With an early morning arrival into Anchorage Alaska, we decided to stay the night before setting off to further explore the Turnagain arm and Girdwood Alaska. With a whole host of Marriott Bonvoy options, we ended up at the Aloft Anchorage as a result of a great room rate. We ended up discovering a really hospitable hotel with great Marriott Bonvoy elite member treatment. Read on to see how our Midtown Anchorage stay fared at this new Aloft hotel.

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This post is one chapter on a winter trip to Alaska, United States. This trip was enhanced through Marriott Bonvoy Elite Status, Alaska Mileage Plan and Hertz Gold Plus Rewards. For parts of the trip, please see this index.

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Review: Aloft Anchorage, Alaska, United States of America

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“A brand new Aloft in convenient Mid Town Anchorage, Alaska that excelled at customer service”

We arrived into the state of Alaska on Alaska Airlines First Class Seattle – Anchorage. Instead of heading down to Alyeska Ski Resort in Girdwood right away, we decided to take a day to shake off the sleep from our early morning departure, and get to know Anchorage.

Booking The Aloft Anchorage:

The city of Anchorage, Alaska is well stocked with Marriott Bonvoy hotels. With choices between the Marriott Anchorage Downtown, the Sheraton Anchorage Hotel, the Four Points by Sheraton Anchorage Downtown, the Residence Inn Midtown Anchorage, the Springhill Suites Anchorage, The Courtyard Anchorage Airport, TownePlace Suites Anchorage and the Aloft Anchorage, we had a wide range of choice within the Marriott brands across all price points.

While we initially were going to stay on free night certificates courtesy of the American Express Marriott Bonvoy Credit Card. With a Marriott Bonvoy double elite night credit promotion, it made sense to switch to a cash stay in order to claim elite qualifying nights to re-qualify for Marriott Bonvoy Platinum status. As a result we ended up on a AAA paid rate at the Aloft Anchorage hotel for US$125.

I booked through the Marriott Bonvoy website, which as a Marriott Titanium Member, entitled me to a complimentary upgrade to the best available room, including select suites, complimentary access to the Marriott Executive Club Lounge (of which there wasn’t one at this property), and a complimentary late check out up to 4 PM.

It’s probably common knowledge with Aloft properties but there aren’t any suites at the Aloft Anchorage. With only two different room configurations of a King Bed or Two Queens, every room is almost identical. The likely Marriott Bonvoy Elite upgrades offered will be a soft upgrade into a higher floor category, a better view or quieter area away from the elevator.

Marriott Bonvoy Redemption Opportunities:

The Aloft Anchorage offers room redemptions with the new variable redemption rates. Marriott Bonvoy rates were between 32,000 to 45,000, which represents value on some nights, but not on others.

If you value Marriott Bonvoy points at $0.008 a point, you’d have to spend more than $256 USD room rate to come out ahead for a 32,000 point redemption, or $360 USD room rate if you happen to find a 45,000 point redemption. It is hard to imagine a room at the Aloft Anchorage being higher than these price points. However it always pays to check to see and make sure that you’re getting the best value for your Marriott Bonvoy points. Likely this property is a better value on a cash rate.

Arriving to the Aloft Anchorage:

I had rented a car from Hertz from the Ted Stevens Anchorage International Airport, Alaska USA. We had a short drive from the airport into town.

Since the aloft Anchorage is located in Midtown, it was very convenient to access from the airport. It only took us about 15 minutes to get to the property.

The Aloft Anchorage is located in a business park area, across from a gas station. Aside from an outback steakhouse half a block away, there isn’t much in the immediate area. A car is definitely an asset if you’re staying at this property.

For those that happen to find themselves at the Aloft Anchorage in an electric vehicle, the aloft does offer EV charging. Based on the amount of snow found in the EV charging parking space, it doesn’t seem like this feature gets a whole lot of use.

We didn’t find any problem locating free parking at any time during our stay.

Checking into the Aloft Anchorage:

After a series of very early morning flights that started at 5 AM, we arrived to the aloft Anchorage at around noon.

We were thanked for being a Marriott Bonvoy Platinum members. Looking forward to a sunday sleep in, we selected the breakfast option when it came to the Marriott Bonvoy elite welcome bonus. We were given for $10 voucher coupons for use at the breakfast bar. Regular filter drip coffee was free.

There was no charge to park the rental car and we were given a parking permit for the dashboard.

After check in, the aLoft Anchorage made efforts to give us early access to the room. We were offered coffee in the lobby while we waited.

I took the opportunity to take a look around the lobby. The lobby was decorated like many other aLoft’s that I visited. The Aloft Anchorage featured a WXYZ bar which was decorated in a lively colour scheme.

The WXYZ bar offered a number of games, small booths and a pool table. The colour scheme brightened up the hotel quite considerably given how drab the business park neighbourhood surrounding the hotel was.

I’m happy to report that at 12:30 PM, we were called up to the lobby front desk and offered a set of room keys. It’s always terrific when you can get early access and the hotel is able to accommodate. After our early morning flight, we needed it.

Overall, the check in was friendly, pleasant and responsive. I have found that Marriott hotels aren’t super responsive with their front desk and letting you know when your room is actually ready. The aloft Anchorage went above and beyond to make us feel welcomed. They were prompt in letting us know when we could access our room.

