Xanterra Parks & Resorts announced it will not be offering Red Bus tours in Glacier National Park until at least June 30.
The concessioner made the announcement on its website last week. People with reservations for Red Bus tours in the month of June will be automatically refunded.
The news came about a week after the Glacier Park Boat Co. announced it would not be offering boat tours during the 2020 season. Boat company owner Scott Burch said there were a number of contributing factors that led him to cancel the season before it even started. For one practicing social distancing on a small boat — with just one way on and one way off and a limited number of seats — would be nearly impossible. Social distancing could also complicate efforts to operate tour buses later in the summer.
This is the first time since World War II that boat tours will not be offered in Glacier Park.
Xanterra plans on opening its lodges inside Glacier Park — including the Lake McDonald Lodge and the Many Glacier Hotel — on June 15. The Cedar Creek Lodge in Columbia Falls, which has been closed for much of the spring, is expected to reopen on May 23.
While Xanterra has set dates for when it hopes to resume operations in and around the park, those could change based on decisions made by the National Park Service. Presently, there is no set date for when the park could reopen but some are expecting a phased reopening in June. Regardless of when the gates are open, this summer is expected to be unlike any other.