Unalaska Hotels

Grand Aleutian: Grand Allusion

This hotel is by far the best place on not only this island, but in the Aleutians generally. But do not think it is all Aleutian (or the locally preferred Unangan) it is not. It is trying to be a mainland grand hotel, but misses the mark, though it is nice enough, and though the staff told me there is no internet, here I am using it now. Maybe they will catch on. Anyway, i am glad to have it, as it is much better than the other option, the library, about a 2 mile hike, and with limited hours and no wireless. The staff needs to catch up on some of the questions that a tourist like me asks. Personally i don't really care that much about WWII or the birds, but the fishing is really interesting, and what this place is about right now. There are no advertised tours on that subject, and the staff were not aware of any offerings either, though i know they exist.

The hotel is clean, and rather ordinary in a holiday Inn sort of way, but that is quite an accomplishment being where it is. I was told by an ex-crab fisherman that at first the hotel would not allow them in their gear to stay here, but then realized that at certian times of the year (when the crabs are out) the crab men are the only takers. The hotel changed its policies. i verified this with te hotel manager and he said yes, but it was because the crabbers were leaving their wet, smelly, and filthy clothes all over the new furniture, which then had to be replaced. Now they offer a cleaning service and the crabbers stay here.

So far, the best things about the hotel is its restaurant, the Chart Room. A wonderful Sunday Brunch, with all the seafood a landlubber ike myself craves. i noticed that people like me ate a lot of the seafood offerings, while the locals and fishermen ate more meat! but the food was great, and lots of other things too, salads, fruit, cheeses and juices, plus desserts. Leave room for it all.

One of the reasons to be in such a place, other than my own research, is to eat some of the fish which Unalaska and Dutch Harbor are known for. Most of what you find in the local places and on the ship that brought me here (the Tursty Tusty) is not fresh, and often fried. Yuck. There is though, at the Grand Aleutian a wonderful brunch on Sunday with all the fresh and smoked fish you can eat, and also a buffet on Wednesday night.

One of the interesting things i observed was that landlubber like me, who have a hankering for fresh fish, fill up their plate with fish, but the local residents, many who are fishermen, eat the meat almost exclusively. There are many meat dishes, but they held little interest for me. You can find all that in Detroit.

• Opinion of Price: more expensive than average
• Related to: Fishing, Museum Visits, Historical Travel
• Written June 4, 2006

The Grand Aleutian Hotel, Dutch Harbor

1 more images

---

Was this review helpful?