Golden Gateway

Arrive San Francisco and upon arrival at the Beacon Grand Hotel on Union Square, take in the views in every direction as you begin a three-night stay at this hotel. Tonight would be a fine time to enjoy a drink at the 'Starlite Room' bar with San Francisco sparkling all around you.

Today we have included a city sightseeing tour followed by a bay cruise that travels past Alcatraz, Angel Island, the Marina District, Marin and under the Golden Gate Bridge. The afternoon is free to shop or sightseeing including nearby Chinatown, Union Square or our favorite, Italian flavored North Beach.

All day to enjoy as you like and a great day to take advantage of lunch or dinner at Tadich Grill with the gift card we provide. Followed by a ride on the cable car or a visit to the Palace of Fine Arts in the Marina district.

A good morning to sleep in and take in a few more sights before our transfer to the pier this afternoon where we board the Ruby Princess. At 4pm the whistle blows and we set sail, passing under the Golden Gate Bridge bound for Alaska, the Great Land.

Time at sea.

Time at sea.

In 1799, the Russian explorer Alexander Baranof founded New Archangel next to the Tlingit village of Sitka.This was the beginning of permanent Russian settlement in North America. But New Archangel was destroyed three years later by the Tlingit Indians in an attempt to reclaim their ancestral home.

A canoe slipped into the mouth of the Chilkat Inlet in November 1879, carrying Presbyterian missionary S. Hall Young and his friend, John Muir.

Just west of Juneau, this national park and preserve boasts some of the world's most tidewater glaciers, such as Margerie Glacier, which often drops colossal chunks of ice into the sea. Not surprisingly, Glacier Bay National Park and its epic ice giants are part of a UNESCO World Heritage Site comprising Alaska's park system.

Ketchikan is known as Alaska's "First City" because it's the first major community travelers come to as they journey north. Located on an island, Ketchikan began life as an Indian fishing camp.

Nestled within a temperate rainforest, it experiences 220 days of rain each year, earning it the poetic nickname "The City of Rainbows. " But from within the raindrops, Prince Rupert shines with heritage charms best seen in its Kwinitsa Railway Station Museum, The Museum of Northern British Columbia and the historic North Pacific Cannery compound.

Cruising the Inside Passage.

Time at sea.

Alaska’s Inside Passage is a coastal journey where glacier-carved fjords, emerald rainforests, and misty mountain peaks meet a maze of sheltered waterways teeming with wildlife—whales breach beside the ship, bald eagles soar overhead, and historic frontier towns offer a glimpse into Alaska’s rugged soul.