Soak in a hot tub with seven Alaskan Princesses!

Soak in a hot tub with seven Alaskan Princesses!

P&O Cruises is inviting New Zealanders to sail to the face of Alaska's mightiest glaciers aboard seven 'Princesses' in 2004 and with the rising New Zealand dollar, fares are as low as NZ$3,999 for a seven-night cruise including return airfares from Auckland.

US-based Princess Cruises - a sister line to P&O Cruises - has unveiled its biggest Alaska season to date with the 2004 programme comprising a 'royal family' of seven ships. They include two new megaliners, 120 sailings, stays at five exclusive wilderness lodges and 42 add-on land tours in Alaska and the Canadian Rockies.

Princess Cruises provides the biggest and most modern cruise ships in Alaska next year, including the new megaliners Sapphire Princess and Diamond Princess. Joining them will be the recently-launched sisters Coral Princess and Island Princess as well as the popular twins Dawn Princess and Sun Princess and the Regal Princess.

New Zealanders can choose from seven-night round trip Inside Passage cruises to Alaska's glaciers and villages from Seattle, seven-night one-way Gulf of Alaska sailings from Vancouver to the new Alaska homeport of Whittier and 10-night round trip voyages to Alaska from San Francisco.

Popular road and rail tours into the Alaskan wilderness and Canadian Rockies are also available including stays at Princess Cruises' own deluxe wilderness lodges in Alaska, with several boasting giving views of Alaska's top drawcard - Mt McKinley - North America's highest peak.

Onboard Princess' ships, passengers can soak in outdoor hot tubs and indulge in Alaskan feasts showcasing local cuisine such as salmon, halibut, venison, caribou sausage, fish chowder and crab cakes.

And for an extra charge, passengers can also indulge in a special Glacier Bay Breakfast on their own private balcony, with champagne, smoked salmon, crab and potato quiche, wild forest berries and pastries complementing the stunning glacier scenery.

"Alaska offers one of the world's best cruise experiences," says P&O Cruises strategic business development manager Shannon Currie, "and Princess Cruises has more ships, bigger ships and younger ships than any other cruise line so New Zealanders will be spoilt for choice in 2004.

"And with the rising value of the New Zealand dollar, 2004 is shaping up as THE year to cruise to Alaska aboard a Princess.

Seven-night Alaska cruises are available from NZ$3,999 per person. All fares include cruise, accommodation, all main meals, onboard activities and return flights from Auckland.

Details of Princess Cruises' 2004 Alaska season are included in a special new brochure for the Australasian market.

Bookings and cruise brochures are available from travel agents or by calling the P&O Cruises freephone on 0800 441 766 or by visiting the company's website at www.pocruises.co.nz .

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