Inside passage

[Markanddonna]

I read that bigger ships don't go in the inside passage where it is more scenic and calm.  Does anyone have an estimate on which ships don't do the inside passage?

[martincath]

28 minutes ago, Markanddonna said:

I read that bigger ships don't go in the inside passage where it is more scenic and calm.  Does anyone have an estimate on which ships don't do the inside passage?

It's actually a pretty short list - even the ridiculously big cruise ships CAN use the Inside Passage with one exception, Princess' Royal class. They're the only ones banned - because they lack maneuverability not because they are big! All the others are fine, but economics dictates that nobody leaving Seattle is going to spend more time and fuel sailing up in the inside of the Island so basically only ships sailing out of Vancouver take the route (except some of the high price, low pax expedition type boats that might visit many small ports up the coast).

 

Vancouver access is limited by the space under Lions Gate bridge - if you check the arrival and departure times of Royal class, NCL Bliss and other monster ships, they are often in the wee small hours as that's when low tide is that day. I can't recall for the life of me which big Celebrity vessel it is, but one of them has funnels that can be 'flipped down' to enable access while others within the same class always sail from Seattle.

 

So if you avoid the basically-terrible-for-Alaska Royal Class ships - which suck for public viewing areas as well as cheaping out on steering gear - odds are nearly 100% ANY vessel that sails out of or into Vancouver will use the BC Inside Passage. Only exception I can think of is for some bizarre reason NCL Spirit - which is going around the outside of the Island Southbound this season according to the cruise maps, but is still allowed to use the IP as they do use it heading North! No idea what the deal is there, that's a head-scratcher!

Edited February 14, 2023 by martincath

[Markanddonna]

2 hours ago, martincath said:

It's actually a pretty short list - even the ridiculously big cruise ships CAN use the Inside Passage with one exception, Princess' Royal class. They're the only ones banned - because they lack maneuverability not because they are big! All the others are fine, but economics dictates that nobody leaving Seattle is going to spend more time and fuel sailing up in the inside of the Island so basically only ships sailing out of Vancouver take the route (except some of the high price, low pax expedition type boats that might visit many small ports up the coast).

 

Vancouver access is limited by the space under Lions Gate bridge - if you check the arrival and departure times of Royal class, NCL Bliss and other monster ships, they are often in the wee small hours as that's when low tide is that day. I can't recall for the life of me which big Celebrity vessel it is, but one of them has funnels that can be 'flipped down' to enable access while others within the same class always sail from Seattle.

 

So if you avoid the basically-terrible-for-Alaska Royal Class ships - which suck for public viewing areas as well as cheaping out on steering gear - odds are nearly 100% ANY vessel that sails out of or into Vancouver will use the BC Inside Passage. Only exception I can think of is for some bizarre reason NCL Spirit - which is going around the outside of the Island Southbound this season according to the cruise maps, but is still allowed to use the IP as they do use it heading North! No idea what the deal is there, that's a head-scratcher!

Thank you for the well written explanation.

[bonvoyagie]

technically there are two inside passages - one in Canada on the inside of Vancouver Island and the Alaska one where Ketchikan, Juneau and Skagway are. You are on an inside passage anytime you have land on both sides of the ship. 

[Coral]

14 hours ago, martincath said:

Only exception I can think of is for some bizarre reason NCL Spirit - which is going around the outside of the Island Southbound this season according to the cruise maps, but is still allowed to use the IP as they do use it heading North! No idea what the deal is there, that's a head-scratcher!

I have a friend on the Spirit - I didn't realize it is only one direction is sailing outside of Vancouver Island.

[martincath]

9 hours ago, Coral said:

I have a friend on the Spirit - I didn't realize it is only one direction is sailing outside of Vancouver Island.

It was your post on another thread about that which made me go look, because it seemed so bizarre! Initially I thought maybe this is yet another ship still sailing despite having propulsion issues, so the pilots had refused it passage, but when I saw the maps had it going up one way and down the other it just got more bizarre...

[Heidi13]

19 hours ago, bonvoyagie said:

technically there are two inside passages - one in Canada on the inside of Vancouver Island and the Alaska one where Ketchikan, Juneau and Skagway are. You are on an inside passage anytime you have land on both sides of the ship. 

 

Sorry, but that isn't correct.

 

The "Inside Passage" extends all the way from about Olympia up to Skagway. In BC waters, the portion to the East of Vancouver Island (Johnstone Strait) is less than half the total Inside Passage, as it continues from the top of Vancouver island from Queen Charlotte Sound to Dixon Entrance.

 

Since I used to complete 2 round trips each week along the BC Coast, it also has a couple of areas where you don't have land on both sides.

[Coral]

2 hours ago, martincath said:

It was your post on another thread about that which made me go look, because it seemed so bizarre! Initially I thought maybe this is yet another ship still sailing despite having propulsion issues, so the pilots had refused it passage, but when I saw the maps had it going up one way and down the other it just got more bizarre...

And here I thought it was emission related. It apparently is not.

[bonvoyagie]

yes the Jewel goes inside on both direction and also spends a similar amount of time in Ketchikan.