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PORT OF SEATTLE
SHINES AS RISING STAR IN CLIA CRUISE HOMEPORT
PHENOMENON
700,000 cruisers
expected to sail from Seattle this
year
 Since
the inception of Cruise Lines International
Association (CLIA) in 1975 the number of U.S.
"homeports" - cities from which cruise ships offer
regular departures - available to North American
travelers has nearly tripled. Travelers now have an
unprecedented selection of 30 homeports from which
to choose, with the Port of Seattle among the most
popular.
Once an infrequent port of call
for the cruise lines, Seattle has experienced
strong growth as a major player in the cruise
industry's expansion into "drive-to" markets. As a
result, Seattle now ranks among the nation's 10
busiest cruise ports, according to the
International Council of Cruise Lines, CLIA's
sister organization and the cruise industry's
regulatory and maritime association.
In 2002, 118,000 passengers
sailed out of Seattle; the number rose to 158,000
passengers in 2003 and last year the port hosted
562,000 cruise guests on 150 port calls. This year,
Seattle expects to welcome more than 170 cruise
ship visits and nearly 700,000
guests.
"The growth of homeports is an
extremely positive trend for the cruise industry.
Cruise lines realize that North Americans desire
departure ports within driving distance,
eliminating the need to fly," said Terry L. Dale,
president and CEO of CLIA - the cruise industry's
chief marketing organization and North America's
largest travel industry association based on agency
membership.
Close-to-home embarkation ports
significantly reduce the overall price of a cruise
vacation. For example, a family of four on a
seven-day Alaska cruise departing from Seattle will
save hundreds of dollars in airfare by eliminating
the cost of air travel to Vancouver.
This year the following cruise
lines will offer regular departures from the Port
of Seattle:
CELEBRITY CRUISES
The line's Mercury will operate
primarily on seven-day Inside Passage sailings from
Seattle to Alaska. Highlights of the itinerary
include cruising the Inside Passage, Juneau,
Skagway, cruising Glacier Bay, Ketchikan and
Victoria.
HOLLAND AMERICA LINE
Amsterdam and Oosterdam will
operate on seven-day Alaskan Explorer itineraries.
Amsterdam will sail itinerary include Glacier Bay,
Juneau, Sitka, Ketchikan and Victoria. Oosterdam
will cruise Hubbard Glacier and call at Juneau,
Sitka, Ketchikan and Victoria.
NORWEGIAN CRUISE LINE
Norwegian Star's seven-day
itineraries include the Inside Passage, Juneau,
Skagway, Glacier Bay, Ketchikan and Victoria.
Norwegian Spirit's sailings visit the Inside
Passage, Ketchikan, Juneau, Sawyer Glacier, Skagway
and Prince Rupert Island.
PRINCESS CRUISES
Diamond Princess and Sapphire
Princess will feature seven-day voyages calling at
Juneau, Skagway, Ketchikan and Victoria, plus
cruising through Tracy Arm and Sawyer Glaciers.
Diamond Princess will offer 20 such voyages and
Sapphire Princess 19.
For more information on CLIA
member cruise lines, contact a CLIA-member travel
agency. To locate an agency near you, use the
Travel Agent Locator on CLIA's website at
www.cruising.org.
About CLIA:
The Cruise Lines International
Association (CLIA) is the premier nonprofit cruise
industry marketing organization comprising 19
leading cruise lines, which collectively
accommodate 95 percent of North American cruise
passengers. CLIA member travel agencies - of which
there are 16,500 - are considered the consumer's
very best resource when planning a cruise vacation.
