SEATTLE, Feb. 1 -- Alaska tourism began as a dream for Cruise
West founder Charles B. (Chuck) West. In 1946, after having served as a Hump
pilot in Indo-China during WWII, he was flying ski planes, float planes and
twin-engine Boeing 247D's into outpost communities in the Alaska Arctic. "All
during those days my enchantment with the land and with the people grew. And
an idea grew along with it. If the land enchanted me, why not others?"

West's idea for tourism was to provide an up-close, casual and personally
enriching experience. He developed, marketed and piloted the first all-tourist
air excursion to the historic mining town Nome on the Bering Sea and to the
Eskimo Village Kotzebue on Alaska's Arctic Coast. "My dreams of Alaska tourism
bubbled over. And, many people shared my enthusiasm."

And, by the end of 1947, many of the elements of modern-day Alaska tourism
were in place. West's company, Arctic Alaska Travel Service, was operating air
tours to the arctic, city sightseeing, highway tours between major cities and
packaged tours that connected with passenger ships at Seward and Valdez. They
had even begun to package the rail-motorcoach trip from Skagway to Whitehorse,
Fairbanks, McKinley Park and Anchorage.

"That was over fifty years ago," West said. "Now, Cruise West has seven
small ships. Even though we are the leading small-ship cruise line in North
America, we are proud to still offer an up-close and personal experience. We
have tours available from Metlakatla in the South to Kotzebue on Alaska's
Arctic Coast and they are still up up-close, casual and personally enriching.
We are proud that every cruise and tour is unique and only offered by Cruise
West. People are still enchanted with this land."

"Alaska tourism has fulfilled my dreams. Now, I work to help fulfill others'
dreams."

West Travel, parent company of family-owned Cruise West, was established in
1973 by Charles B. (Chuck) West, founder and former owner of Westours and a
former president of the American Society of Travel Agents. West founded his
first Alaska tour company, Arctic Alaska Tours, in Fairbanks in 1946. After a
career of more than half a century in the tour and cruise industry, he is now
Emeritus Chairman of the Board at West Travel. His son, Richard G. West, is
President, CEO and Chairman of the Board.

All of Cruise West's seven small cruise ships are American-built and
registered, and are crewed by Americans. Small-ship destinations include
Alaska's Inside Passage, Alaska's Prince William Sound, the Columbia and Snake
Rivers, British Columbia and Islands of the Pacific Northwest, the California
Wine Country and Baja Mexico's Sea of Cortes.

In recent months, Cruise West has been awarded Porthole Magazine's
"Editor-in-Chief Award: Best Close to Nature Cruises" and American Automobile
Association (AAA) 1999 Partner of the Year with Best Customer Satisfaction.
Cruise West is on CondJ Nast Travelers' Gold List and on their 1999 Readers
Choice Awards for the World's Best Cruises. The company's Baja Mexico's Sea of
CortJs video won the gold in the "Sales and Marketing over $20,000" at the
Emerald City Awards hosted by the Seattle Chapter of the International
Television Association (ITVA). Additionally, Equinus, a travel industry
technology consultancy, rated Cruise West's web page in the top 10 of cruise
web sites.

/NOTE TO EDITOR: High-resolution images are available at
http://www.cruisewest.com/high-impact/photo.htm/