Busy Juneau cruise season comes to an end

JUNEAU, Alaska – Juneau’s 2018 cruise season has come to an end.

KTOO-FM in Juneau reports the industry projected about 80,000 more passengers this year compared to 2017.

Kirby Day, the port manager for Princess Cruises and the Holland America Group in Juneau, says final industry numbers and projections for next year likely will come in the next week or two.

Summer tour guide Cam Byrnes testified last month at a Juneau Assembly meeting that the local tourism industry is already strained under the increased number of visitors.

The 2018 summer season welcomed the arrival of Alaska’s first mega-ship, the Norwegian Bliss.

Byrnes says the ship routinely left late due to the large number of passengers it had to load and unload each week.

Several more ships are scheduled to arrive next year in southeast Alaska.

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Information from: KTOO-FM, http://www.ktoo.org