Touring Alaska's backcountry: grand operations in Denali National Park.

• Author: Anderson, Tasha
• Position: VISITOR INDUSTRY

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When I was invited to the June 3 Grand Opening of Denali Square, I jumped at the opportunity to drive north to Denali National Park into Alaska's backcountry. It was at about Mile 220 on the Parks Highway, when I had been sitting in the car for a few hours, blissfully taking in the scenery, that I realized I really had no idea where I was going. I knew I was driving to the McKinley Chalet Resort, operated by Holland America Line, and that it was somewhere on the Parks; as an Alaskan I had unthinkingly determined to enact my tried and true "There's only one road, I'm sure I can't miss it," planning strategy.

It was raining lightly, and in the slightly reduced visibility I ended up taking several short tours of neighboring resort properties before I pulled into the McKinley Chalet parking lot. I stepped out of the car and thought immediately: "Oh, wait, what now?" I figured inside was better than out, walked into the resort lobby, and introduced myself to the first staff member I saw. It was immediately apparent that while I may not have planned my trip beyond an exuberant, "Yay, going to Denali," the efficient team at McKinley Chalet Resort knew who I was, where I needed to be, and had everything well in hand.

McKinley Chalet Resort is a sprawling sixty acre property that provides accommodations for guests on Holland America Line's "Land+Sea Journeys," a combination of a cruise to Alaska and overland tour to Denali National Park. Holland, through its subsidiary Holland America-Princess Alaska, purchased the resort property from Aramark Sports and Entertainment Services in 2013. At the time of the purchase, there were 480 rooms total on the property.

Denali Square

Tracy Smith, McKinley Chalet Resort's general manager, said at the Denali Square Ribbon cutting, "Over the past two and a half years we've moved more than ninety buildings [and] we've renovated more than a third of our guest rooms, including adding five additional guest rooms this past winter." The crowning jewel of several years of property improvement is the new Denali Square, which the company describes as "a new gathering area to relax, shop, dine, and enjoy music and entertainment."

Denali Square is anchored by its largest building: Karstens, a 7,000-square foot, two-story restaurant named after Henry Peter "Harry" Karstens, the first Denali National Park superintendent. Karstens faces a large deck, equipped with seating and fire pits. Boardwalks lead...