Alaska’s only private, wilderness cruise ship destination, Icy Strait Point, is launching into its 2011 season with two new directors. Stuart Campbell and Eleanor Davenport were recently hired to lead the food and beverage department and retail department respectively.

Campbell brings 22 years of food service industry experience to his role as director of food and beverage. He spent 13 of those years in Alaska’s tourism industry, as executive chef at Waterfall Resort near Ketchikan and as food service supervisor and rental shop manager at Eaglecrest Ski Area in Juneau.

At Icy Strait Point, Campbell will focus on educating guests about the locally and regionally sourced, fresh seafood and meats, such as Dungeness crab, halibut, salmon and caribou, used at the site’s five restaurants and food stations.

Taking on the position of retail director at the end of the month, Davenport also brings significant experience in Alaska’s tourism market to Icy Strait Point. An Alaska resident for the past 26 years, she most recently served as the director of retail and special projects at the White Pass & Yukon Route Railroad. She also spent several years as a marketing consultant in Juneau for Alaska Native artists, small businesses and non-profit organizations.

Davenport will oversee Icy Strait Point’s 12 retail shops and merchandise outlets for popular excursions, such as the Tribal Dance and Cultural Legends show and In Alaska’s Wildest Kitchen culinary class.

A new building at the base of the ZipRider will feature an expanded line of zip line merchandise, such as T-shirts, sweatshirts, hats and glasses. Additionally guests will be able to purchase tickets at the store, as well as photos and videos of their rides on the world’s longest and highest ZipRider.

“Stuart and Eleanor have extensive backgrounds in Alaska tourism and show great leadership in their fields,” said Tyler Hickman, Icy Strait Point’s vice president of operations. “As we prepare for a new season, their fresh perspectives will be a great advantage to our operations.”

Icy Strait Point will begin its 2011 season in May with its most diverse lineup of cruise ships since opening in 2004. Six cruise lines, carrying about 130,000 passengers, will make a total of 74 calls on the port through late September.