The sheltered waters of Alaska’s Prince William Sound are home to families of Orcas, Humpback Whales, Steller’s Sea Lions and playful pods of Dall Porpoises. Over 4,500 Sea Otters call the Sound home, whilst on land live Grizzly and Black Bears, Mountain Goats and Moose. In early May, huge numbers of migrating waders and waterbirds stop off here to refuel, many timing their arrival with the sudden glut of food created by the annual spawning of the herring. White-billed Divers are fairly common, Pacific Divers are numerous and large flocks of mixed scoter and Long-tailed Ducks fill the bays. Flocks of Surfbirds pick herring roe from the rocky shoreline alongside Wandering Tattlers, whilst nearly the entire world population of around three and a half million Western Sandpipers stop over to feed on the vast mudflats of the Copper River Delta! These transient migrants join, albeit briefly, an equally exciting range of breeding birds including Tufted and Horned Puffins, Kittlitz’s Murrelet, Varied Thrush, White-crowned Sparrow and the rare Red-faced Cormorant … all backed by some of the most spectacular scenery in the Americas! This unique 14-day holiday will be split into two parts. Firstly, we stay in the small coastal community of Cordova to enjoy the huge concentrations of waders that flock to the Copper River Delta in early May. We then board the MV Discovery, a comfortable 12-berth motor vessel, for a 7-night wildlife and scenery cruise around Prince William Sound.

For a more specific itinerary, click here.