If taking a trip to Alaska is sitting right at the top of your travel wish list, you probably already know that the classic way to do it is a “land-and-sea” package.
You spend a few days cruising past majestic glaciers, and then you hop a glass-domed train into the wilderness for a land tour of Denali National Park.
It’s an incredible experience, but if you talk to anyone who has done it, they’ll usually give you one piece of honest advice: while the cruise portion is totally seamless, the land side can feel like a logistical puzzle—especially when it comes to booking comfortable hotels and budgeting for meals near the park.
Holland America Line is actively tackling that exact pain point. In preparation for their milestone 80th anniversary of exploring Alaska in 2027, the cruise line is pouring $70 million into a massive, multi-year renovation of its flagship property, the Holland America Denali Lodge.
The goal is to bring the easy, upscale comfort of their ships straight into the rugged Alaskan interior. Whether you’re a retiree mapping out a milestone getaway or planning a multi-generational family trip, here is what these massive updates mean for your next adventure.
Related: Holland America Line Introduces Rare Perks for 2027 Alaska Itineraries
Holland America Line
Brand-New Rooms and an Easier Way to Explore
The Denali Lodge is a sprawling 60-acre property tucked right into the foothills of the national park along the Nenana River. While parts of the property have already been refreshed, the final phase of the $70 million project will be completely finished in time for the summer 2027 season.
The biggest structural upgrade is the complete removal of some of the property’s older guest structures to make way for two brand-new, modern hotel buildings. This adds 72 fresh, updated rooms to the lodge, meaning it will be significantly easier to snag a reservation during peak summer travel weeks. The main lodge building is also getting a complete interior redesign to give it a warmer, more contemporary feel.
If you just want to stretch your legs and take in the scenery without booking a heavy-duty excursion, they’ve also completely overhauled the property’s riverside interpretive trail, adding brand-new scenic viewing platforms and much clearer trail signs so you can wander safely right along the water.
Related: Inside Holland America Line’s Most Popular Global Shore Excursion
A Massive Focus on Real Local Flavors
Let’s be honest: lodge and stadium food can sometimes feel a bit generic. To fix that, Holland America brought in Pacific Northwest culinary ambassador Chef Ethan Stowell to completely rewrite the menus across the property’s restaurants, shifting the focus to authentic, locally sourced ingredients.
Instead of standard hotel fare, the menus are now packed with regional flavors. Depending on where you grab a table, you’ll find dishes like fresh Alaskan halibut fish and chips, grilled sockeye salmon BLTs, Dungeness crab cakes, and alder-smoked salmon chowder. Even the casual grab-and-go spots got an upgrade: the property is opening a fully renovated Grizzly Grindcoffee shop alongside a new concept called Outpost Coffee + Provisions, which serves up quick fuel like smoked salmon bagel sandwiches and reindeer sausage with Beecher’s cheddar.
Related: The Ultimate Guide to Packing for a 7-Day Alaska Cruise in a Single Carry-On
The Booking Trick That Eliminates the Food Budget Stress
Perhaps the most practical news for travelers planning a 2027 trip is how Holland America is handling the cost of land-based dining. Traditionally, when you step off a cruise ship and onto a land tour, your built-in meal plan ends, leaving you to pay out of pocket for breakfasts, lunches and dinners at the lodges and on the trains. It’s an extra expense that can quickly catch families by surprise.
To mark the 80th anniversary, the line is introducing a new “Cruisetour Dining Package” for the 2027 season. If you book your land-and-sea trip early using their “Have It All” promotional bonus, this dining package is thrown in completely free.
It covers your breakfast and dinner at their signature properties—including the Denali Lodge, the Skagway Inn and the Dawson City Inn—plus your lunch right on board the glass-domed McKinley Explorer railway cars. It even bundles in tickets to the Music of Denali dinner theater. For a long holiday itinerary (which ranges anywhere from nine to 17 nights), having your meals seamlessly taken care of on land just like they are at sea takes a massive amount of stress out of the budgeting process.
Planning a massive trip to the Great Land is all about soaking in the wildlife and the scenery without sweating the small stuff. By upgrading the base camp experience and removing the guesswork around dining, these updates make it a whole lot easier to just sit back and enjoy the view.
Related: This New Holland America Line Cruise Hits Every Bucket-List Port In One Trip
