Greetings From Paradice

Every year, over 20 million people get on a cruise ship and set sail for a seafaring vacation. Most of those cruises take their vacationers to warm, sunny climates. But thanks to climate change, a new hoard of ships might start sailing North rather than South. This episode of Flash Forward explores a future where the Arctic becomes a tourist destination just like the Bahamas or the Great Barrier Reef.

Researchers at UCLA have projected that the Northwest Passage might be totally ice-free by 2050. And that’s something that big commercial cargo ships have been eyeing for a while. But now, cruise ships are getting in on the game. The first big cruise ship to make the full Northwest Passage trip was the Crystal Serenity. Here's the route the ship took.

And here's a promotional video for the cruise:

This week we talk to a few people who have seen the impacts of this new tourism boom.

Arielle Duhaime-Ross is a climate and environment correspondent for HBO’s VICE News Tonight. Ariel