Best Mountain Hotels
Braided river winding through a dramatic mountain valley in Wrangell–St. Elias, Alaska
Ultima Thule Lodge

The best mountain hotels in Alaska

Fly-in wilderness lodges, deep powder and the northern lights.

4 hotels

Alaska is America's last great wilderness, and its mountains are on a scale found almost nowhere else. Denali, the highest peak in North America, rises above the Alaska Range, while in the south-east, Wrangell–St. Elias protects more than 13 million acres of glaciers, icefields and peaks, the largest national park in the United States. Much of this land has no roads at all, and the best way to see it is from the window of a small plane.

The state's finest mountain lodges reflect that wildness. Some can only be reached by bush plane or floatplane and come with their own pilots, helicopters and guides, while others offer an easier way in: a ski resort an hour from Anchorage, or igloos in the forest outside Fairbanks, built for watching the northern lights. Wherever you stay, expect bears, glaciers, salmon rivers and, in winter, some of the deepest snow on the continent.

Château-style resort hotel reflected in a pond at the foot of the mountains, Alyeska Resort, Alaska, USA

Girdwood · Alaska

Alyeska Resort

Alyeska Resort is Alaska's great mountain resort, a grand, château-style hotel at the foot of Mount Alyeska in the Chugach Mountains, about 40 miles from Anchorage. It is the state's largest ski area, famous for its deep snow and views over Turnagain Arm, and it is open all year: in winter for skiing and northern lights, in summer for hiking, glaciers and the aerial tram to a mountain-top restaurant. It is the easiest way to experience the Alaskan mountains in comfort.

Aurora ribbons above snow-covered igloos, Borealis Basecamp, Alaska, USA

Fairbanks · Alaska

Borealis Basecamp

Borealis Basecamp is Alaska's answer to the glass igloos of Lapland: a cluster of fibreglass igloos on a quiet ridge in the boreal forest outside Fairbanks, each with a huge curved window in the ceiling for watching the northern lights from bed. Fairbanks lies beneath the auroral oval, making it one of the best places on Earth to see the lights, and the resort is built entirely around that experience, from northeast-facing domes to aurora wake-up calls.

Log lodge beside Judd Lake beneath a rainbow, Tordrillo Mountain Lodge, Alaska, USA

Tordrillo Mountains · Alaska

Tordrillo Mountain Lodge

Tordrillo Mountain Lodge is one of the great heli-skiing lodges in the world, a fly-in log lodge on the shore of Judd Lake in Alaska's Tordrillo Mountains. It was founded by Tommy Moe, the American Olympic downhill gold medallist, and Mike Overcast, a pioneer of Alaskan heli-skiing, and in winter its helicopters open up some of the deepest, steepest and most spectacular terrain anywhere. In summer, the same mountains become a playground for glacier hiking, rafting, fly-fishing and heli-biking.

Log cabins and wildflower gardens above the Chitina River, Ultima Thule Lodge, Alaska, USA

Wrangell–St. Elias National Park · Alaska

Ultima Thule Lodge

Ultima Thule Lodge is often described as the greatest wilderness lodge in North America, and it is easy to see why. Deep inside Wrangell–St. Elias, the largest national park in the United States, around 100 miles from the nearest road, the Claus family welcomes a handful of guests to their hand-built log cabins on the Chitina River. Every day, weather permitting, Paul Claus, one of Alaska's most celebrated bush pilots, flies guests to places almost nobody else will ever see: icefields, glaciers, remote beaches and the slopes of some of the highest peaks on the continent.

When to go

Summer, from June to early September, is the main season for the wilderness lodges, with up to 20 hours of daylight, wildflowers, bears fishing for salmon in July and August, and the best flying weather. Winter is the time for skiing at Alyeska, usually from about December to mid-April, and for heli-skiing in the Tordrillo Mountains, typically from about February to April. The northern lights season runs from around late August to April, with the darkest, longest nights from December to February and excellent displays around the March equinox, when days are also longer and milder.

How to choose your hotel

For the ultimate wilderness experience, choose Ultima Thule Lodge, a family-run, fly-in lodge in Wrangell–St. Elias with daily bush-plane flights to glaciers and icefields. For heli-skiing in winter or glacier adventures in summer, choose Tordrillo Mountain Lodge, founded by Olympic champion Tommy Moe and reached by floatplane from Anchorage. For an easier, more affordable stay, choose Alyeska Resort in Girdwood, a ski-in ski-out resort with an aerial tram and a superb Nordic spa, open all year. For the northern lights, choose Borealis Basecamp near Fairbanks, where igloos with curved ceiling windows let you watch the aurora from bed. Many travellers combine a fly-in lodge with a few days at Alyeska.

FAQ

What is the best time to visit Alaska's mountains?

June to early September for wilderness lodges, wildlife and long days; December to April for skiing and the northern lights.

Do you need to fly to Alaska's wilderness lodges?

Yes, many of them. Ultima Thule and Tordrillo are reached only by small plane or floatplane, while Alyeska Resort is an hour's drive from Anchorage and Borealis Basecamp is reached by road from Fairbanks.

Where is the best place to see the northern lights in Alaska?

Fairbanks, in Alaska's interior, lies beneath the auroral oval and has long, dark, often clear winter nights, making it one of the best places in the world to see the aurora.

Can you ski in Alaska?

Yes. Alyeska Resort near Anchorage is the state's largest ski area, with deep snow and steep terrain, and the Tordrillo Mountains are famous for heli-skiing.