The Ahwahnee will be back; Yosemite settles lawsuit over hotel names

The Ahwahnee will be back.

The grand hotel at Yosemite National Park never went away, but the classic name did. It’s been known officially as the Majestic Yosemite Hotel for the past three years since a legal kerfuffle over ownership of the name of that property and others at the park.

The National Park Service announced Monday that the lawsuit that was filed by Delaware North over its former concession contract at the park has been settled.

Under the terms, those trademarked names will transfer “at no cost” to the National Park Service upon the expiration or termination of Aramark’s contract.

“The National Park Service looks forward to the restoration of some of the previous names of the properties at Yosemite, including the Ahwahnee hotel, and the resumed use of other trademarks in connection with concessioner activities at Yosemite,” the statement said.

Longtime concessioner Delaware North, which lost the contract to manage the properties to Aramark, trademarked the names before leaving Yosemite Valley. The company then argued that taxpayers, aka the National Park Service, would have to pay $51 million to buy the intellectual property attached to the names.

The Justice Department responded that the value proposed by Delaware North was “improper and wildly inflated,” according to a 2016 story by the San Luis Obispo Tribune.

According to court filings reported by the Sacramento Bee that year, the Park Service valued the names at $3.5 million.

While the trademarks were in dispute, the Park Service renamed many of the signature properties. “Curry Village” turned into “Half Dome Village,” the “Wawona Hotel” became “Big Trees Lodge” and “The Yosemite Lodge at the Falls” became “Yosemite Valley Lodge.” Even “Badger Pass Ski Area” was renamed; that’s the “Yosemite Ski & Snowboard Area.”

This is a developing story; stay tuned for details.