Juneau tourism companies are being forced to turn away visitors who want to see the Mendenhall Glacier Recreation Area this summer as they are reaching the commercial tourism limit due to “unprecedented increases in visitation,” the U.S. Forest Service announced July 7.
The Forest Service each year doles out permitted “service days” to tour providers, such as bus companies or taxi services carrying tourists, in order to manage the area and protect the ecosystem.
A service day equates to one tourist visiting the Mendenhall Glacier for one day. A decision in 2015 following an environmental analysis set a capacity of 517,650 people for the summer, later boosted to 573,110 in 2019. Individuals going to the glacier on their own do not need a permit.
As of July 6, more than 627,000 cruise passengers have visited Juneau, with as many as 1.6 million expected before the season ends.
“This could result in some commercial services being unavailable to visitors who arrive in the second half of the summer season,” the Forest Service announcement stated. “Considering that challenge, the agency is asking for the public’s patience and understanding.”
The 2019 increase in the visitor limit was called a “short-term solution” based on improvements to facilities at the glacier viewing area. But as tourism comes back strongly after the COVID-19 pandemic, the short-term solution will reach its limit later this summer.
The cap will remain until the Forest Service adopts a new plan to expand capacity, which will include construction of a new welcome center, reconfiguration of the bus overflow parking lot, and trail and access improvements.
If approved — which could occur this fall — the improvements could allow for an increase in the annual visitor capacity of up to 999,000. It also would extend the defined peak-use period to 214 days, from April 1 to Oct. 31, reflecting a longer cruise ship season.
Work on the first projects could begin this winter, but longer-term projects such as parking lots will likely take at least a few years as part of a phased work plan that is dependent on funding, the federal agency said.
Serene Hutchinson, general manager for Juneau Tours and Whale Watch, said if nothing changes this summer to increase the capacity, her company is likely going to face “a huge loss in the second half of the season.”
“I hope they figure something out because I have buses and staff that I need to keep busy the second half of the season with a fraction of the amount of visitors,” she said. “I have employees right now in my office who I am paying to not book tours — all they do is sit there and answer the phone and say, “Sorry, no, I can’t book you to the glacier.”
Hutchinson said she has been “ringing the alarm” about the need to increase capacity for years.
“I knew that our winter sales, if they were any indication of what was coming, I knew we were going to run out of permits,” she said. “It’s really easy math, right? If we’re going to get approximately 1.6 million people to visit Juneau this season, and our permit only allows for 500,000-plus, that means a lot of people aren’t going get to go to the glacier park.”
Hutchinson said she hopes the Forest Service can find another way to allow for an increase in capacity as the long-term plan continues to remain years out.
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