for your independent flights home.
Ship Description: Odyssey (ZE)
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Odyssey
The Odyssey was built in 1989 in Tsu, Japan, by Japanese craftsmen to the design of a master Dutch yacht designer, Studio Acht, and is eminently suited for the year-round itineraries in the Pacific. These range from as far south as New Zealand and Australia's Great Barrier Reef, to as far north as Japan, the Kuril Islands, and the Russian Far East, including the Kamchatka Peninsula.
The Odyssey measures 340 feet long, 51 feet wide, and has a draft of 14 feet. Staterooms are all outside and average a generous 186 square feet in size, and are furnished with either twin or queen-size beds and a sitting area with a sofa. Each cabin features a spacious bathroom with tub baths and shower, individually controlled air-conditioning, in-room music system, ample wardrobe space, three-sided mirrors, personal safe, refrigerator, and television.
A fleet of Zodiac landing craft can be launched in minutes to take passengers ashore in places where no infrastructure exists. The vessel is equipped with state-of-the-art satellite navigation and communication equipment including telephone, fax, and email.
An outdoor swimming pool, dedicated jogging track, and two sun decks offer ample opportunities for outdoor recreation. Inside, the spacious public areas of the ship include two lounges, a small library, and a single seating dining room.
An experienced cruise staff, physician, and onboard lecturers accompany all voyages to enhance the passengers’ enjoyment of the places visited.
All meals are prepared to order on board. The ship's chefs, graduates of the finest American culinary schools, combine the highest quality American ingredients with the influences and spices of the places the Odyssey visits. The resulting "fusion cuisine" provides a taste of the destinations visited.
Category 1/ A-DeckA Deck, Outside Double Cabin with sitting area, portholes. Approx. 185 sqft |
Category 2/ MainForward Main Deck, Outside Double Cabin with sitting area and a window. Approx. 175 sqft |
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Category 3/ Main Main Deck, Outside Double Cabin with sitting area and a window. Approx. 175 sqft |
Category 4/ Lido Lido Deck, Outside Double Cabin with sitting area and a window. Approx. 175 sqft |
Category 5/ BridgeBridge Deck, Outside Double Cabin with sitting area and a window. Approx. 230 sqft |
Category 6/ Balcony SuiteBridge Deck, Outside Suite with private veranda. Approx. 230 sqft |
Owners SuiteBridge Deck, Outside Suite with separate bedroom and private veranda. Approx. 310 sqft |
