Alaska cruise that does not stop in Canada??
 

Are there any Alaskan cruises that do not stop in Canada at all? I would love to travel to Alaska this August, but I'll be traveling with someone who is not allowed to leave the US until his work visa kicks in on October 1st. Basically he cannot be required to go through immigration upon docking at the port when the cruise is over.

Please help! After reading all the lovely reviews and itineraries in this forum, I just NEED to go...

All foreign-flagged cruise ships operating in US waters are required to include a stop in a non-US port on their overall itinerary. That can also be their origin or destination port, e.g. Vancouver. The round-trip cruises operating from Seattle (or a couple from San Francisco) all have to stop in a Canadian port, typically Victoria.

One work-around is a trip on the Alaska State ferry, which leaves from Bellingham WA and does not stop in Canada en route to Alaska. Another would be on smaller lines like Cruise West - http://www.cruisewest.com - which offers cruises from Ketchikan to Juneau or v.v.

Unless you take the marine ferry you will leave the USA to board the ship. Most ships are not registered in the USA but some other country.

Most small ship cruises don't stop in Alaska.

Oops sorry --- that should have read "Most small ship cruises don't stop in Canada."

Gardyloo gave you the best and correct advice. Large ships in US waters MUST stop at a non-US port during their itinerary. I know nothing about the rules for the Alaskan ferry. Personally, I would NOT attempt to go against the rules with the Bush Administration, who have thrown out habeas corpus & make up their own rules and law. Your friend and YOU may find you cannot get back into the US AND they would take away his work visa. Too risky, but you make your own decision.

Thanks for all the advice - I guess I'll have to check out Alaska some other time.

The law is called the Passenger Vessel Services Act and is often mistaken for the &quot;Jones Act.&quot; It applies to <i>foreign flagged</i> vessels, which includes virtually all major cruise line ships. The Jones Act has to do with the definition of foreign ships, or &quot;foreign bottoms&quot; - which are also restricted for intra-US port trade.

The Cruise West boats (AFAIK) and certainly the Alaska ferries are US-registered and flagged ships, so they don't fall under the requirements of the PVSA regarding foreign stops.

I would also mention to the OP that one can easily fly to Anchorage and take cruises on Prince William Sound which are extremely scenic and which would go a long way to the sorts of experience one would get on the bigger cruise lines, without requiring an international transit of any kind.

The PVSA and Jones Act have both been on the books for a really long time, by the way.