Trump-Putin Summit Could Disrupt Alaska Peak Travel Season Visitors
The Alaska Travel Industry Association reported there were 2.7 million out-of-state visitors between May and September 2024. Two-thirds (66%) came by cruise ship, with 31% arriving by air. August is the second busiest month for tourism.
Just over a quarter of cruise visitors start or end their cruises in Alaska, mainly at two ports used to call on Anchorage. The remaining cruisers start and end their cruises out of state, mainly from Vancouver and Seattle, making a roundtrip visit.
The location of the proposed presidential meeting has yet to be announced. There are nine U.S. military bases in the state, according to My Base Guide. The bases could serve as possible venues. Having the meeting at a base could minimize disruption. However, Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson is just 15 miles from the state's busiest airport in Anchorage. In March 2021, the United States and China held a two-day high-level meeting at a hotel Anchorage that included then Secretary of State Antony Blinken. According to the Anchorage Daily News there were no road closures. However, when Chinese President Xi Jinping visited the city in 2017 following a meeting with Trump at Mar a Lago, Seward Highway was closed when he decided to take a sightseeing trip.
Alaska Governor Mike Dunleavy welcomed the use of the 49th state as a venue.
On Friday, he posted on X, "I welcome the upcoming meeting between President Donald J. Trump and Russia's President Putin being held here in the great state of Alaska. Alaska is the most strategic location in the world, sitting at the crossroads of North America and Asia, with the Arctic to our north and the Pacific to our south. With a mere two miles separating Russia from Alaska, no other place plays a more vital role in our national defense, energy security, and Arctic leadership. What happens in the Arctic and the Pacific impacts Alaska before the rest of the country. It's fitting that discussions of global importance take place here. For centuries, Alaska has been a bridge between nations, and today, we remain a gateway for diplomacy, commerce, and security in one of the most critical regions on earth. The world will be watching, and Alaska stands ready to host this historic meeting."
During Trump's most recent visit to Scotland, reports say there were road closures and minimal flight disruptions to scheduled airlines. During the 2021 meeting between Putin and then U.S. President Joseph Biden in Geneva, Switzerland, the Swiss government deployed over 1,000 extra troops for security, and despite airspace restrictions, there were minimal delays for flights at Geneva International Airport.
Travel advisors and suppliers attending Virtuoso Travel Week in Las Vegas, accustomed to rapidly adjusting operations and arrangements in response to storms, political unrest, strikes, and IT outages, say that they have not been informed about any potential impact from the Trump-Putin meeting.
The travel advisors are likely to be on the front lines of any disruptions. PhocusWire estimates that about 70% of cruises are booked through travel agents.
Cruise ships beginning or ending their voyages at Anchorage typically dock at Seward or Whittier, according to Visit Anchorage's website. Whittier is 60 miles away and a "drive of roughly an hour and a half." Seward is about three hours on the road, located 120 miles to the southeast on the Kenai Peninsula.
According to Visit Anchorage's website, Silver Moon and Silver Nova of Silversea Cruises are scheduled to dock in Seward on Thursday, the day before the proposed summit, with both arriving at 7 am and expected to depart at 7 pm. Together, the luxury ships have a capacity of just over 1,300 guests.
The Celebrity Cruises Summit, with a capacity of 2,158 guests, is scheduled to visit Seward, arriving at 6 am on the day of the meeting, departing at 10 pm. Both lines are units of Royal Caribbean International.
The Caribbean Princess of Princess Cruises, with a capacity of 3,140 guests, is scheduled for Whittier on Saturday. Hurtigruten Expeditions' Roald Amundsen, with a capacity of 600 passengers, is due to call at Seward on the same day.
Many visitors to Denali Park arrive or depart by train, car or motorcoach from Anchorage, making the city a busy hub for tourists during the peak season. Ted Stevens International Airport handles over three million passengers per year, according to the airport's website. Alaska Airlines and Delta Air Lines have 20 nonstop flights from Anchorage to Seattle currently scheduled for Friday.
Five ships are due to call in Juneau this Thursday, including Norwegian Cruise Lines' Norwegian Jade, plus Holland America's Nieuw Amsterdam, Celebrity Solstice, Carnival Legend, and Grand Princess. Friday, the day of the Trump-Putin meeting, sees Royal Caribbean's Quantum of the Seas, which holds nearly 5,000 passengers, as well as ships from Disney and Holland America.
Visitors to Alaska are accustomed to disruptions, which can result in shifting or missing ports due to weather, landslides, and even volcanic activity. In May, Cruise Critic reported that Mt. Spurr, an active volcano near Anchorage, could disrupt cruises. Major cruise lines told the website at the time that they were "prepared to alter itineraries" as needed.
Marc Telio of Entrée Destinations, which specializes in ultra-luxury travel to Alaska, said he had not heard anything.
In Las Vegas, sales executives from major cruise lines, who were presenting to travel advisors, reported that there had been no internal messaging about potential disruptions as of this morning. Travel advisors also stated that they had received no information from suppliers.
Flight restrictions during domestic U.S. presidential trips typically have the most impact on private flights. However, there is usually a freeze on operations at airports, grounding all flights for some period before arrival and then until dignitaries clear the airport. Road closures can cause traffic delays. Heightened security can mean longer lines at airports. A one-day meeting where presidential aircraft and support teams are on the ground, especially with arrangements being made on the fly, increases the possibility of mayhem for travelers.
"If you didn't book through a travel advisor, and there are disruptions, you will likely spend hours on hold. It's just another reason smart travelers use travel advisors," says James Shillinglaw, Editor-in-Chief and Co-founder of Insider Travel Report, an online publication for advisors.
Consumers who booked trips with online travel agencies and directly with suppliers have found out the hard way that during major disruptions, supplier 800 numbers can be overwhelmed with calls, resulting in long hold times or dropped calls.
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