Fairbanks hotels

[lovedeals]

I tried the search, but it is down. Has anyone stayed in Fairbanks? I having been checking trip advisor and some of the hotels there sound pretty scary. Best reccomendation for the Comfort Inn was that someone was allowed to stay there with their three dogs. Would appreciate any help.

[Pssunshinegal]

I tried the search, but it is down. Has anyone stayed in Fairbanks? I having been checking trip advisor and some of the hotels there sound pretty scary. Best reccomendation for the Comfort Inn was that someone was allowed to stay there with their three dogs. Would appreciate any help.

 

 

I have stayed in Fairbanks several times and always at the Extended Stay, which used to be Alpine. This trip I made a mistake and booked my reservation at Alpine, thinking it was Aspen. Boy was this a good mistake. Alpine is a brand new hotel right across from the airport on Dale Road just down from Pikes (for those who know Pikes) and it was fabulous and the price was $115.

 

I am surprised by your post because there are many, many, many places to stay in Fairbanks for every price range and most are not "scary." Alpine does not allow smoking or dogs though.

 

Janice

[Yukon]

I've stayed in Fairbanks many, many times and only once in a scary place, years ago when I wanted a really cheap place (ended up at a filthy dive called the Chilkoot). Among the many very good places I've stayed: the Bear Lodge, Wedgewod Resort (last week), Bridgewater, Westmark, Sophie Station, and Captain Bartlett (though it was going downhill the last time I was there).

 

Murray

[lovedeals]

Thanks for the help. I have tried the alpine lodge, pikes, springhill suites and a few more and they tell me nothing is available for the 15-17 of May next year. There will be eight of us and we need for rooms. I will just keep trying I guess.

[B J]

We are booked for a tour/cruise package and RCI has us staying at Pikes Waterfront Lodge.

[Pssunshinegal]

Thanks for the help. I have tried the alpine lodge, pikes, springhill suites and a few more and they tell me nothing is available for the 15-17 of May next year. There will be eight of us and we need for rooms. I will just keep trying I guess.

 

I would call the 800 number because there must be something wrong with the internet reservation system. Alpine is really nice and there is a restaurant attached. I happen to like Pikes restaurant, but for considerably more, I would stay at Alpine even over Pikes. Extended Stay (old Aspen) has an indoor swimming pool and is right next to Fred Meyer, so if you have no car and kids, you may pick that option because you could shop and the kids could swim. They may have a pool at Alpine, but I didn't research that.

 

Janice

[Yukon]

Thanks for the help. I have tried the alpine lodge, pikes, springhill suites and a few more and they tell me nothing is available for the 15-17 of May next year. There will be eight of us and we need for rooms. I will just keep trying I guess.

 

They must not have their databases opened for 2009 yet - there's no way I believe that they're all booked up that early in the season. Mid-May is a pretty sparse time of year for tourism here even for the hotels that work cruisetours.

 

Interesting - I did a search at Hotels.com for 1 room on those dates and got lots of hotels, but when I did the same search for 4 rooms most of them disappeared.

[lovedeals]

Thanks for the advice on the 800 number Janice. Just called them and booked four rooms for $115 each. First they said 170, but I told them I saw a weekend special on line for 115 and thats what they gave me. Any suggestions on eating places now that I have rooms. Thanks again this site has been very helpful. There are 21 of us from upstate ny taking a cruise. Eight of us are doing 11 nights before the cruise. Thanks again.

[Pssunshinegal]

Thanks for the advice on the 800 number Janice. Just called them and booked four rooms for $115 each. First they said 170, but I told them I saw a weekend special on line for 115 and thats what they gave me. Any suggestions on eating places now that I have rooms. Thanks again this site has been very helpful. There are 21 of us from upstate ny taking a cruise. Eight of us are doing 11 nights before the cruise. Thanks again.

 

There is a restaurant attached that smelled wonderful. We had a car and decided to run up to Fox to see the pipeline, so didn't end up eating there. It is spendy by our standards, but not by Alaska. I don't know the distance, but you are walking distance for most to Pike's which is a restaurant/bar with very good food that I think will be less expensive than the one attached to the Alpine. We didn't do it and I have never done it in any of my trips, but it is right next to the paddleboat trip that everyone is raving about, so you may want to consider that. Everyone we ran into (even those who had been to Nome, Barrow, other small communities) RAVED about this excursion. I thought that it sounded too hokey for me, but evidently I missed out. I will try and make time on my next trip.

 

Whenever I am in FBS it is with locals and we hit the local spots. Not sure if you have transportation or not, but if so, I will give you some names. FBS is not huge so nothing is hard to find.

