Seeing some incredibly rare sights only accessible by ship is just one reason for taking a cruise, travel agent Janine Mallon says.
Seeing two young bears fishing from the rocks under a waterfall, growling, snatching and fighting to protect their catch, is one of my most memorable travel experiences.
That experience was made possible during an on-shore excursion from a cruise ship.
Having travelled by train, bus or coach tour throughout many countries around the world, which is a great way to see lots of different sights, I can recommend ending every holiday with a cruise or simply taking a cruise holiday.
Why? If you truly want the opportunity to relax then unpacking once and having someone take care of cooking all your meals is the best way to do so. Getting to visit a new city every day while enjoying the onboard facilities is just magic.
``I'll get bored,'' you say.
Not a chance. There's an ongoing programme of activities onboard from informative lectures to spa treatments, and then when you dock there's a world of opportunities in each new port and the list of what you can see and do is almost endless.
And if you don't like being part of a big crowd you can take a cruise on a mid-sized ship, where there aren't as many passengers. Or better still, go on a small-ship expedition cruise which has even fewer passengers and docks in places the larger ships can't get to.
Collected from the wharf, we were driven to a small airport where we boarded a floatplane and flew 30 minutes into Pack Creek, Admiralty Island. This island has the highest concentration of brown bears in North America and it was incredible.
After getting off the floatplane, we walked about 15 minutes before setting up and shutting up in the hope of seeing bears. We didn't have to wait long - as we rounded a corner, two younglings walked towards us before one of my fellow travellers exclaimed too loudly and they promptly plodded off into the bush.
After an hour with no further sightings, I was searching the creek bed when, to my excitement, I spotted a large male brown bear sauntering up the other side of the creek.
This was just the beginning of what would be a brown bear-filled last hour with an abundance of sightings: a sow leading her cubs across the creek bed; two more younglings fishing from the rocks under a waterfall, growling, snatching and fighting to protect their catch before chasing each other for a bit of rough and tumble play.
The other occasion also involved wildlife, this time in the Galapagos Islands, where we cruised overnight in a mid-sized yacht, docked in a remote bay and wandered for hours on end viewing the most amazing wildlife, including blue footed boobies and giant turtles.
My roomie and I headed out in a double kayak and ended up in a bay, where to our delight giant turtles were playing: darting after each other right under boat. Initially, it was a shock but then I couldn't get enough.
You could have left me there and I would've been content, but we had to move on as there is a limit to the number of cruises allowed in the area at any one time. May it forever stay that way.
Fellow agents and I have cruised every different style: Jenny Galliven loved cruising the rivers of Europe; Lauren Macshane enjoyed an overnight junk boat cruise in Vietnam; Adam Pope, who worked on large, resort-style ships in the Caribbean for several years, enjoyed a small-ship cruise on Blue Lagoon in Fiji.
Cruising on mid-sized ship Nieuw Amsterdam in Alaska was a great way to see the beautifully scenic and remote parts of the state. While on board we relaxed in the Canyon Ranch Spa and enjoyed dining at the three specialty restaurants, our favourite was the Italian-style Canaletto, with its delicious meals and friendly service.
Sailing from Vancouver up the inside passage past Tracy Arm and the Hubbard Glacier to the towns of Juneau and Skagway was an experience second to none. We have some amazing scenery here in New Zealand, but Alaska's is on a whole other level. The opportunity to take day trips from the cruise and view grizzly bears, as we did, take a flight landing on a glacier or to go dog sledding in the mountains are experiences we would normally only dream of.
Janine Mallon is a travel broker and cruise specialist for Travel Brokers.
Want to know more?
For more information, visit:
www.vikingrivercruises.com.au,
www.worldjourneys.co.nz,
www.avalonwaterways.co.nz,
www.wideeyedtours.com,
www.hollandamerica.com