For more information on CLIA, cruise vacations, its
member cruise lines and travel agencies, visit
www.cruising.org
CONTACT:
CLIA
Brian Major
(212) 660-1735
bmajor@cruiseassoc.com
M. SILVER ASSOCIATES
Gary Gerbino
(954) 689-6397
gary@msilver-pr.com
Seattle:
Gateway to Puget Sound, Olympic Peninsula, Western
Washington and
Alaska
by
Jerry W. Bird
 I
have always admired
the
Boeing
Aircraft
Company,
whose home base is in the Seattle area, and have
hopes of including a tour of this marvelous
world-class complex as well as the spectacular
Museum
of Flight
at
Boeing Field in our 2003 Air and Marine Travel Show
series. Most of our delegates from North America
and overseas, being members of the aviation and
travel industry, will applaud the decision. My
personal connection with the City of Seattle goes
back decades - my father Don Bird was born here and
my maternal grandfather Ernie Somerton grew up in
nearby Edmonds, before moving north to Vancouver.
When it comes to fond memories of Seattle, Tacoma
and Western Washington,
I'll never
forget the wintry day driving west from Calgary,
Alberta, when my son Ron (then 12) and I were
having visions of Ivar's famous clam chowder, which
I described to him in glowing detail. The visions
began appearing like a mirage, while our car was
still plowing its way through the snowbound
Cascade
Mountains
east of Everett, Washington. The deep tummy rumbles
grew more intense each few miles as we neared the
city. Finally seated at Ivar's famous dining room
on Seattle's Elliott Bay waterfront, our waiter
asked, “Do you wantdthe small, large or
colossal bowl of chowder? Being almost as famished
as street urchins in the musical comedy "Oliver,"
we both chimed in at once, "The colossal bowl of
course. " You should have seen Ron's eyes bug out
when the order was finally placed before us --
Ivar's soup bowls were not
unlike those white porcelain wash basins that were
once the standard in rural Canadian hotel
rooms.
 And
each colossal bowl was brimful of fat, saucy clams,
swimming in a steamy, succulent broth. I get hunger
pangs and warm feelings all over again just
thinking about it. Ivar's Restaurant is like a
village museum; all of the walls and hallways, even
the washrooms, are lined with photos of early days
on the bustling Seattle waterfront. Many dated back
to the days of the Klondike Gold Rush, when Seattle
jockeyed with the other coastal cities for top
position as supplier to the gold fields. Some
scenes took me back to my childhood in Dawson City,
which was a living museum at the time.
One could easily spend an hour
or more wall watching. I love that whole Elliott
Bay area, with its shops, attractions and
entertainment, ferry terminal and the famous Pike
Street Market perched on top of the hill. By the
way, outside Ivar's is an old fashioned streetcar
that will take you along the harbor
front.
 Second
Home
Seattle has been our second home in the last two
decades, and was our family's original family home.
My dad, Don Bird, was born in Kirkland, a Seattle
suburb on Lake Washington. He later went north to
join the Royal Canadian Mounties, met my mom in the
Yukon, and the rest is history. Yet while I lived
in Northwest Washington State for 6 years, it was
never in the Emerald City. Perhaps that's why I'm
still intimidated by the freeway system. Last
spring, when we drove in downtown Seattle on
business, one of us took a wrong turn and ended up
in the far northern outskirts, by the University,
having had no opportunity to turn around. It was
almost two hours later, thanks to some help from
some kind citizens who kept their eyes peeled, that
we were reunited. Guess which one of us had all the
money, plus bank and credit cards? The day was a
panic anyway, as I had to get my US passport
renewed for a trip to Africa that same week.
Seattle's wacky traffic zoo is always a challenge,
but great fun if you're in a nutty mood.
More
Northwestern USA Gateways: Anchorage/
Moses
Lake/
Portland/
Spokane
  Getting
there from Canada. As an aviation aficionado and ex
RCAF, I enjoy any opportunity to visit Boeing
Field. A quick, convenient way from either
Vancouver or Victoria is by
Helijet
Airways. As an avid desktop
publisher since the first day of the Apple
Macintosh Revolution, the name Microsoft looms
large. This means a lot of Canadians will spend
their time in and around Seattle in the years to
come, as Silicon Valley North threatens to outdo
the original. From Vancouver to the Seattle
(Sea-Tac) Airport by car, allow at least three
hours. The bus service is excellent and leaves from
the Sandman Inn on West Georgia Street.
