Glacier Bay Lodge

I rearranged our reservation last minute due to other plans being cancelled on us. We flew over early in the morning to do the boat tour and were flying back in the evening. We arrived at the Gustavus airport and it took 3 calls and over a half hour for them to arrive. Had to be taken right to the boat for our tour as no time for the check-in at lodge as instructed. We enjoyed the boat tour to the National Park. Returned and looked through the visitor's center upstairs and the gift shop as well as had a good meal in the restaurant. We boarded the van for transport back to the airport for our flight back to Juneau and there seemed to be a problem. Finally the driver said the office said we hadn't paid for our transport. I told her the amount of the charge I was instructed would be on my credit card from my last minute reservation phone call and she said "yep, that's what it would have been" so away we went. I would suggest if anyone makes reservations for this boat tour and transport from the airport like we did to call the night before to verify again so there is no delay!

Staying at Glacier Bay Lodge with a day out on the water was such a memorable experience. We loved the rustic nature of the Lodge nestled into the forest, the walking trails, the views, the people, the food, the readily available transportation, and the ambience of the whole environment. The boat trip included a Federal Ranger who was so knowledgeable and informed our many sightings of the marine and animal life we observed. We even had an orca swim under the boat! We will always remember this visit with a smile!

Overall, this is a fine place to stay for a night or two. The pros - the room itself was cozy, the bed was nice. Dinner at the resort was significantly better than expected with specifically really excellent salmon. They have a shuttle perfectly timed to coincide with sea plane departure and arrival Times. Location is convenient for the day tour boats and some hiking. The cons - the bathrooms were in stark contrast to the rest of the hotel room. Old, mildewy, with lukewarm showers. These need major renovations as soon as possible. The hotel does not offer lunch, so you will have to figure out a way to get back into “town” to get something to eat if it is a day on which you are not taking a boat tour. There is a little gift shop that has some snacks and pre made sandwiches, but they were pretty awful. There are many sets of boardwalks and stairs connecting all of the buildings within the complex - at night, these are entirely unlit. As two athletic 34 yr olds we were tiptoeing with flashlights in the dark as things get extremely slippery with the rain. This is unnecessarily risky and could be easily fixed with a few lights along the pathways. Overall, The convenience and location can’t be beat, but higher quality accommodations could likely be found at one of the other gustavus B&Bs. If you are looking for convenience

Our family of four stayed at Glacier Bay Lodge for one night. We were picked up from the airport by the bus. The driver was very friendly and even offered to stop at the national park sign so we could get pictures. Upon arrival at the lodge, the staff had our room keys ready to go, so check-in was quick and easy, even though many people arrived at the same time via the bus. Our room itself was your basic national park room. Small and simple, but clean. If you are expecting a 4 star hotel, you'll be disappointed. If you have stayed in national park lodges before and go in with the right expectations, you'll be pleasantly surprised. We had a room right along the water. The view out of our window was stunning! FYI - The room only had two towels, so I'd request more if you have more than two people. There are also several sets of stairs to get to the room. This wasn't a problem for our family, but may be for families with younger kids who have multiple suitcases. We ate at the restaurant for dinner and everyone was able to find something to eat (even our picky daughter). The credit card machine at the gift shop was down while I was there, so bring cash if you think you'll want to buy snacks. You can buy souvenirs from the visitor centers located at the dock or upstairs in the lodge and I was able to use my card there. (I always buy a magnet in national parks, so this was important to me). Cell phone service was spotty, even in the main area of the lodge. We anticipated that, however, so it didn't bother us. It was nice to be off the grid for a bit. The bus was waiting to take us back to the airport upon our arrival from the boat tour. Once again, the process was smooth and the staff seem to have it down. I was very impressed by them!

It’s a National Park Lodge so it’s basic, as you would expect. It was clean, comfortable and in a location that is remarkable. We stayed here for two nights. After the first night staff came by and asked if we needed anything. How often does that happen in a “high end” hotel?

Wonderful stay! The room was perfect! It was clean and comfortable and had everything I needed. The room had the most incredible view of Bartlett Cove. It was a relaxing rejuvenating respite! I’ll come back again, for sure! Highly recommend!

Upon arrival, our room was disgusting. Several hairs were found on the toilet seat, in the shower, and both on the bed and under the covers. The shower curtain was filthy with hairs and sand. The bedside lamp was covered in dust. The heat in the room didn’t work. We requested our room be cleaned, and it was. However, a few hairs still remained, the shower curtain still covered with hair and sand, AND our new sheets had large yellow stains. Needless to say, we slept in our sleeping bags because we were freezing and the “clean” sheets were visibly soiled. Somehow flies kept getting in our room despite our window being closed. Not sure how this continued. The bathroom had no hand soap, just the small bar in the shower. This barely lasted us our 3 days, but we were too frustrated with our room to even waste our time asking for more. The food at the Lodge restaurant was overpriced and barely edible. We only ate there because we had no other convenient option. Several dishes we tried to order were already sold out on Monday while food delivery occurs on Thursday. Our salmon overcooked, the pasta overcooked and flavorless, brownie so burnt we couldn’t cut through it, and the cobbler was just a bowl of cooked berries. Thank god for our waiter Cade who made the rest of our dining experience enjoyable!!! We generally had pleasant interactions with the staff. In addition to Cade at the restaurant, Deena our bus driver was fabulous. She welcomed us at the airport, gave us a tour of the town on our way to the Lodge, and suggested a whale watching tour for us to do. We likely would not have enjoyed Gustavus without her. The gift shop staff were also very friendly and gave us other great suggestions for our trip, such as visiting the airplane wreck. On the other hand, the desk staff did not seem to know any answers to our questions, namely those related to the laundry machines, and they referred us to the gift shop staff for all of our questions. The desk staff was really only useful for filling our water bottles. Maybe this is why they don’t have water filling stations anywhere besides the dock. Felt very strange having to ask staff to fill our bottles for us. One final experience of note was an evening in the lodge where we were reading and using the wifi on the second floor of the lodge, and it appeared that restaurant staff assumed the lodge was free of guests and started blasting inappropriate music throughout. We merely laughed at this, but imagine other guests would have been upset. The state of the room for the price we paid had us in disbelief. We were so excited to visit Glacier Bay and were SO disappointed in our stay at the Lodge. Nearly ruined our final 3 days in AK. We will never stay here EVER AGAIN and will make sure no one we know ever does either. Horrible and extremely unacceptable experience!!!! We would have been better off sleeping outside in our tent.

What a jewel of a place to enjoy everything that Alaska has to offer. Setting offers both forest and water views. Rooms are appropriately rustic and comfortable. Staff is very friendly and helpful. Communications are frequent and informational prior to your arrival. Bus pick up is convenient from airport and ferry. Limited menu for dinner but quality and pricing was better than I expected. Servers were very friendly. The day boat ride was the highlight of my week in Alaska. Captain was able to maneuver close to shore for amazing animal sightings. Plenty of time was provided at the glaciers for pic opportunities. Trails near the lodge were well maintained and so beautiful. The moss on the forest trail was something out of a fairytale. The presentations at the Tlingit Tribal house are not to be missed. A memorable stay that I will never forget.

I did not stay at the Lodge but visited there as part of the Glacier Bay excursion boat trip. I realized I had left my credit card there when at the Gustavos airport on the last flight of the day back to Juneau. A great big shout out and THANK YOU to Lodge manager/ front desk person Quentin McCorquodale who went above and beyond to fly my card back to Juneau the following day. Quentin, you saved the rest of our trip! I do hope management sees this and recognizes your efforts.