Holland America Line completes room upgrades at Alaska Cruisetours in McKinley Chalet

Alaska Cruisetours combines an Alaska cruise with an overland tour to Denali, and Holland America Line is the only cruise line that extends those tours into the Yukon.

Balconies will be added to 28 river-view rooms at McKinley Chalet Resort—Holland America Line's hotel property at Denali National Park—upgrading them to the Denali Suite category. In addition, a new Deluxe category of non-balcony rooms with suite amenities is being introduced. For the excursions, guests on select Denali and Yukon Cruisetours will have a new "Klondike Gold Tour'' that expands on the region's famed gold rush experience. The tour visits the original discovery claim site that launched the gold rush and Gold Dredge 4.

"We are consistently evolving our Alaska Cruisetour product by adding new amenities that will enhance the overall experience and opportunities to learn more about the destination," says Dan Rough, Holland America Line's vice president, revenue management. "Increasing the balcony rooms at McKinley Chalet Resort offers even more visitors the opportunity to take in the incredible views, and adding the Deluxe category allows additional guests to have an elevated stay at the property."

The property will now offer 84 Denali Suites—giving more guests balcony views of Denali National Park or the Nenana River. It also will upgrade 45 non-balcony rooms to feature all the suite amenities, creating a new Deluxe room category. Standard rooms are included in the Alaska Cruisetour fare, and Deluxe and Suite room upgrades are available to book for an additional fee.

New 'Klondike Gold Tour' included at Dawson City

The new Klondike Gold Tour is complimentary for all guests on select Alaska Denali and Yukon Cruisetours that include Dawson City. Guests will visit the Discovery Claim National Historic Site that started the Klondike Gold Rush and enjoy time at Gold Dredge 4, a preserved wooden-hulled dredge once used to mine gold in the Klondike River Valley. A Parks Canada guide shares the history of gold dredging in the area and about the first discovery of gold in the Yukon.

Guests can delve deeper into the Klondike Gold Rush on an Alaska cruise or Cruisetour on additional shore excursions in Skagway, including visiting the Gold Rush Training Camp and panning for gold, taking the White Pass & Yukon Route Railroad to Liarsville Gold Camp and visiting the Gold Rush Cemetery and Historic Skagway Inn (the largest brothel in Skagway during the gold rush era).