The Inside Passage Top-Of-The-Line Cruise Ship Offers Every Amenity On Its Way To Alakan Ports

Picture this: Sailing out of San Francisco Bay aboard a gleaming white cruise ship, under the Golden Gate Bridge, on a sunny afternoon in June, holding a flute of champagne from the captain’s welcoming party….

Our Crystal Cruises trip to Alaska, designated “Gold and Glaciers,” began just that way and it was merely one of the highlights of the next 12 days aboard the Crystal Symphony.

Described in company literature as “the world’s newest large luxury ship,” Crystal Symphony, an imposing 12 decks high, and sister ship Crystal Harmony have earned the line an unprecedented six-star rating from Fielding’s Guide to Worldwide Cruising.

Several other lines also offer cruises to this increasingly popular destination.

Upon boarding, passengers were greeted by stewards and guided to their staterooms. Even the smallest staterooms contain a king-size bed, alpaca lap robes, television with VCR, a safe for valuables, mini-refrigerator and courtesy bar, coffee table and loveseat, two hair dryers, a double-sink bathroom with tub shower and variety of soaps, lotions and shampoos, white terrycloth robes, and a large picture window - no portholes on Crystal Cruises. Plus 24-hour room service and chocolates on the pillows each evening.

Later a stateroom stewardess delivered the first schedule of daily activities and a New York Times news digest and assured us of immediate response to any calls.

So, setting off for Alaska was like being in a first-class luxury resort hotel - at sea.

Ports of call were Victoria and Vancouver, British Columbia, and Ketchikan, Juneau, Skagway and Sitka in Alaska. The ship cruised the Inside Passage and the Misty Fiord after the Vancouver stop, and then visited Glacier Bay and Hubbard Glacier en route to Sitka.

The ship stayed in the ports long enough for either a variety of shore excursions or just general sight-seeing. Crystal Symphony was able to dock in all ports except Sitka, where passengers were taxied to and fro by the ship’s large, enclosed tenders.

Passengers could arrange their own port adventures, but most elected to schedule them through the ship’s shore excursion desk.

For example, and just a sample, we took a limo tour of Victoria; visited Stanley Park and its aquarium in Vancouver; took a 90-minute helicopter ride from Juneau over glaciers and landed on one; rode the White Pass and Yukon Route railroad from Skagway over the famed route to the gold fields.

Others took some of the several nature walks available, Indian culture tours, scenic seaplane flights, tried gold panning, went sea kayaking and fished for salmon. One couple in our group caught a limit of king salmon and had it prepared for dinner that evening - the captain got one of the fish for his table.

In spite of all the marvelous scenery - southeast Alaska’s greenery, snowcapped peaks and icy blue glaciers - it was difficult not to just concentrate on a shipboard lifestyle you would like to have continue indefinitely.

The courtly Norwegian captain and the crew, the latter “trained in the European tradition of hospitality,” according to the cruise line catalog, seemed to make the real world disappear.

Activities? Swim in one of two pools; lounge in the hot tubs; work out in the gym (weights, bikes, treadmills); visit the sauna and steamroom; have a haircut, manicure or massage; take a golf lesson or play paddle tennis; jog or power walk the promenade deck (3.72 laps to the mile); have a bridge lesson; go to a movie (matinee or evening); check out a book or video from the library; send a fax from the business center; join the dance class; shop in the boutiques; gamble in the Caesars Palace at Sea; attend a lecture by Caspar Weinberger or columnist-author Frances Weaver (among others); decide which cocktail hour pianist you want to hear in which lounge (three choices); have your picture taken in formal wear before dancing at the Starlite Club; attend a Broadway-style musical production at the Galaxy Show Lounge … well, you get the idea.

And the food! Starting with bouillon for the early risers and ending at midnight with an extravagant buffet, there was something for every appetite.

The main dining room served three elaborate meals daily on Villeroy and Boche china and Frette linens - no paper napkins anywhere aboard - with new menus every day. Specialty restaurants for dinner: Prego for Italian cuisine, the Jade Garden for Asian dishes.

The Lido Cafe on the 11th deck offered breakfast and lunch buffets with made-to-order omelets and pastas. The Trident Bar and Grill (and ice cream parlor) made poolside noshing simple. The Bistro Cafe was open for lattes and pastry in the morning, wine and a light snack later in the day. And, of course, tea time every afternoon in the Palm Court.

Finally, the ubiquitous and irresistible hors d’oeuvres in the lounges during the cocktail hours. Smiling waiters helping you add pounds.

When we boarded, as first-time cruise passengers, veteran travelers assured us, “Oh, this ship will spoil you for any other.”

You know what? They were right.

, DataTimes ILLUSTRATION: Color photo Map of area

MEMO: This sidebar appeared with the story: FARES Fares for Crystal Cruises’ 12-day Alaska voyage range from $4,653 to $14,891 per person, double occupancy. Discounts are available. For more information, contact Crystal Cruises, 2121 Avenue of the Stars, Suite 200, Los Angeles, CA 90067; (800) 446-6620.