American Constitution Alaskan Explorer Cruise A 12-day Alaska trip with American Cruise Lines in June of 2025

I've had a great working relationship with American Cruise Lines since 2021.  They invite me on to their cruise ships (at their expense) and I shoot photos and videos that their marketing department can use.  So far, they've invited me aboard on ten different occasions.  Sometimes it's because they need photos and videos of a new ship, and other times it's because they are looking for good photos and videos of a ship in a particular region.  My photos often end up in their brochures, and on several occasions they've ended up on the cover of a brochure!  It's a mutually beneficial relationship...  they get photos and videos that they need for marketing, without actually having to pay someone...  and I get a free cruise.

This particular assignment ended up being one of my favorites!  There was so much gorgeous scenery in Alaska that I had an easy time getting a whole bunch of great photos and videos for them...  and I ended up totally loving this cruise because of several wonderful people I met onboard.  We had a lot of fun together!  Let's start with the gorgeous scenery...

Chilkoot Lake, near Haines, Alaska 

Glacier Bay National Park

Marjorie Glacier

Sitka

Sunset in Sitka at Summer Solstice

Sitka National Historical Park

An island in Frederick Sound

Eldred Rock Lighthouse

Now, here's a few drone shots of the cruise ship in scenic places.  I'm a licensed commercial drone pilot, and I'm pretty sure that photos like this are a big part of why American Cruise Lines keeps inviting me back onboard their ships.

It won't surprise me if any (or all) of these photos end up getting used in future American Cruise Lines brochures.  Perhaps they'll even like one enough to put on the cover!

As I mentioned earlier, one of the things that made me love this particular cruise so much was all the fun I had with some of the people I met.  This is one of the big benefits of cruising on a small ship with less than 150 guests instead of on a mega cruise ship with thousands.  On those big cruise ships, there are so many other passengers that you just never really spend time getting to know anyone.  But on a small cruise ship, it's really easy to make friends.

Here are a couple of photos of passengers I met who ended up making a huge positive difference in the cruise for me...

Videos

Still photos are great, but videos are so much better!

I created a four-episode series of videos that takes you along with me on this cruise from start to finish.  If you watch all four episodes back-to-back, it will take you about an hour.  So, it's basically like watching a really good show on The Travel Channel.  These are not amateur productions.  I'm a licensed commercial drone pilot, so there are some gorgeous aerial shots that I think you'll really enjoy...  and I'm a former radio announcer, so the narration is a lot better than you'll usually hear on YouTube.  Everything was shot in 4K resolution, so the picture quality is outstanding.  Do yourself a favor and at least check out the first episode. 

Here are all four videos in the series.  It is recommended that you watch them full-screen to best enjoy these very scenic videos.  And if you have a high-speed Internet connection, you might also want to double-check that the video player is set to show them to you in 4K resolution.

To start the video playing, click the triangle in the middle of the video screen
To make the video fill the screen (recommended) click the little symbol in the lower right corner of the video player

To start the video playing, click the triangle in the middle of the video screen
To make the video fill the screen (recommended) click the little symbol in the lower right corner of the video player

To start the video playing, click the triangle in the middle of the video screen
To make the video fill the screen (recommended) click the little symbol in the lower right corner of the video player

To start the video playing, click the triangle in the middle of the video screen
To make the video fill the screen (recommended) click the little symbol in the lower right corner of the video player

Need A Travel Agent?

Booking a cruise can be confusing, especially if you haven't been on many cruises before.  There are lots of first-time cruiser mistakes that a travel agent can keep you from making.

If you're interested in booking a cruise with any cruise line...  please feel free to use the services of my travel agent, Caitlin Gallagher.  She's extremely pleasant to deal with, easy to talk to since she lives in the United States and speaks without any kind of an accent, and quite experienced and knowledgeable about different types of cruising.  Caitlin is the owner of Ambren Travel.  Visit her web site, check out the Ambren Travel Facebook page, or contact her using the information below.

The Cruise Ships We've Been On

If you've enjoyed this page, you would probably also enjoy reading the stories about some of the other cruise ships I've traveled on.  Click here to see the complete chronology of all the cruises we've ever taken, and to read the full story of any that look interesting to you.

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