 

Janice

[lovedeals]

Yes we have cars. We are flying into Anchorage on the 9th of May. We are spending one night in Anchorage, 2 in Seward, 1 near Glenallen at Lake Louise, 2 in Valdez, 2 in Fairbanks, 2 in Denali, then back to Anchorage for 1 and then on to the cruise ship. My husband and I have been three times before, one cruise and two land tours on our own. It is our friends first time. We were in Fairbanks about eight years age but couldnt remember where we stayed. We didnt do a paddleboat, but we really enjoyed the museum. Sounds like we travel about the same way. I want to get the most bang for my buck. If we can find nice hotels at a decent price I get to see and do more. Spending a couple of hundred just to sleep seems pretty ridiculous to me.

[whale-watcher]

Avoid the Super 8...we stayed there 4 years ago and it WAS scary!

[Pssunshinegal]

Yes we have cars. We are flying into Anchorage on the 9th of May. We are spending one night in Anchorage, 2 in Seward, 1 near Glenallen at Lake Louise, 2 in Valdez, 2 in Fairbanks, 2 in Denali, then back to Anchorage for 1 and then on to the cruise ship. My husband and I have been three times before, one cruise and two land tours on our own. It is our friends first time. We were in Fairbanks about eight years age but couldnt remember where we stayed. We didnt do a paddleboat, but we really enjoyed the museum. Sounds like we travel about the same way. I want to get the most bang for my buck. If we can find nice hotels at a decent price I get to see and do more. Spending a couple of hundred just to sleep seems pretty ridiculous to me.

 

 

Is this all independent? Do you need to make Valdez reservations? Where are you staying in Denali?

 

Janice

[lovedeals]

Thanks whale watcher, that was another I checked on Trip Advisor, they didnt have one good rating lol.

[lovedeals]

Janice

Yes this is all independent. In Valdez we are looking at the Best Western. I have looked at several bed and breakfasts in Denali. Two of them make you take your shoes off before entering. I know this sounds a little petty, but I have a very nice home and do not always take my shoes off. I read one review for the Dome Home and they said that was their biggest complaint. I also got a group rate for the Nord Haven at 90 per person. We really have not decided where to stay? Any suggestions? All help is greatly appreciated. You certainly stirred me right in Fairbanks.

[Pssunshinegal]

Janice

Yes this is all independent. In Valdez we are looking at the Best Western. I have looked at several bed and breakfasts in Denali. Two of them make you take your shoes off before entering. I know this sounds a little petty, but I have a very nice home and do not always take my shoes off. I read one review for the Dome Home and they said that was their biggest complaint. I also got a group rate for the Nord Haven at 90 per person. We really have not decided where to stay? Any suggestions? All help is greatly appreciated. You certainly stirred me right in Fairbanks.

 

In Valdez I have stayed at Aspen, which I think is now called Mountain Sky because it is the only place with an indoor pool. We also stayed at Keystone on our first trip. Keystone is a slope hotel (meaning that it is one of the barracks that they used on the slope while building the gasline and could be able to move it to new locations. Originally they didn't have bathroom and showers in each room, but they do now. If you look at pictures of Keystone you can see these areas jutting out on the walls and that is where they have added plumbing. Anyway the rooms were very small at Keystone but since we were only in our room for 8 hours at night at most, I will stay here again. It was very clean and included a continental breakfast. Since you like deals the Best Western is less likely to be a good deal. Since you are staying two nights, you may want to check the Tour Saver book and see if any of these hotels have a 2:1. BW was much higher than the old Aspen for a room that was comparable. The Keystone was half the price, clean and just not large. Part of history.

 

For Healy, except for the shoe issue, many people LOVE the Dome Home. My high school friend owns AK Spruce Cabins so I always recommend those and just stayed here four nights last week. If you have transportation it is always cheaper to stay in Healy than Glitter Gulch. My cousin drove up from Anc and stayed at A Taste of Wilderness, which happens to be on Stampede Trail (if that is of any interest to you). I didn't see the rooms, but they were shocked at how nice it was for the price they got.

 

If you are going to go fishing in Valdez, let me know and I will make some captain recommendations of people that I have used personally.

 

Janice

 

PS: Edited to add on way to Valdez or to Glenellen, if you get a chance to eat at Sheep Mountain Inn, do, it is fabulous.

