Key Royal Caribbean destination hurt by massive budget cuts

Every Royal Caribbean ship sailing to Alaska docks here during the summer season.

Feb 28, 2025 - 15:18

Key Royal Caribbean destination hurt by massive budget cuts

Since the start of the year and President Donald Trump's administration’s moves to drastically shrink the federal government, multiple agencies overseeing everything from foreign aid and veterans affairs to the country’s 63 national parks have seen their staff members abruptly fired.

This includes the 3,400 U.S. Forest Service and National Parks Services probationary and seasonal workers who were let go without warning on Feb. 14. While some have since been given back their jobs, multiple lawmakers have sounded the alarm on the effects of severe understaffing at many popular tourist destinations this summer.

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Every single Royal Caribbean cruise to Alaska stops at Juneau

The fifth-largest port in Alaska and the most popular one among tourists rather than cargo ships, Juneau saw a record 1.7 million cruise ship passengers disembark on its shores in 2022.

Every single Royal Caribbean (RCL) cruise to Alaska, a season that runs from May to October each year, includes it in their itinerary in some way. For most, it is also the first point of entry to the Last Frontier.

More on national parks:

While the nearest national park Glacier Bay is a four-hour ferry ride away, Juneau is home to the Mendenhall Glacier Natural Reserve and Visitor Center that serves as the gateway to the namesake glacier and Tongass National Forest to which tourists come to see to experience snow-capped peaks and miles of tall spruce and hemlock trees.

According to the local Juneau Convention & Visitors Bureau, Trump’s cuts have "trimmed staff at the Mendenhall Glacier Visitor Center (MGVC) to a single person" and leaves Mendenhall unsure of what will happen during the busy summer cruising period.

Royal Caribbean will have multiple ships sailing in Alaska.
Image source: Shutterstock

'We don't know at this time': Juneau Visitors Bureau on cuts

"We don't know at this time whether the visitors center or the Mendenhall Glacier Recreation Area will be open to the public, or how traffic and other visitor services will be managed," the bureau wrote further.

With the Alaska cruising season yet to begin (the winter and early spring months are still too cold for sailings), local tourist industry representatives are also scrambling to understand how the cuts will affect the work they do and the type of experience visitors — both cruisers and those who come to the state on their own — will have this year.

Juneau Visitor Industry Director Alix Pierce told local outlet KTOO that "the Forest Service staff that remain from what I understand are kind of in triage mode trying to figure out how to best allocate resources."

While Trump's job cuts have so far spared NPS workers charged with emergency response and public safety, those who had been working in fields like education and cleanup have all reported losing their jobs earlier this month.

"Without seasonal staff during this peak season, visitor centers may close, bathrooms will be filthy, campgrounds may close, guided tours will be cut back or altogether canceled, emergency response times will drop, and visitor services like safety advice, trail recommendations, and interpretation will be unavailable," a letter that 17 Democratic and Independent lawmakers sent to recently confirmed Interior Secretary Doug Burgum at the end of January reads.