June, Alaska — For years, a popular part of many Southeast Alaska cruises He was sailing up to Tracy Arm, a long, narrow strait marked by steep mountains, sparkling waterfalls and glaciers.
But the major cruise lines are skipping this season. A massive landslide last summer sent parts of a glacier crashing into the water, creating a tsunami and sending a high wave up the opposite mountain wall. Many companies that chose not to participate cited safety concerns regarding the still-dangerous slopes.
“Tracy Arm is a majestic princess, you know, she’s the queen of the fjords,” travel agent Nate Fallier said.
The destinations and cruise companies have chosen as alternatives — near Endicott Arm and Dawes Glacier — “are still beautiful by any means, but they’re not the same,” he said.
tracy arm, Southeast Juneaua fjord about 30 miles (50 km) long that is home to two tidal-water glaciers – the North and South Suir – and wildlife, including seals and bears.
Early on August 10, 2025, a landslide originating high on a slope above the South Sawyer Toe, near the head of the fjord, sent water rising more than a quarter mile (more than half a kilometer) up the mountain wall opposite the slide and outside Tracy Arm.
Officials said there were no ships in the fjord, and no deaths or injuries were reported. But kayakers camped on an island near where the Tracy and Endicott Arms meet had much of their gear swept away by the rushing waters.
Southeast Alaska, largely surrounded by temperate rainforest He is no stranger to landslides. Although it has long been known that the network of fjords in the Tracy Arm area was vulnerable, the slope that failed had not been identified as an active hazard before last summer’s collapse, said Gabriel Wolken, director of the state’s climate and ice hazards program.
He said that scientists are working not only to understand the cause of the cliff collapse, but to understand other dangers that may exist in the fjord.
Stephen Sobieszczyk, a spokesman for the US Geological Survey, said the area remains unstable. Steep landslide zones continue to change for years after the initial slide, he said via email.
“Rockfall and sliding are expected to continue on a small scale from the exposed landslide scar, and this may impact the water, which may cause local tsunamis in the future,” he said.
Major cruise companies, including Holland America, Carnival Cruise Line and Royal Caribbean, said in response to inquiries from The Associated Press that they would replace the Tracy Arm visit with the Endicott Arm visit. MSC Cruises, Virgin Voyages and regional cruise company Allen Marine also build Endicott and Dawes Glacier instead. Norwegian Cruise Line said it has no cruises sailing by Tracy Arm.
Endicott has already served as a stopover for some ships previously and an alternative when conditions at Tracy Arm, such as excess ice, are unsafe.
Fallier, who owns Alaska Travel Office, said he wished cruise companies would give travelers advance notice of itinerary changes.
After leaving Seattle, the first ships of the season are scheduled to arrive on April 21 in Ketchikan and in Juneau the following week.
Seeing a glacier — especially a dynamic glacier — is an item on many tourists’ bucket lists, which is what has made Tracy Arm so popular, he said. While the Mendenhall Glacier in Juneau is a major attraction of the capital and a cruise port, many visitors view it across a large lake, diminished or completely receding from view from some hiking views.
Kimberly Lebeda of Wichita, Kan., was excited when she booked tickets to the Tracy Arm Tour for her family last year. Lebeda, who researches the areas she visits, said she’s sold on the scenery.
But the night before the stop, they were told that because of the ice at Tracy Arm, they would be boarding Endicott instead. Her family and others who had booked the trip disembarked the ship and boarded a smaller boat with glass windows, plentiful seating and snacks. She said they saw seals on ice floes, waterfalls and a “wall of ice” from the Douz Glacier.
She called it “an amazing thing to witness.”
“Was it worth it? Yes, because I don’t know if I would make this trip again,” she said. “Again, I’ve never been to the Tracy Arm, so I can’t really compare. But for me, was it worth it and was it exciting? Absolutely.”