CLARITA, CA — Sailing more guests to Alaska than any other cruise line, Princess Cruises has kicked off the start of its 2018 Alaska cruise season with seven ships including the newly upgraded Golden Princess.

Princess has 130 Alaska departures from Seattle, San Francisco, Los Angeles, Vancouver and Whittier, AK. In addition Princess offers 22 cruisetour options in 2018, most featuring multiple nights at Princess-owned and operated wilderness lodges to experience Denali. Guests will once again be able to purchase a pre-paid meal package for the land portion of their vacation in 2018.

Highlights include Princess’ ‘North to Alaska’ program, featuring the line’s ‘Cook My Catch’, allowing guests to return from select Princess fishing excursions to have the chef prepare their catch of the day. Another popular draw is ‘Puppies in the Piazza’, where real Alaska sled dog puppies are brought onboard in Skagway for guests to interact with.

Guests venturing into the interior of Alaska on a Princess cruisetour visiting Mt. McKinley Princess Wilderness Lodge will be some of the first to visit the lodge’s newest addition: a wilderness treehouse.

“This year our guests will be delighted by the newly designed guest experiences highlighting the history of Alaska and its people that adds a unique layer to an already unbelieve cruise vacation,” says Princess Cruises VP Lisa Syme.

Princess is also debuting a new dining venue at the line’s Kenai Princess Wilderness Lodge, called Rod & Reel. The restaurant renovation is the latest enhancement to the lodge located on the Kenai Peninsula, and will offer new menu items for both lunch and dinner.

The cruise line is also showing off its newly updated Princess-owned rail cars operating on the Alaska railroad, taking travellers between the cruise ship and Princess Wilderness Lodges on the line’s Direct-to-the-Wilderness rail service. The rail journey now features forward-facing seats in the upper level dome for all guests, as well as updated interiors.