The Room: Aloft Guest Room, 1 King.

We were assigned room number 425. The room was located on the top floor and was a very short walk from the elevator.

The Bedroom:

The Aloft king room was a compact but open and airy space. The room featured a king size bed in the middle of the room. The bed offered a comfortable sleep experience.

Measuring just 285 sq ft., the room was fairly snug for two people and their accompanying ski gear. Nevertheless, the bright colours of the rum made the space feel airy and a large picture window let in lots of south facing daylight.

the corner of the room featured a small double nook sized chair. This ended up doubling as a suitcase rest stand. As the seating services were quite firm, we didn’t end up seated there at any time during our visit.

The room offered a single bottle of water, in addition to Royal Cup filtered coffee from a Hamilton Beach coffee machine. The coffee and tea offering was a little underwhelming, but not to be expected from a budget brand.

Standard for this room category, there was an in room safe and a small microwave by the front door.

Our room had one of the better views from the top floor. Our south facing view overlooked the southern Chugach mountains towards the southern end of Anchorage.

The Anchorage aloft offered a straightforward “U” shaped configuration. Aside from a few oddly shaped corner rooms, most of the hotel room sizes appeared almost identical.

The Bathroom:

The aloft Anchorage guest room offered access to the sink and bathroom immediately off the bedroom. There was very little division of space between the bedroom and the bathroom, so much so, that you’d better be pretty comfortable using the sink in front of someone else.

The toilet was located in a separate space that was partitioned off from the room through a sliding door. The room offered a small-ish stand up only shower.

In a great functional step, the bathroom counter also featured a suitcase rack. This was exceptionally handy for unpacking clothes and toiletries so close to the bathroom. It was so convenient it makes me wonder why other hotels don’t offer an integrated luggage rack in the bathroom..

In addition to granting us early access to the room, as a thank you for being Marriott Bonvoy platinum members, the hotel offered to grab bags containing additional Aquafina water, Milano cookies and Cheez it crackers.

While it was such a simple touch it’s always nice to receive a little extra something as an elite member. I congratulate the hotel for taking the small extra step.

In terms of sleep quality, I am happy to report that I had a good sleep over my overnight at this property. The hallway noise was minimal and I didn’t hear any noise throughout the property.

Around the Hotel Property:

The ALoft Anchorage had a few features that were useful for a hotel in Anchorage Midtown. These are all packed into a compact space.

Fitness Centre – Indoor Pool:

Just behind the front desk lies the aloft Anchorage is indoor pool. It’s a modern looking space with a rainbow coloured light.

I didn’t actually see anybody using it during our weekends day but it’s nice to have in case you need it.

Courtyard Deck Space:

The Aloft Anchorage also offered a courtyard deck space that could be used for outdoor events. During our visit in cool March, the space had yet to live up to its full outdoor potential. However it did look like it could be a lot of fun and if it was decorated appropriately.

Food and Beverage:

The aloft Anchorage is primary and only Restaurant is ReFuel. This is aside from the WXYZ Bar, seen earlier.

Refuel:

Breakfast was served at the aloft between 6:30 to 9:30 AM on weekdays and between 7 AM to 10 AM on weekends. I haven’t usually had a terrific experience getting breakfasts at aloft properties. Most breakfasts are of the “grab and go” microwave variety, which is terrific under some circumstances but disastrous on others.

Our Marriott Bonvoy elite breakfast vouchers entitled us to $20 each (totalling $40) at refuel. We were instructed to order off of the televised menus. While we could pay for juices and specialty coffees, there was complementary drip filter coffee available.

On Sunday morning when it came time to order breakfast, I placed an order for the OG Bacon Egg Cheese sandwich. It was the front desk doubling as kitchen staff during a period of time when many people were checking out.

After about 30 minutes when our food hasn’t arrived we went to go inquire to make sure our order hadn’t forgotten. Sure enough, we discovered that staff forgot to put the breakfast order in.

They were extremely apologetic and offered for us to get additional items from the breakfast bar as a result we ended up with an additional juice and a cup of fruit. The service recovery was excellent, and we were made to feel appreciated despite the mistake.

When breakfast did arrive, it wasn’t super aspirational. Much like my other aloft breakfast experiences, I probably won’t be looking forward much to the next one. If you’re looking for a really solid breakfast, I’d recommend planning to go out.

Checking Out of the Aloft Anchorage:

On departure day, I checked out of the hotel using the front desk. We were planning on doing a little sightseeing on the drive to Girdwood, AK. As a result we only had a 1 PM check out.

I had no surprises on the bill with everything “as expected”. The check out was instant and our Marriott Bonvoy points posted to my account within 48 hours as promised.

The Bottom Line: Aloft Anchorage

I came into the Aloft Anchorage not expecting too much other than a bright looking property set an a business Park. Instead, I actually ended up being really impressed with how friendly the staff were.

We were able to get access to a room with communicative stuff that actually let us know when things are ready. When staff forgot our order, they responded with generosity and compassion. We were also given grab bags courtesy of Marriott Bon Voy elite status at the front desk. While this is a small thing, it’s amazing how many hotels don’t treat elite members in this fashion.

As a result I was quite impressed with the Aloft Anchorage and would really recommend it for a future stay.

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If you have stayed in Anchorage Mid Town, do you have a preferred Marriott Bonvoy Property?

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