On Monday, October 12, the Alyeska Aerial Tram makes its last runs of the 2026 summer season. It operates from 10:00 a.m. to 5:15 p.m., with the last download at 5:30 p.m. Up top, Seven Glaciers has already been dark since October 3. Its fall closure lasts through December 4 because the tram that carries diners up the mountain is down for maintenance. In Girdwood, that maintenance window is the fall calendar. Most of the closures, reopenings and dated events between now and early December are set around it.
The Closures Are Staggered
The valley doesn't shut down all at once. Each business sets its own break, and the dates spread across about two months:
| Business | Fall status | Back |
|---|---|---|
| Seven Glaciers | Closed Oct. 3 for tram maintenance | Dec. 4 |
| Alyeska Aerial Tram | Last summer ride Mon., Oct. 12 | Not yet posted |
| Sakura Asian Bistro | Seasonal closure begins Tue., Oct. 13 | Not yet posted |
| Girdwood Center for Visual Arts | Closed Nov. 4–28 | Nov. 29 |
| Double Musky Inn | Closed now | Dec. 10 |
Sakura is open Friday through Monday, 5 to 9 p.m., until its break starts October 13. That puts its last service on the same Monday as the tram's last day. The Double Musky Inn's website calls the closure "a brief seasonal pause" and gives December 10, 2026 as the reopening date. The Girdwood Center for Visual Arts is open Thursday through Sunday, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., in October. Its winter schedule, November through April, is Thursday through Monday at the same hours, with the gallery closed November 4 through 28. The page carries no publication date, so check it before planning a visit around it.
The Sitzmark Bar & Grill shows how these listings work this time of year. Alyeska's page for it says it closed for the season on April 27 and will return for winter 2026–27, with no return date given. Even so, the resort's events calendar books it for several nights this fall. Those are one-night events, not regular bar hours. That distinction comes up again below.
Closing Day Doubles as a Food Drive
Tram Closing Day costs two cans of food. Bring two non-perishable items to the Alyeska Mountain Sports Shop and you get one complimentary tram ticket. Everything collected goes to the Girdwood Food Bank. The event page lists the tram ticket office at 1000 Arlberg Ave. as the meeting point and calls the day "one last ride to the top" for the 2026 summer season.
The timing works in the food bank's favor. Collection happens on the tram's final day of the summer season, just as the valley heads into the stretch where several of its kitchens go quiet.
The Daylodge and the Sitz Fill the Gap
With the tram stopped and several kitchens on break, events move down to the base of the mountain. Alyeska's events calendar puts most of the dated happenings between now and Thanksgiving at two places, the Daylodge and the Sitzmark:
- Friday, Oct. 9: Line Dancing & Live Music at the Sitzmark. Line dancing runs 6 to 9 p.m., the Jerry Wessling Band starts at 9, and admission is free.
- Friday–Saturday, Oct. 23–24: Challenge Alaska's Drive-In Movie Nights at the Daylodge, presented with Teton Gravity Research and the Northern Aspects Film Festival.
- Friday, Oct. 30: The Young Dubliners' Halloween Edition at the Sitzmark, listed from 9 p.m. to midnight.
- Saturday, Nov. 7: Four Valleys Community School's Sports Swap at the Daylodge.
- Wednesday, Nov. 25: Community Thanksgiving at the Daylodge.
- Thursday, Nov. 26: Alyeska's Thanksgiving Buffet at Kahiltna Court.
The Sports Swap falls about a month before ski season, at the point when used gear changes hands. Community Thanksgiving is the night before the hotel's holiday buffet, so the calendar holds both a community meal and a resort meal on back-to-back days.
Away from the resort, the Visit Girdwood calendar lists Gerrish Library Free Play Mornings and Knot Just Knitters on Tuesdays in October, including October 13, 20 and 27. Like the gallery's page, that calendar has no publication date. A quick check with the library before heading over is a good idea.
What Keeps Running at Hotel Alyeska
Not every Alyeska kitchen is on break. As of early October, these pages post current hours:
- GREATLAND lists itself as "Now Open." Hours are Sunday through Thursday, 4 to 10 p.m. On Friday and Saturday the bar runs 4 to 11 p.m. and the kitchen until 10.
- aBar, the renovated former Aurora Bar & Grill, lists 11 a.m. to 10 p.m. Sunday through Thursday and 11 a.m. to 11 p.m. Friday and Saturday. The kitchen closes at 10 p.m. on weekends.
- Tramway Cafe lists daily hours of 6:30 a.m. to 6 p.m., with breakfast until 11.
- Forte lists daily breakfast from 6:30 to 11 a.m. and dinner from 5 to 9 p.m.
None of these pages says whether the hours change after the tram closes October 12. The Tramway Cafe is named for the lift that's about to stop running, so call ahead before counting on any of these schedules later in the fall.
In town, Girdwood Brewing Company's FAQ gives two last calls, 10 p.m. in summer and 9 p.m. in winter. It doesn't give a date for the switch. The brewery's posted food-truck schedule runs through Sunday, October 11. Service is noon to 9 p.m. on Thursday and Friday and 11 a.m. to 9 p.m. on the weekend. Food trucks are scheduled daily there, so the brewery's site is the place to check which truck is parked out front after that.
December 4 Is When the Calendar Fills Back Up
As of early October, Alyeska has not posted an official opening day for the 2026–27 ski season. The season dates on its own mountain page still show last winter. Third-party ski sites have published projections. Until the resort announces a date, any opening day you see is an estimate.
What Alyeska has posted is a cluster of events and offers around early December. December 4 is the date the posted calendars start filling back up:
- Seven Glaciers reopens December 4, the end of its tram-maintenance closure.
- The new Peak Pass preload is tied to December 4. Alyeska calls the 2026/27 preload option "New this year." Buyers can load 3, 4 or 5 days at 35% off. A purchase made by December 4 includes 10 skiing days from December 4 through 14, and the last day to buy is December 31.
- High Step Society plays the Sitzmark December 4 and 5.
- ULLR Fest is Saturday, December 5.
- The Double Musky Inn reopens Thursday, December 10, and Powerplay is at the Sitzmark the next night, December 11.
From today, October 8, December 4 is 57 days out. The Peak Pass details list the preload deadline, the window of included days and the discount. If you plan to ski the first two weeks of December, the December 4 purchase cutoff is the number to keep in mind. The pass, the Seven Glaciers reopening and the first weekend of Sitzmark shows all land in the same few days. Alyeska's mountain profile lists seven lifts: two high-speed quads, two fixed quads, two carpets and the tram.
Between the last tram ride and that first December weekend, the posted calendar is short: two Sitzmark Fridays in October, a drive-in, a gear swap, two Thanksgiving meals and the library's Tuesday mornings. If you're weighing a home in Girdwood, these weeks show you how the valley runs day to day with the tram stopped. Wolf Real Estate can tour Girdwood properties with you before the ski crowds return in December. Start your Anchorage home search with us, and we'll include Girdwood in it.