[lovedeals]

I spoke to the woman at taste of wilderness a couple of weeks ago. She seemed very nice and that is a possibility we are considering. By the time we get there we will be meeting 7 other people from our group that are coming only early enough to see Denali. Have you heard anything about the Lake Louise Lodge in Glennallen? and exactly where is that restaurant. We are going to be halibutt fishing in Seward any ideas? I am going to go check the website now for the places you suggested in Valdez. Thanks

[Pssunshinegal]

I have not heard of the place your are staying in Glenellen, but I looked at the site and it looks rather nice. The restaurant I recommended is on the Glenn Hwy about two to two and a half hours from Anchorage. We have always eaten there on the way to Valdez and stayed there on the way to Healy from Valdez because the drive is so long. They used to have very cute old cabins, which they replaced with rather nice new cabins. Still feel like you are staying in Alaska, rather than a hotel chain.

 

I don't have any referrals for captains in Seward but we saw some beautiful boats and nice fish. This is the first trip that I have taken when we didn't fish and I missed it. We bought fresh red salmon and scallops anyway, but catching your own makes it all the much better.

 

Janice

[mytime53]

http://www.sheepmountain.com/ Sheep Mountain Lodge, 113 miles from Anchorage

 

I'm sure you realize that Lake Louise Lodge is 17 miles off the highway, and you still have about 50 miles to go to reach Glennallen? It's a huge lake, and you have a good chance of seeing wildlife around it.

 

As for taking shoes off, Alaskans don't give a second thought to taking their shoes off in others' homes or in B & Bs...it's commonplace (stemming from the time of everyone having mud instead of grass and cement in their yards...and we're still a "wild" place, with different kinds of dirt that stain easily, including, in many areas, fine glacial silt that just doesn't come out of carpets.

[lovedeals]

Thanks for the information. We dont mind going the extra mileage we are staying there coming from seward going to valdez. We are outdoor people and it looked like such a beautiful stop seemed like a good place to stay. They also offer free canoe if you are staying there. I did check out Sheep Mountain, but I guess the restaurant does not open until May 15 we will be going thru the 12th of May. As to the shoe issue I am from upstate ny and I do not hesitate to take my shoes off in other peoples homes if my feet are dirty. I dont expect my guests to remove their shoes if it is not muddy or snowing. I want to thank everyone again for all the great information. It is helping me alot. Our last land tour was 10 years ago I think and alot has changed.

[lovedeals]

Just wanted to let anyone looking in Fairbanks to make sure they check Aspen Lodge. I took good advice from Janice and called the 800 number and got rooms for $115. After looking over their web site I found that this year before I think May 17 they offered a deal of 69 a night. I called back and they honored that rate for next year. We got two nights for less than $150. Thanks again for the advice!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[Yukon]

As to the shoe issue I am from upstate ny and I do not hesitate to take my shoes off in other peoples homes if my feet are dirty. I dont expect my guests to remove their shoes if it is not muddy or snowing.

 

Different culture, perhaps - here you take your shoes off unless your host tells you that it isn't necessary. Many northern B&Bs have signs at the door stating that shoes aren't permitted, for those not familiar with the way that part of courtesy works here.

[itsanita]

 

Whenever I am in FBS it is with locals and we hit the local spots. Not sure if you have transportation or not, but if so, I will give you some names. FBS is not huge so nothing is hard to find.

 

Janice

 

Janice,

We will be in Fairbanks for 3 days the first of September. We are staying at Sophie's Station because of the full kitchen. But we would love some suggestions for dinning out. We always ask for recomendations that the locals go to. My husband will try and find a police officer and ask where he and his family eat!!

[Micki Dee]

They must not have their databases opened for 2009 yet - there's no way I believe that they're all booked up that early in the season. Mid-May is a pretty sparse time of year for tourism here even for the hotels that work cruisetours.

 

Interesting - I did a search at Hotels.com for 1 room on those dates and got lots of hotels, but when I did the same search for 4 rooms most of them disappeared.

 

 

I just called the Pike's Waterfront Hotel today and they don't have their databases open yet for next season. I was looking for early June and they said to call back in 60 days to get reservations for next year.

[wolfie11]

Janice,

We will be in Fairbanks for 3 days the first of September. We are staying at Sophie's Station because of the full kitchen. But we would love some suggestions for dinning out. We always ask for recomendations that the locals go to. My husband will try and find a police officer and ask where he and his family eat!!

 

Most locals eat out at one of the 10-12 Thai restaurants in town. We have very good (and relatively inexpensive) Thai food in Fairbanks. Hardly anyone eats at the "touristy" places in the summer (Pike's, Pump House, etc.). Otherwise we eat depending on what we feel like having - there are several good places for pizza, burgers, Italian, Mexican, BBQ, etc.