A small, niche cruise line sailing in Southeast Alaska has called it quits.
“Effective immediately, Alaskan Dream Cruises has ceased business operations and will no longer be operating future sailings,” the cruise line announced on its website. The decision to cease operations was “essential and necessary,” Jamey Cagle, one of the owners of Alaskan Dream Cruises, told the Daily Sitka Sentinel.
The line’s four ships had no active trips planned until May and the announcement and shared that refunds would be provided to all guests with existing reservations.
Since 2011, Alaskan Dream Cruises had offered spring and summer sailings on four U.S.-flagged ships in Alaska—Chichagof Dream (80 passengers), Admiralty Dream (49 passengers), Baranof Dream (49 passengers) and Alaskan Dream (40 passengers). The fleet is currently laid up in Sitka. Owner Allen Marine, which also owns a significant shore excursion and day boat operations in the region plans to focus on those businesses for the future.
It demonstrates the challenge of running a small seasonal cruise line in competition with a growing fleet of large ships cruising to Alaska.
The demise of Alaskan Dream appears similar to what happened to Cruise West in 2010, reported Insider Travel Report. Cruise West ceased all operations after 64 years in business, following failed attempts to secure financing during the 2008-2010 financial crisis. The Seattle-based small-ship line, famous for cruises of Alaska, Canada and Sea of Cortez, cancelled all its sailings and sold off its fleet.
Small ship line American Queen Cruises ,which also did summer itineraries in Alaska, ceased operations in 2024 due to unsustainable financial losses.
Capt. Dan Blanchard, owner of UnCruise Adventures, which continues to successfully operate small ship cruises to Alaska, Hawaii, the Sea of Cortez and Costa Rica, told Insider Travel Report that the owners of Alaskan Dream Cruises are “making a business decision to focus on the historical business they have been operating since day one at Allen Marine, which is the day-tour boats and shipyard.”
As for what will happen to Alaska Dream’s ships, Blanchard said he knows these vessels since they share docks and anchorages with UnCruise regularly. “As to the disposition of those ships, I am headed to Sitka soon, with some of my team, to take a closer look and see if the shoe fits,” he said. “We also are working with guests [of Alaskan Dream Cruises] who were displaced with great options for them in Alaska and elsewhere.”
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