Holland America Will Buy McKinley Chalet and End Stops in Talkeetna

The McKinley Chalet near Denali National Park will soon be under new ownership.  On Wednesday, Holland America announced that they were purchasing the property from Aramark.  Details of the deal are still being negotiated.

Also, in the same press release, Holland America Cruises highlighted their new Land-Plus-Sea packages that focus more on “marquee” destination, and less on overland travel.  Holland America spokesman Erik Elvejord says that the cruise line is also doing away with its “Expedition Tours.”  The Expedition Tours are Holland’s land tours that include Talkeetna as a stop.  He confirmed that the tours were run in 2013, though they were a small portion of Holland’s total business.  Without the special tours in 2014, Holland’s passengers will bypass Talkeetna entirely as they take the train from Anchorage to Denali National Park.