Another leaf from Bird's book of
great Seattle memories is the "Spirit of
Washington", a superb dinner train that rattles and
rolls from suburban Renton, across a large trestle
bridge, then along Lake Washington to the winery at
Woodinville. Every dining coach is a classic,
conversation piece and no two are even the least
bit identical. Ask the Seattle CVB folks for more
details at 206-431-4444. I honed my writing skills
in Seattle, working with Neil Strother on his
newspaper Seattle Northwest Prime Times, which has
since been sold. Neil is now a top editor in the
Internet Media field; we will link you to some of
his articles first chance we get.
Living in the Vancouver, BC area
as a child, and since Expo '86 as an adult,
Seattle' has always been a magnet, with Pike Street
Market, a bustling waterfront, lush flower gardens,
and a water wonderland embracing Mercer Island,
Bellevue and my dad's home town of Kirkland. Our
favorite supermarket by far is Larry's near Sea-Tac
airport; stop a while and stock up for the picnic
of your lifetime, or just feast your eyes. Our top
department store, especially for clothing, is
Nordstroms, a Seattle original. Add to those
choices, some favorite bed and breakfast, hotels
and dining spots, and the combination makes Seattle
a place you don't mind being sleepless
in.
We've vowed to see a Mariners or
Seahawks game in their new stadium before long. The
population of Seattle and the greater Puget Sound
area is 3,000,000 and bursting at the seams. Yet
thanks the natural boundaries of hills and water,
most neighborhoods, such as Kirkland, have a small
town feeling, friendly and laid back. While
umbrellas are common, Seattle's rainfall is often
exaggerated, even by its citizens. We're told the
annual rainfall here is 36 inches, less than New
York and other cities with no special reputation
for rain. During the rainy winter season it seldom
pours buckets. In this moderate climate, Seattle's
rain usually arrives in the form of passing showers
or a gentle mist.
Washington State
Airport Profiles (to come): Boeing Field/King
County International, Paine Field/ Snohomish
Country, Arlington Municipal, Bellingham
International, Bremerton National, Renton
Municipal, Snohomish Airport (Harvey
Field)
Free Online Map of Seattle
Airport from MapQuest: http://www.mapquest.com/cgi-bin/ia_find
Helijet
Airlines or Amtrak?
Fly the
Super City Triangle to Seattle via Vancouver and
Victoria or take the Train.
Much more to come, including transportation by
rail(Amtrak and Washington State Transportation are
urging an extra scheduled train to Vancouver to
improve service). Also ferry and cruise ship routes
and contacts.
Washington
Aerospace Alliance
Seattle Tower, Suite 1600,
1218 Third Ave
Seattle,WA 98101. Email:kmiller@apcoassoc.com
Tel: (206) 443-5712. Fax: (206) 224-4344
Website: www@waa.net
With over 150 members, the WAA is the largest
aerospace association in the world, recognized for
the quality and capabilities of it's membership.
The mission of the Washington Aerospace Alliance
(WAA) is to promote collaboration among Washington
aerospace suppliers to reduce manufacturing costs,
improve productivity, develop new products,
increase sales and organize strategic marketing
initiatives on behalf of the industry in areas
beyond the reach of individual member
companies.
Everett, Wa
and Snohomish County:
'Tis the
season for salmon fishing, now through December.
The latest copy of Snohomish
County's Story line tells of River Meadows Park for
pink salmon, South Fork of Stillaguamish River,
Jordan Creek near Arlington. Also pink and chum
near Darrington, pink and coho at Borlin Park, and
several other choice spots. Get more details from
sandy@snohomish.org, or
www.snomomish.org
Sandy Ward, Executive
Director
Snohomish County Tourism Bureau
1-800-425-328-5802
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