Celebrity Cruises Naturalists Enhance Alaska Itineraries

Celebrity Cruises has found a way to make its unforgettable Alaska cruises even more memorable: The top-rated line’s onboard enrichment program features the expertise of knowledgeable and enthusiastic naturalists who offer free, ongoing educational presentations about the region’s flora, fauna and natural history.

Marine researcher Brent Nixon is scheduled to offer onboard enrichment programs in Alaska on Celebrity Mercury and Celebrity Infinity this year. Nixon has been exploring Alaska for over 25 years. His comprehensive array of onboard presentations includes an overview of Alaska’s land and people and glimpses into the lives of humpback whales, dolphins, killer whales, sea otters, seals, sea lions, puffins; brown and black bears, and bald eagles of the Pacific Northwest.

Nixon is known for dazzling guests with personal accounts of tangling with bears, swimming with orcas, and sitting in eagles’ nests. A former U.S. Army cold-weather survival and climbing instructor who also has worked with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and the U.S. Forest Service, Nixon was instrumental in establishing and managing the nation’s first non-captive whale-watching park. He also has contributed extensively to the creation of the Marine Mammal Sanctuary in the Hawaiian Islands.

This year, Nixon is also scheduled to sail on Celebrity Century in Europe, offering discussions on topics including humpback whales of the North Atlantic; Atlantic puffins, bottlenose dolphins and killer whales; the difference between seals and sea lions; and glacial geography.

Naturalist and Santa Cruz, California public radio personality Milos Radakovich will LEAD onboard enrichment programs on Celebrity Infinity and Celebrity Summit in 2007.