Spend Your Summer Amazed by Denali “The Great One”
As a Pursuit team, we have a powerful story to tell. We host guests in classic Alaskan lodges, nourish weary adventurers with locally-sourced offerings and take our guests beyond on immersive tours. We are the compass of adventure - welcoming guests to our backyard and sharing the little-known local secrets of these iconic places. Join our team for a summer you’ll never forget!
Talkeetna, Alaska
About Talkeetna Alaskan Lodge
Have you dreamed of exploring the great Alaskan wilderness or spending the summer in a quintessential Alaskan town? Does spending your summer at the doorstep of adventure have a certain appeal? If your answer is yes, then you belong at the Talkeetna Alaskan Lodge for the ultimate seasonal work experience.
At the Talkeetna Alaskan Lodge, we showcase the best of Alaska inside and out. We’re at the doorstep for high-energy outdoor adventures in Denali and beyond, and we keep our guests rested and fueled up with our charming rooms, crackling fire in a giant river rock fireplace, and award-winning Alaska cuisine.
We are seeking adventurous, inspired and dedicated people to join our team under the Midnight Sun. Our hiring needs range from chefs and servers, to maintenance and management, and everything in between. If you have a background in hospitality, tourism, maintenance, hotel management, natural sciences or recreation, we want to hear from you!
Are you ready?
Our season runs May through September and our team is made up of more than we employ 175 seasonal staff from around the country and the world. Supervisory and entry-level jobs are available across our departments.
The Employee Experience
Our core values are:
- Safety First
- Honor Place
- Anticipate
- Bring Your Best
Our seasonal staff come back year after year; they describe Talkeetna as "special", "family-like", "fun" and "amazing". We have the best views of the Alaska Range, are visited by local moose and bears (often on property), and plenty of wide open spaces, clean air, and some of the best employee housing in the industry. We are a short jaunt from the quaint town of Talkeetna, Alaska, as well as a number of hiking trails, lakes, and streams. Talkeetna also has its own brewery, several local artists, live music and great food. Wherever we come from, we’re all united by the sense of adventure that abounds in this community of quirky locals and active explorers.
COVID-19: Safety first is our number one core value. We strive to maintain a safe and healthy environment for our guests and staff. Pursuit follows all CDC guidelines and practices social distancing and other CDC protocols. Masks are required when working in close proximity with guests and during transportation. We strongly encourage all staff to get vaccinated prior to arrival.
Ideal Candidate
What kind of adventurer thrives here? Our ideal candidate is someone who wants to truly experience all that Alaska has to offer and believes in what we do, striving to create unforgettable experiences for our guests. Every single role on our team is essential, and we’re selective to ensure our employees and our guests have the best experience possible. Our happiest employees are those who step in where needed and can bring their best, always ready to share their adventurous and generous spirit.
If you sincerely enjoy working with people and want to contribute to an amazing guest experience, while having an unforgettable and unique experience of your own, then we want you to work with us.
Room and Board
On-site housing at this location is offered Free of Charge for employees with cozy accommodations and all the basic amenities. Housing is available on a first-come first-served basis, though to support our staff coming from afar preference is given to our employees from out of town.
We offer both dorm-style and apartment-style communal housing, in addition to three RV sites with full hook-ups. Dorm-style accommodation offers cozy rooms suited to 2-4 roomies per dorm, with shared cooking facilities, leisure and TV area and gender separate shower/restrooms.
In apartment-style housing, our staff have 1-3 roomies per room and share common spaces with 6-7 people. Apartments offer fully shared facilities including a kitchen, bathroom and TV area.
All kitchens are equipped with refrigerators, stoves, microwaves, cooking equipment and utensils. The Lodge also provides bedding and towels and has free on-site laundry facilities for employees living in our housing.
We’ve got you covered with free wireless internet for personal laptops, with staff able to register one personal device and use up to 1G of data per day. Many of our staff buddy up to purchase additional monthly internet packages to share with roommates. Most cell phone carriers have service in the area, but we encourage our staff to check with their carriers before arrival to be sure.
For health reasons, we unfortunately are not able to accommodate four-legged friends in housing or in the RV sites. Housing is a community experience, and we all follow guidelines and sign a housing agreement to help ensure a quality, peaceful living experience for everyone.
Employee Perks
Discounts are available at all of our Alaska Collection properties and experiences when space is available. There are many other discounts available on activities in the area and throughout the state to make the most of!
Getting Here and Getting Around
Travel to Talkeetna, Alaska
- The closest commercial airport (Ted Stevens International) is in Anchorage and is approximately 3 hours from Talkeetna; the flight from Seattle to Anchorage is approximately 3.5 hours in duration
- Driving from Anchorage to Talkeetna is approximately 3 hours
- If you choose to drive to Alaska, give yourself plenty of time to enjoy the trip and make sure you have the international requirements to get through Canada.
Traveling From Anchorage to Talkeetna
- A train travel employee discount is available. Please see Alaska Railroad's website for schedules.
- Buses and shuttles are also available.
What to Bring
This is the heart of Alaska - the summer climate can be absolutely gorgeous and sunny one day and totally different the next! Early May and September can be cool so we recommend bringing an assortment of clothing. The average summer temperature is 65 degrees and some suggestions for clothing are a jacket (water and windproof), hiking boots (waterproof), sweaters and a warm fleece, shorts, and pants and shoes for working (uniform details will be sent to you in advance) Don’t forget a good alarm clock (battery-operated) for those early shifts, and of course your camera!
For Fun
The iconic town of Talkeetna is a close-knit community with a year-round population of approximately 800 people.
We are 3 hours north of Anchorage and 2.5 hours south of Denali National Park. Talkeetna sits about 60 air miles from Denali “The Great One” and is the take-off point for mountain climbing expeditions. We also pride ourselves in being a destination spot for some of the best fishing, hiking, rafting and picturesque prospects in all of Alaska.
We encourage our team to make the most of this incredible place with regular events and excursions to discover all that Alaska has to offer!
Outdoor Activities
When we aren’t working, our staff are often exploring or making the most of our open spaces for games of football, badminton or bocce ball. We have nearby hiking trails, fishing spots, dog mushing tours, zip-lining, rafting and canoeing, and a paved 14-mile trail that leaves from our doorstep for biking and running. Must-dos to check off your bucket list include a flightseeing tour over Denali and marine tours with Kenai Fjords Tours, a Pursuit experience in Seward where we receive a staff discount.
What's available?
Right at the Lodge we have two restaurants, a lounge and a gift shop. Talkeetna is a beautiful two-mile walk from the Lodge and offers restaurants (including a pizzeria and several casual dining establishments), watering holes, a small general store, coffee shops, library, post office and one of the best bakeries in the entire state.
We offer a shuttle service into town throughout the day, and there’s a regular community shuttle that makes trips to the full-service grocery store 13 miles down the road three times per week.
How to Apply
Life is not one-size-fits-all, and neither are we. These experiences have the potential to change lives.
Are you ready?
Greetings from the Pursuit Alaska team!
We’re so glad you’re interested in working with us – we think you’re pretty cool too!
Follow along with our @PursuitCareers Facebook page or check out opportunities across our geographies at jobsatpursuit.com.
We hope to see you here for a summer in the land of the midnight sun!