March 2011 was when Unlock the Past dipped their toes in the water (so to speak), holding their first history and genealogy cruise.
Since then they, along with thousands of others, have enjoyed genealogy conferences while cruising the Pacific Islands, visiting New Zealand, Papua New Guinea, the UK, Scandinavia and the Baltic regions, and even a European River cruise, and of course Australia.
But now the countdown for their next cruise. The 2018 one to ALASKA … and now it’s it’s just one year away.
Alaska will be the 14th cruise that Unlock the Past have hosted, this one will be on an incredible ship, you’ll see incredible scenery AND you have a fabulous group of world class genealogy presenters, so this will most certainly be an unforgettable cruise for everyone who attends.
WHEN: 7-14 September 2018
ITINERARY: Seattle, USA > Inside Passage, Canada > Juneau, USA > Skagway, USA > Tracy Arm, USA > Victoria, Canada > Seattle, USA
SHIP: Royal Caribbean’s Explorer of the Seas. The Explorer of the Seas has 15-decks, and 1557-stateroom ship which accommodates 3840 guests was revitalized in 2015 to bring signature Royal Caribbean innovations like the FlowRider surf simulator, virtual balconies for interior staterooms and a variety of new dining experiences onboard. Take a virtual tour of the ship here.
COST: from AU$1471 (approx US$1100, GB£870) and includes all onboard accommodation, standard meals, taxes, gratuities and conference cost.
PRESENTERS:
Chris Paton (Scotland)
Dick Eastman (USA),
Dr Janet Few (England)
Jan Gow (New Zealand)
Caroline Gurney (England)
Shauna Hicks (Australia)
Cyndi Ingle (USA)
Eric Kopittke (Australia)
Rosemary Kopittke (Australia)
Mike Murray (Australia)
Mile High Transcripts (USA)
Michelle Patient (New Zealand)
Pat Richley-Erickson (aka Dear Myrtle) (USA)
Helen Smith (Australia)
with more still to come …
PRE-CRUISE CONFERENCE: The pre-cruise conference in Seattle will feature both Chris Paton (Scotland) and Blaine Bettinger (USA), and those who are cruising, and those who aren’t, are welcome to attend this day conference which will be held before the cruise starts.
NEED MORE REASONS TO ATTEND? How many do you want? Having been on a number of the UTP cruises myself, I can personally say that they are a lot of fun, you will make new friends, and you will learn so MUCH and you get to do this while visiting amazing places. And more often that not family connections are made between those in the group. Strange but true, so you just never know.
For those who have not been in a UTP cruise before, essentially it is a genealogy conference held on board a cruise ship. For the days the ship is at sea, there’s a full conference program, and you pick and choose what talks you wish to go to, and when the ship is docked feel free to go ashore and enjoy the sites. As it is still a year away, the program hasn’t been set as yet, but there is likely to be around 45 different talks, covering a whole range of topics. There will also be time scheduled for Unlock the Past’s “Research Help Zone” which is where you get to talk one-on-one with the experts, and hopefully break down that brick wall.
MORE INFORMATION: For more information visit www.unlockthepastcruises.com/alaska, and if you’re in Australia you can book or register your interest with Ciaran at Clean Cruising, or for those in the US you can contact Terri at O’Connell Travel.
While the Alaksa cruise is still a year away, it is booking well. So if you are interested, don’t wait until the last minute. We hope to see you onboard.
