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Sarah Palin Sparks Alaska Travel

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LAURA CONE The Sun

Published: October 15, 2008

Lee Collis was on a trip to Alaska with several residents of Sun City Center when John McCain announced he had chosen Alaska governor Sarah Palin as his running mate.

Collis, the owner of Sun City Center Travel, 906 N. Pebble Beach Blvd., said there was an air of excitement in Alaska. She hopes Palin's presence in the news will put the spotlight on Alaska and spark people's interest in traveling to the largest state in the United States.

"I would think there will be a renewed interest in visiting Alaska," Collis said. "As they hear more about the state, they will want to see it for themselves."
Collis has been to Alaska 10 times. She gave an orientation for her group, who traveled there the last week in August and the first week of September this year.

Next year, she plans to take a group in late May and early June.

She was excited to travel though Wasilla, Alaska, where Palin served as mayor before becoming governor of Alaska.

"The locals were very excited," she said. "When we went through Wasilla they had banners up."
Collis said the public is invited to join her on the Alaska trip, which includes package tours and sites for 2009.

Visiting Alaska is just as expensive as traveling to Europe, but Collis pointed out some people feel safer being in the United States, and prefer avoiding international airports.

"If you are going to spend that money, it's good thing you spend it in the United States," she said. "It's on the expensive side but it's worth it. The whole state of Alaska is gorgeous."

She said the cost for an Alaska cruise and land package runs about $4,000 per person for two weeks.

"I always tell people you go to Alaska to see scenery," Collis said. "If you do see animals, that's a plus. The cities are cities, but it's getting out into the wilderness that makes it so special. You are not looking at castles and cathedrals, you are looking at the beauty of the scenery and the wilderness and the vastness."

She said the group she took in 2008 to Alaska was one of her most fun-loving groups.

Don Novosel of Sun City Center, the group leader for the trip, helped organize the trip to Alaska with his wife, Elaine.

He said most of the 49 people who went on the trip were from Sun City Center.

Novosel said he thought it was interesting to see the reaction of Palin supporters in Alaska.

"Everybody thought it was super about Sarah," he said. "One lady we were talking with said they loved her, but she would not vote for her because she wants her to stay as governor and not leave to become vice president. The more exposure she gets, the more exposure Alaska naturally is going to get. That's my feeling."

Novosel said he liked everything about the trip, especially the land packages. He has taken a cruise to Alaska before, but never the land aspect, which includes a bus trip to remote areas and to Mount McKinley. Also known as Denali or "The Great One," Mount McKinley is the highest mountain peak in North America.

"We were there at a super time," he said, adding temperatures were in the middle 60s and 70s. "The colors were magnificent. It's colder in some areas and the colors of the bushes, shrubbery, grasses and terrain were fascinating."

For more information on Sun City Center Travel, call (813) 634-3318.

Laura Cone is the editor of The Sun. She may be reached at lcone@mediageneral.com.

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