Africa has its Big Five, which are the animals that visitors are most eager to spot on safari. Travel to Kenya or South Africa and you're likely to be ushered to places where you'll find elephants, lions, rhinos, buffalo, and leopard.
But in the woods of northern North America, one of the most exciting animals you can hope to spot is the elusive moose. Rapid changes in climate and pollution have recently caused the enormous creatures to be designated as a rare species, with populations in rapid decline. Even Bullwinkle hasn't had a show since 2018.
The reduction in numbers has only accentuated the moose's Garbo-like reclusiveness. These giant herbivores don't crave the limelight, choosing to roam the wilderness instead of seeking human companionship, so passing sightings are most often of the through-the-windshield variety, and videos of the reclusive creatures tend to generate squeals of rapturous delight and hundreds of thousands of views.
Moose are hard to find, and that's why vacationers to the north are often clamoring for ways meet one.
And that's why Holland America, one of the first cruise lines to enter the Alaska cruise market many moons ago, has started offering a shore excursion that pretty much guarantees a moose sighting.
Since 2024, the cruise line has worked with the Alaska Wildlife Conservation Center (AWCC). This year, Holland America began selling an optional land-based day trip to visit the center and its moose.
"The new conservation‑focused offering, along with a new Holland America Moose Promenade at the facility, allows guests to see moose and other native wildlife in their natural habitat," the cruise line said in its announcement. "During the tour, guests learn how the AWCC team supports moose health and well‑being through daily care such as enrichment activities, diet preparation, behavior observation and station training."
The 5 and 1/2-hour Exclusive Eland & Friends Moose Discovery tour is available starting at $214 per person in the port in Anchorage, and it involves a 90-minute trip on the Seward Highway to reach the Conservation Center.
A captive moose named Eland, a new resident of the AWCC, has been turned into a mascot of sorts to promote the cruise line's excursion, and financial support for the AWCC, and by extension Eland, is being provided by proceeds from a few wildlife-themed cocktails ("Grizzly Bear Hugo’s Spritz" and "Pip and "Jo’s Moscow Moose") and a moose plushie sold on board Holland America's Alaska-bound ships.
By 2027, the center will use the donations to build the aforementioned "Moose Promenade" viewing boardwalk above the habitat. Even without that new amenity, the Center promises it's "common for visitors to see brown bears swimming, moose strutting, wood bison roaming, muskox playing, wolves posing, porcupines climbing, and more."
If you choose to guarantee a moose meeting by visiting the AWCC under your own power, without a cruise-sold group excursion, the center is located about 47 miles (about an hour's drive) south on the Seward Highway from Anchorage, or a 78-mile drive (about 90 minutes) north of Seward, Alaska. Admission costs $30 for adults, $26 for kids 4–12, and free for kids 3 and under.
We aren't financial partners with Holland America—we've just been appraising travel products since the 1950s. And it's worth pointing out that even without this clever gambit to attract moose lovers, Holland America already prides itself on cultivating an Alaskan cruise product that other lines can't emulate, and that includes other perks that are also exclusive to the lines operating there.
As a cruise rep recently put it to us, "Holland America Line has been sailing to Glacier Bay since before it became a national park, giving us more permits to visit than most other cruise lines." The line also "enjoys preferential docking locations in key Alaska ports like Ketchikan, Juneau, and Skagway," and the convenience allows for more time for guests to explore ashore.
For cruisers, those exclusive Alaska perks are now of use to produce a moose.
