The Hotel Captain Cook

The most iconic hotel in Anchorage, I had to stay even if I could only afford one night. Everything was good, the room was a bit small. Definitely paying big city prices for little old Alaska, which can feel like price gouging.

Hotel is very dated. Yes it’s in the old wood sailing vessel style but the rooms are showing their age. Wood corners are no longer fresh, bathroom is very dark, no light in or near the shower unlike modern standards. Internet is very slow. If you stream a show it either stops or is grainy. Wallpaper is peeling at the seems. No A/C in the room, could not get the room down to a comfortable temperature to sleep in. Having the window open brought in a bit cooler air but you get the street noise. Cars & the local drunk homeless screaming. The low tier Marriott brands like Fairfield are better & much cheaper. I would not spend my dollar here but work puts me up here though I wish they wouldn’t. Capt Cook is billed as a top tier hotel in ANC. I travel for a living. It’s one of my least favorite.

Most things are ok at the hotel, but the reception managers are extraordenary little service-oriented. I am travelling much in many countries, and have stayed at Captain Cook several times, but each time I have concluded that I will not stay there next time because of the reception staff. They are not lisening and not willing to say "yes, Sir, this we find out of". As an example, when I checked out today I asked for a specified bill of the laundry. The the answer was that I had to send a mail to the accounting dep on monday. The lack of service at the reception has been there everytime I have been in the hotel. I will not use the hotel anymore. The receptionists need an education course with the title .. you should do more to make sure that guest is happy about the stay at the hotel.

From the moment you arrive, everyone at this hotel goes out of their way to be friendly and welcoming. The valets are always ready to help, nothing is too much for them and they will have your bags loaded before you can ask. Front desk staff is lovely - they went out of their way to get my friend real creamer for her coffee in the room. The rooms are immaculate. Views out of the window were stunning from the 16th floor - full view of the Chugach range. Ate at both Fletcher's and the Pantry - great food, fabulous service. Pool was great - attendants are so helpful and friendly. Would stay here again if I'm in Anchorage.

The lobby and dining areas were nice, but for how expensive the rooms are… you’d think they’d be updated and not feel so out of the 80s.

I had a very friendly welcome to the hotel. The room was very comfortable, spacious, had plenty of coffee and had a great view. The waitress in the breakfast area (Karen) was lovely. I also had room service on two evenings which was promptly delivered by Fletchers. The food was delicious and I was given two slices of cheesecake for the price of one! I would definitely stay here again.

The property is beautiful and is a very nice, historic hotel. We were unimpressed with checkin. The front desk told me to find a bellhop but none were available and I didn’t know where to even wait. There weren’t any options to get a cart to transport all of our bags without a bellhop, so we had to struggle with our bags and 2 kids. It’s a very large hotel and we didn’t know where to go to get to our room. When I asked the front desk, I got a short, incorrect, response. My husband got the same. No one was going out of their way to help us. At that point I’d have rather been at a 3 star hotel where they set it up so you can help yourselves more conveniently. We also weren’t prepared for such a large parking fee - even without valet we’d be paying 30-50 dollars a night. And if you forego the valet, then you’re left walking in downtown from the parking garage to the hotel. This information wasn’t really available prior to getting there - it wasn’t even super clear where you were supposed to enter the hotel. So it was just confusing and stressful checking in initially. The pool is very small and cold with no hot tub but the locker room was VERY nice with great service. I wish there was more kid friendly dining available, but the food was very good. Overall, it wasn’t any better than a cheaper hotel. We’ll be trying something different next year.

I am updating my previous 4 star rating to a 2 star (to be generous). I visit Anchorage 2-3 times a year, up to 2 weeks at a time, and this is the third straight time I've stayed at the Captain Cook. The valets and the gentleman that brought in the roll away beds were the only positives I can say about this place. I've taken several hours prior to posting this to make sure I was level headed. Upon check in, all seemed to be great. We arrived to the room, to find we were given the incorrect room type but on the 15th floor. Booked a suite with 2 beds but was given one with a king. I called the front desk and requested to be moved to the same level of room but with 2 doubles instead of 1 king. The lady (putting as kindly as I can) working the front desk stated that would be no problem. We carry all of our luggage back down to the lobby. She apologized for the misunderstanding and gave us new keys. We went to our new room on the 14th floor. Again, incorrect room type (two doubles but basic room). Went back down to the front desk to be treated extremely poorly by the front desk lady. I dont know if Kara just had a bad day, had other things going on in life, or just didn't like the way we looked, but obviously had her mind on something else other than customer service. Multiple times, she asked us if we damaged the rooms twice, asking if we touched anything, if we left any of our "residue" in the room. Seeing my frustration, my family member stepped up trying to stop the situation from escalating. Kara then told us she would not reassign our rooms again. Then proceeded to book us on the 5th floor, continued to berate us and say next time we needed to learn how to read better when we booked, and talk under her breath about how "we couldn't afford the 2 bed suite anyways". She then told us she planned on charging our card extra for the hassle. I immediately stopped communicating with her and walked over to the manager. He was on the phone, on hold, during my entire conversation with him but was trying to remedy. I asked to cancel multiple times so we could go somewhere nicer and not fear fraudulent charges on my card. Not wanting to cancel, he said he could only get us back up to the 7th because Kara had given our high floor room away. While this was again the incorrect room type, he did have us roll away beds delivered. While not happy, it was enough to allow me to walk away from the berating session. I could not recommend this hotel based on the way we were treated (as poor and stupid) today. It was bad enough we are leaving first thing in the morning on day 1 of 3 even without a refund. My family does not deserve to be treated the way we were today. I hope the hotel can correct this for future guest and I hope Kara finds a way to be a happier person. The rooms are outdated. They are musty. Great views. Find something better for your hard earned money.

I stayed here with my partner the weekend of the 2024 Iditarod. The rooms are lovely and clean, with an air of classic luxury. The on-site restaurants serve great food, and the downtown location was absolutely perfect. My experience was ruined by the segregation of the men’s and women’s athletic clubs. I’m a competitive athlete. Training is a huge part of my identity, and I often pick hotels based on the quality of the hotel gym. Although this hotel has an impressive collection of cybex machines, barbells, and a squat rack, women aren’t allowed to access any of it. The co-Ed gym space is a laughable collection of cardio machines, some dumbbells, and a smith machine. The women’s area is a crowded and dingy assortment of weights up to 40lbs, a cable apparatus, and cardio machines. I was forced to ask male gym goers for help with retrieving simple equipment. I have never felt so helpless in my life, and my confidence and self-efficacy was shattered. The 60’s-era boy’s club sexism is appalling and infuriating. What’s worse, the athletic club mostly caters to members from the community. The selfish placement of heavy equipment in the men’s area is a disservice to all females members seeking to get stronger and healthier, completely discounting the new era of women’s gym culture. Whoever organized the athletic club layout should be ashamed. At least put unique equipment in the co-Ed area, so everyone has access. I will not be staying here again.