Denali Grizzly Bear Resort — Hotel in Alaska

Grizzly Bear Resort (2 Stars, 3 Stars if You Have a Car) This might be one of the few non-five-star reviews I’ve written, but had I known a few things beforehand, I might have chosen a different location. TL;DR: If you’re driving, this place works well; if you’re arriving by train, you might want to consider a different hotel. The internet is unreliable, but if you don't need it, you'll be fine. Don’t expect any room cleaning service—not even basic tasks like trash removal, fresh towels, or bed-making during your entire stay. If you're here for just a day or two, that’s manageable, but be aware they have communication issues, particularly regarding transportation.

The trouble started the moment I booked, which should have been a red flag. I used Expedia, and everything seemed straightforward; the reviews were decent, and the price was better than most. They were upfront about dining options not being on-site but mentioned food trucks and a restaurant across the street. However, the day I booked, they called to inform me they didn’t accept American Express, which is tied to my Expedia account. After some back-and-forth, they initially said my Visa and Mastercard didn’t work. I had to insist the issue was on their end before they finally got the payment to go through on my Mastercard. I also inquired about transportation from the train station to the resort, and they assured me they had a shuttle. When we arrived at Denali Depot, we were told it would take over 30 minutes for our luggage to arrive. I called the resort to find out where to meet the shuttle driver and informed them of the delay. They then told me we weren’t on the list but would notify the driver and give him our phone number. When we made it to the van area, our driver was nowhere to be found. I called the resort again, and they said they’d try to reach him. After waiting another 30 minutes, I called once more and asked for a callback when they contacted him—no callback ever came. When we checked in, we were charged $70 for a round-trip, 15-minute shuttle ride, even though other hotels offered this service for free. At check-in, they informed us about the lack of housekeeping services during our stay. The room itself was basic—no desk, refrigerator, or closet—but the beds were comfortable, and the view was stunning. We even got to see the Northern Lights from our balcony on the second night. The overall layout is pleasant, like cabins in the woods, but the uphill trek became tiresome. The internet service was poor and expensive. I needed to be online for work meetings and emails, which cost $35 for 48 hours, still only had two bars and frequently dropped. I couldn’t manage any Teams meetings. However, the hotel across the highway (accessible via a safe walkway under the bridge) had excellent free internet, even for non-residents. The breakfast food truck we tried twice charged $15 each for a Costco-style, microwaved egg, cheese, and sausage croissant, a Sunny D, and a yogurt. While pricey, it was slightly cheaper than the typical $20. The breakfast buffet across the highway was good but cost $24 per person before the tip. We had dinner across the street—the ribeye steak was excellent, as was the cheeseburger. If you stay here, don’t miss their dinner On our departure day, the transportation issues continued. We needed to be at the train station by 11:30 am, and I confirmed with the resort multiple times that the shuttle would pick us up at 11:00 am. When the time came and went, I called at 11:05, 11:15, and finally insisted I wouldn’t hang up until they directly contacted the driver. They eventually assured me the manager had spoken with him. The driver arrived with a van full of luggage and people, but we managed to squeeze in after some rearranging. The driver apologized, and despite the hiccup, we made it to the train with our luggage intact. The young man driving did his best, but better communication—perhaps radios—would greatly improve...

We absolutely adored our stay here. I also love supporting small, family owned businesses; especially ones that have been around for decades and are a staple of the area.

The owner was very nice and every staff member I met was friendly and helpful.

Let me preface this by letting others that don't live in Alaska know, that you probably won't have great cell or internet service here or anywhere around Denali unless you have AT&T as a cell provider. They are the best for service for the entire state. I had two bars of cell service, both in the wooded cabin and the hotel. Did not even need wifi.

We first stayed in the Spruce cabin. It was perfect for what it is- a cabin in the woods. Some of y'all on here expect a 5 star hotel at 2 star price, lol. It's a cabin. In the woods. In remote Alaska. Lol.

That said, as much as we liked the privacy of the cabin, the cable tv wasn't working. It was unable to be fixed during our stay so we were offered a room in the hotel. We moved rooms simply because we have a toddler that likes tv to wind down at the end of the day. The cable issue was out of their hands, it wasn't a big deal to change rooms. We ended up in the D building on the second floor. We actually ended up preferring this view better. The hotel was noticeably newer and more up to date. It was clean, had plenty of towels, and comfortable beds. There was no microwave or mini fridge but it was fine with us as we were using a cooler for our stuff anyways (portable to take in the car for when we visited the park). The store by the office has a microwave you can use. The room has great black out curtains which is a must in Alaska in the summer (doesn't get dark til midnight some days and the sun rises early). There is a train that goes by but I really didn't notice it unless I saw it. It didn't wake me up.

The park entrance and "town" is about 10-15 minutes away which I actually liked because it wasn't so loud and busy. We had a rental car so it wasn't a big deal for us. We kept non-perishable snacks and things that could go in a cooler/didn't need to be heated up for food but mostly we ate out in town for our meals. There is one place to eat within walking distance from this hotel- the hotel across the street, but we didn't go there. There's a grocery store in Healy which is about 25 minutes or so from here that had items we needed like water and diapers. Also, this place is walking distance to the Triple Lakes Trailhead.

We ended up enjoying our stay so much that we stayed another night. I highly recommend the hotel rooms on the River. The view from the room is breathtaking and the sound of the river was so peaceful and relaxing.

I would definitely stay here again. We hope to visit again soon whether in the hotel or camping trailer. (They have hook ups, a laundry area, and the store has ice and firewood).

[For the people complaining about the store prices, as an Alaskan, I can tell you that everything costs more up here, especially in the more remote...

Since I can’t sleep, I’ll write a review.

The good: the cabins are cute, staff generally friendly, rooms were clean, very accommodating to a last minute change of dates with no added charges. Food trucks on site are very good (May 2018 has Mexican and Thai. Mexican serves breakfast through dinner).

The bad: noise, noise, noise! The mountain view cabins face the highway. The noise from cars all night is not what you want when you book a cabin in Alaska! Worse, the folks staying in trailers near the Mexican food truck partied all night with the radio blasting until 2am and loud talking until after 4am. I addressed this with the front desk - asking for ear plugs - and they responded “so sorry that was a one time event, it will be quiet tonight.” Well, it’s after 11pm and the radio is on, adults and kids talking very loud (over the radio) - I guess it drowns out the car noise?

I was looking for a peaceful relaxing stay in Denali. I got two nearly sleepless nights. As the front desk closed at 9pm, there is nobody to contact about the noise and they didn’t seem to care when I addressed it in the morning.

If you purchase from their store, check expiration dates. I found food that expired 9 months ago.

Paid wifi is ridiculous in 2018 especially at $20 per day. Since cell service was lacking, I paid for it anyway. Jokes on you, using it to post this review!

If you’re going to run a resort just feet from the highway, you need to build with better sound proofing. Also, don’t let the trailer trash party all night.

A mini fridge with microwave would be a nice touch - especially since they sell frozen foods in their store! Updated TVs with cable would be nice too - the old school CRTs with blurry antenna channels just collect dust. On the plus side, leaving the TV on helps drown out the noise from the trailer party.

To reiterate, the staff have generally been great, good food from the food trucks, and really appreciate the last minute change request. The noise is the killer - it ruins it all. I cannot recommend anyone stay here unless they open the office 24/7 and enforce a reasonable quiet hours (10pm-6am as an example). I should never have to listen to other guests for extended periods of time, even outside of quiet hours. I booked a cabin in Alaska, not a room in a frat party downtown. I would have left early but could not find any rooms nearby and I was too exhausted to travel to Talkeetna at 11pm where I...