World Cruises
Two World Cruises, One Pacific Crossing: Volendam vs Coral Princess
MS Volendam and Coral Princess took opposite paths around the planet, but wrapped their 2026 world voyages with the same Pacific crossing from Hakodate, Japan into Alaska.
Two ships, two world cruises, mirror-image routes around the planet — but one shared finale: a North Pacific crossing from Hakodate, Japan straight into Alaska. MS Volendam (Holland America, 133 days) went south through Cape Horn and Patagonia. Coral Princess (Princess Cruises, 131 days) went west through the Panama Canal. They left Hakodate within three days of each other and emerged into Alaskan waters within four. Same finish line, the planet between them looked completely different.
The shared finale: Hakodate → Alaska
| Leg | Volendam | Coral Princess |
|---|---|---|
| Departed Hakodate | Apr 17, 2026 | Apr 20, 2026 |
| First Alaska port | Kodiak (Apr 24) | Whittier (Apr 28) |
| Days at sea (Hakodate → Alaska) | 7 | 8 |
The North Pacific crossing is the underrated headline — eight days of open water with northern-latitude lows, swell, and the kind of monotony that defines transit cruising. For passengers who started in tropical Caribbean and routed through every climate on the planet, this is the home stretch.
Side-by-side spec
| MS Volendam | Coral Princess | |
|---|---|---|
| Cruise line | Holland America Line | Princess Cruises |
| Built | 1999 (R-class) | 2003 (Coral-class) |
| Length | 778 ft / 237 m | 964 ft / 294 m |
| Tonnage | ~63,000 GT | 91,627 GT |
| Passengers | 1,432 | ~2,000 |
| Crew | ~615 | ~900 |
| Balcony staterooms | Limited (older R-class) | 700 |
| Voyage length | 133 days, round-trip FLL | 131 days, FLL → LAX |
| Signature southern leg | Cape Horn, Patagonia | Skipped — Panama Canal day 5 |
| Pacific crossing | South route via Tahiti, NZ, Australia | Mid route via Hawaii, Tahiti, Fiji, NZ, Australia |
| Alaska ports | 3 (Kodiak, Sitka, Ketchikan) | 7 (Whittier, Hubbard, Glacier Bay, Skagway, Juneau, Sitka, Ketchikan) |
| Glacier Bay permit | No (Holland America has the concession but isn't using it on this voyage) | Yes — scheduled scenic day Apr 30 |
The packing nightmare — every season at once
Spare a thought for the passengers. In four months they sailed through nearly every climate on Earth:
- Tropical Caribbean — January, 80°F, swimwear and shorts
- Cape Horn / Patagonia — February, 40–50°F, gale-force winds, freezing spray (Volendam only)
- South Pacific & French Polynesia — Feb–Mar, 85°F, humid
- Southeast Asia & Singapore — March, 90°F + monsoon humidity, rain gear
- Japan in spring — April, 55–65°F, light layers and an umbrella
- North Pacific crossing — April, mid-40s°F on deck with stiff wind and possible swell
- Early-spring Alaska — Apr 24–28, 30s–40s°F, snow possible at sea level, glacier days even colder
Swimwear and parkas. Hiking boots and formal nights. Rain jackets, fleece, base layers, sunscreen, mosquito repellent, gloves, sun hats. World-cruise packing lists are legendary — and these two voyages are exhibit A.
Why ending in Alaska is the move
For Holland America and Princess, the world cruise → Alaska handoff is a logistics bridge. A ship that spent the winter circumnavigating doesn't need a separate repositioning leg before the summer Alaska season starts; it just disembarks the world-cruise passengers in Seattle or LA, takes a short turnaround, and starts running weekly Alaska sailings out of the same homeport. It's the same ship, the same crew, the same hotel infrastructure — just a different paying audience.
It also means the late-April Alaska season opener is reliably a world-cruise ship. In 2026 that's Princess's Coral Princess at Whittier (April 28) and Holland America's Volendam at Kodiak (April 24). Both followed Norwegian's MS Noordam, which was first into Ketchikan on April 22 — but Noordam came up the West Coast, not via Hakodate.
Watch them now
- Volendam: ship tracker · next port Sitka on April 26
- Coral Princess: ship tracker · arrives Whittier April 28
- See both on the live Alaska dashboard
Sources
Frequently asked questions
- What is a world cruise?
- A world cruise is a single-voyage circumnavigation that visits every continent except Antarctica, typically lasting 100 to 180 days. Most are operated by premium lines (Holland America, Princess, Cunard, Silversea) on a single ship that becomes the passenger's home for the season. Itineraries vary by line and year, but most depart in early January and return in April or May.
- How are Volendam and Coral Princess's world voyages different?
- Volendam (Holland America, 1,432 guests, 133 days) sailed south — Cape Horn, Patagonia, the South Pacific, then west across Asia. Coral Princess (Princess, ~2,000 guests, 131 days) sailed west — Panama Canal on day 5, Hawaii, then mid-Pacific to Asia. Different hemispheres, same finish in Alaska.
- What ports do both ships share?
- Both wrapped their voyages with the same final ocean leg: a North Pacific crossing from Hakodate, Japan into Alaska. Volendam left Hakodate April 17, arriving Kodiak April 24 (7 days at sea). Coral Princess left Hakodate April 20, arriving Whittier April 28 (8 days at sea).
- How much do world cruises cost?
- Inside cabins on Volendam's 133-day voyage started around $25,000 per person; suites ran past $250,000. Coral Princess's 131-day voyage was similar. Single-segment fares (boarding for just one leg, like the Pacific crossing) are sold separately at much lower prices when capacity allows.
- Why do world cruises end in Alaska?
- It's a logistics bridge. Holland America and Princess both use Alaska as the summer deployment for ships that spent the winter on a world voyage. Ending in Alaska in late April lets the line drop world-cruise passengers in Seattle or LA and immediately start summer Alaska itineraries with the same ship — no empty repositioning required.