Small Ship Sailing By Flash on Feb 09, 2008 - Updated Oct 15, 2011

I have always been skeptical of cruises with my "5000 closest instant friends" that are offered by the big cruise ships, so when an opportunity presented itself to see Alaska from a small ship, we jumped at the opportunity. By "small ship" I am talking about cruises with 100 or less passengers in shallow drafting boats that can go where the big cruise lines can't. Our cruise with Cruise West had only about thirty passengers, the crew and a knowledgeable guide. We chose a cruise that would have us sleeping ashore every night, though there are sleep aboard possibilities for some of their cruises. While some meals were had on board, others were at interesting locations ashore. Our goal was to see Alaska and its wildlife and this little boat had us close to the water, feet away from whales and other salt water mammals. A wonderful experience with great folks.