Alaska Tourism Numbers Down

Alaska Tourism officials are scrambling to entice more visitors north to Alaska. The declining numbers in recent years, however, may be partly their own fault. And it's probably good news for RVers, at least in the short run.

For more than two decades tourism marketing efforts in Alaska have been aimed almost exclusively at one group of travelers--those who take an Alaskan cruise of seven days duration and then add a couple of side trips like an overnight trek to Denali National Park on the Alaska Railroad. All the rest of us, like RVers, have pretty much been ignored with all the marketing eggs being put in the cruise ship basket. Now, however, the number of cruise ship passengers visiting Alaska has fallen dramatically.

In 2009, cruise lines offered unbelievable deals to try and fill their ships. There were still empty berths, and several ships are being pulled off the Alaska routes in 2010 as a result. This means fewer cruise ship visitors to Alaska in 2010, perhaps as many as 150,000 fewer, which, in reality, is a big plus for RVers. Fewer cruise ship passengers means RVers will have less competition for such things as wildlife bus trips into Denali National Park and other attractions that are often jammed to capacity by cruise ship passengers who are dumped by the busload on popular attractions.

If you're planning a road trip to Alaska, 2010 may be the best year in decades.

Life-long Alaskan Ron Dalby writes about and photographs Alaska and the Alaska Highway. His book, Guide to the Alaska Highway, is available in the RV Bookstore.