A luxury mountain resort surrounded by the Chugach Mountains, just 45 minutes from Anchorage
Alaska has a way of making ordinary measurements feel inadequate. A mountain isn’t simply tall. A glacier isn’t simply large. A road isn’t simply scenic. Everything seems to exist on a scale that makes the numbers we use in the Lower 48 feel almost quaint. Every trip we have taken there, including this Norwegian Cruise to Mendenhall Glacier, has given us a new appreciation for the beauty of the region.
Originally written by Kristen Conard | Revised and updated by Erin Peterson
At Alyeska Resort in Girdwood, Alaska, one of the numbers that gets your attention is 650. That’s roughly the average number of inches of snow the resort receives each year – more than 54 feet. It is an almost absurd amount of snow, even for a place whose identity is built around winter. But numbers don’t really explain Alyeska. You begin to understand it on the drive there.
From Anchorage, the Seward Highway follows Turnagain Arm toward Girdwood, with the water on one side and the Chugach Mountains rising on the other. Girdwood is about 37 miles from Anchorage and roughly a 45-minute drive, although the road is part of the experience rather than simply a means of getting somewhere. The landscape changes constantly as the highway winds along the arm, and there are opportunities to see wildlife, including Dall sheep on the mountainsides.
About 45 minutes after leaving Anchorage, the city is gone. The mountains aren’t. Girdwood is a small mountain community within the Municipality of Anchorage, but it has a character distinctly different from the city. Alyeska Resort sits in the valley, surrounded by the Chugach Mountains and rainforest, and the first impression is that someone has built an exceptionally comfortable place at the edge of a landscape that is still very much in charge.
There are enormous fireplaces and comfortable hotel rooms. There are restaurants serving everything from casual après-ski food to sophisticated dining. There is a 50,000-square-foot Nordic spa tucked into the forest. There are shops featuring Alaska-made art and mountain gear. And then there is the mountain, rising behind everything. That juxtaposition is what makes Alyeska so compelling. This isn’t a resort attempting to reproduce the idea of Alaska inside a carefully landscaped vacation bubble. The mountains are too large for that, the weather is too serious and the landscape is too present. Instead, the resort has built itself around the landscape.
In winter, that means skiing.
Getting to Alyeska Resort
The journey to Alyeska is one of those rare instances when the drive itself genuinely feels like part of the vacation. Leaving Anchorage, the Seward Highway traces the shoreline of Turnagain Arm, where mountains plunge toward the water and the road seems to thread its way between two enormous landscapes. The farther south you travel, the more dramatic the scenery becomes. The Chugach Mountains rise sharply from the highway, and depending on the season and weather, the landscape can shift from green and blue to gray, silver and white. Dall sheep can sometimes be seen along the route, particularly in the early morning, although they’re easy to miss when you’re distracted by everything else.
Then the road turns toward Girdwood, and the character of the landscape changes again. The water recedes, the mountains close in and the community appears in the valley. Alyeska Resort is only about 45 minutes from Anchorage, but the setting makes it feel considerably farther away. That accessibility is one of Alyeska’s greatest advantages. You don’t need a long road trip or a small plane to reach a spectacular Alaska mountain destination. You can leave Anchorage in the morning and be on the mountain before lunch.
Skiing at Alyeska Resort
Alyeska receives roughly 650 inches of snow in an average year, or more than 54 feet. The sheer amount of snow changes the character of the place. Snow piles against buildings, covers the forest and reshapes the mountain, turning the entire valley into something that feels steadfastly removed from the ordinary rhythms of the world.
The resort offers approximately 1,610 skiable acres, 76 named trails and seven lifts, with terrain ranging from beginner runs to extremely challenging expert terrain. Alyeska’s summit reaches 3,939 feet, while the mountain offers roughly 2,500 feet of lift-served vertical.
The mountain’s reputation is largely built around its steep and deep terrain. Alyeska’s North Face includes what the resort and Visit Anchorage describe as North America’s longest continuous double-black-diamond runs. It is the sort of terrain that attracts accomplished skiers and snowboarders looking for something genuinely challenging.
But that reputation can obscure another important fact about Alyeska: you don’t have to be an expert to enjoy it. The mountain offers terrain for a range of abilities, and the resort’s Mountain Sports School provides instruction for both skiers and snowboarders.
Skiing Alyeska as a Beginner
Lessons and beginner terrain at the Mountain Sports School
Rather than arriving in Alaska and pretending I was suddenly going to become an expert skier (I haven’t skied in decades), I signed up for a morning of lessons through the resort’s Mountain Sports School. I headed to the Daylodge, where the lesson began on the smallest bunny hills and the magic carpets before gradually moving toward the lifts. My instructor was patient and helpful, which was important because my relationship with gravity had become considerably more complicated in the decades since I had last skied. There was something almost comical about the contrast between my cautious return to the sport and the reputation of the mountain looming above me. Alyeska is a place where experienced skiers come specifically looking for difficult terrain, while I was celebrating the fact that I could make it down a beginner slope without embarrassing myself.
Eventually, I made my way onto one of the quad lifts. I wasn’t exactly charging down the mountain, but I was skiing again, which felt like an accomplishment. My travel companion, an accomplished snowboarder, had a very different experience. He was able to take advantage of the more challenging terrain and could attest to just how much fun Alyeska is for someone who knows what they’re doing on a mountain.
What we both noticed, however, was how uncrowded the resort felt. We were there during the height of winter, with beautiful weather and excellent snow, yet there were relatively few lift lines. There was no sense that the mountain was being overwhelmed by people.
For an experienced skier, that may be one of Alyeska’s greatest luxuries. For someone less experienced, it means you can take your time learning without feeling as though you’re holding up an enormous procession of skiers behind you. Alyeska is careful to emphasize that the mountain contains difficult and potentially dangerous terrain and that conditions can change quickly. Certain areas may be opened or closed based on snow safety, conditions and darkness, so the mountain is a place to respect rather than underestimate.
Staying at Hotel Alyeska
304 rooms surrounded by mountains, fireplaces and Alaska-inspired design
About a mile from the Daylodge is Hotel Alyeska, the centerpiece of the resort and home to many of its amenities. The hotel has 304 guest rooms, many with mountain views, and it feels like exactly what you would hope to find at the end of a cold day in Alaska.
There are fireplaces, large windows looking toward the mountains, Alaska-inspired artwork and comfortable places to sit and watch the landscape outside. The hotel manages to feel luxurious without becoming disconnected from its setting. After spending several hours outside in snow and cold, the transition indoors is immediate and satisfying. Your clothes are cold, your muscles are tired and your face still feels the effects of the weather. Then you walk into a warm hotel with the mountains visible through the windows.
That is one of the things Alyeska does particularly well. The resort provides the comforts of a luxury property without asking you to forget where you are. The hotel also has a gallery and retail spaces featuring Alaska art, jewelry, home décor and mountain apparel. There is a saltwater pool, whirlpool and fitness center, along with the resort’s restaurants and other amenities.
For visitors who want an Alaska experience but aren’t interested in roughing it, Hotel Alyeska provides an appealing middle ground. You can spend the day in the mountains and come back to a comfortable room, a good meal and a spa. And in Alaska, that transition can feel particularly wonderful with a backdrop of the remote wilderness.
Alyeska Nordic Spa
A 50,000-square-foot spa surrounded by the Chugach Mountains of Alaska
After a morning on skis, I was sore in the very specific way that comes from using muscles you haven’t asked much of in a very long time. So a visit to the Alyeska Nordic Spa became less of a luxury and more of a necessity.
Alyeska Nordic Spa is a 50,000-square-foot facility set within the Chugach Mountains. Its experience centers on Nordic hydrotherapy, with hot and cold pools, saunas, steam rooms, relaxation areas, massage treatments and the Two Trees Bistro. I had a massage, which I would highly recommend after a day on the mountain, and then spent time experiencing the hydrotherapy circuit.
The outdoor pools are the part that is hardest to forget. Sitting in warm water while snow-covered trees surround you feels almost absurdly indulgent. The cold air becomes part of the experience rather than something you’re trying to escape. There are also quieter spaces with cedar hot tubs and saunas among the trees. Those areas have a more intimate feel, particularly compared with the busier portions of the spa later in the day when skiers and hotel guests begin arriving.
The spa isn’t an indoor amenity with an “Alaska-themed” design. The landscape is built in as part of the experience. You’re completely surrounded by the forest, with the mountains rising above it, and the changing weather is visible rather than hidden behind windows, and I feel that distinction matters. The Nordic Spa is an additional experience to budget for rather than something automatically included with a hotel room, so guests should check current access and pricing when booking. Resort amenities and policies can change seasonally.
For me, it was one of the highlights of the trip. Alyeska is a place where you spend the day outside, and the Nordic Spa gives you a way to continue experiencing that environment while doing almost nothing at all.
Dining at Alyeska Resort
One of the advantages of staying at a full-service mountain resort is that you don’t have to figure out where you’re going to eat every time you’re hungry. Alyeska has a variety of dining options, ranging from casual meals and drinks at the base of the mountain to fine dining high above the valley.
At the Daylodge, Sitzmark Bar & Grill is an easy après-ski stop. It is casual and comfortable, the sort of place where a ski jacket doesn’t feel out of place and a drink and something hearty to eat seem like the natural conclusion to a day on the mountain, but the dining experience that most deserves advance planning is Seven Glaciers.
Note: If Seven Glaciers is on your itinerary, make a reservation ahead of time and check tram operations and weather conditions before you go. The restaurant’s location means the journey is dependent on mountain and tram operations.
Seven Glaciers Restaurant
Seven Glaciers is Alyeska’s signature fine-dining restaurant, perched high on Mount Alyeska and reached by the resort’s aerial tram. The tram climbs to approximately 2,300 feet above sea level, and the ride itself becomes part of the evening. As you rise above the resort, the valley opens below you and the Chugach Mountains become increasingly dominant. On a clear day, the views extend toward the surrounding glaciers that inspired the restaurant’s name.
Visit Anchorage describes Seven Glaciers as a AAA Four-Diamond restaurant and Wine Spectator award recipient, with a menu emphasizing Alaska seafood and other carefully prepared dishes. It would be easy for a restaurant in such a setting to rely entirely on the view. Seven Glaciers doesn’t. The service is polished, the cocktails are inventive and the wine list is impressive. The menu changes seasonally, with locally sourced ingredients used whenever possible and Alaska seafood naturally playing an important role. During my visit, the scallop bisque was one of the dishes that stayed with me. Rich and creamy, it was exactly the kind of food that makes sense after spending a day in Alaska’s winter cold.
