Firsthand review • Staybridge Suites Anchorage • October 2026 • 2-bedroom suite, one night
After two nights in public-use cabins at Bird Creek (Bore Tide and Black Bear), we spent one night at Staybridge Suites Anchorage in a 2-bedroom suite. The short version: it was clean, the kitchen let us cook most of our own food, and the kids loved the breakfast and the pool. We would stay again.
If you have a big family, the most useful part of this post may be how we booked the suite, because the website wouldn’t show it to us at first.
Quick Facts From Our Stay
- Hotel: Staybridge Suites Anchorage, 200 Calais Drive, Anchorage, AK
- Room: 2 Bedroom Suite with a sofa bed, listed for up to 7 people
- When: One night in October 2026
- Our rate: $351.50 IHG One Rewards member rate, $393.68 with tax
- Check-in / check-out: 4 p.m. / 12 p.m.
How We Booked a 2-Bedroom Suite for 7 People
I booked directly on the hotel’s website. When I searched there for 7 guests, the 2-bedroom suite didn’t show up. When I searched for 2 guests, it did.
So I emailed the hotel and asked. The front desk told me to book with the number of guests the system allowed, then send them the confirmation number, and they would update the reservation to our full party of 2 adults and 5 kids. They said the price would stay the same.
That’s what I did. I booked, emailed the confirmation number, and the hotel updated the guest count. The rate didn’t change.
If you have a large family and a room you need doesn’t appear in the search, it’s worth emailing the hotel directly before you give up on it.
In the end, two of us didn’t stay at the hotel that night, so five of us actually used the suite.
Early Check-In
Before the trip, I also asked whether we could drop off our bags before check-in. The hotel said yes, and that they would try to check us in early if a room was ready, but they couldn’t promise it.
We got there about an hour early, planning to ask about leaving our bags. Instead, they checked us in right away.
The Beds
The suite has two bedrooms and a living room with a sofa bed.
- Main bedroom: a California king bed, and it was really comfortable. It was so big that it almost felt like I was sleeping alone, with no idea where my husband was. The bedding was clean.
- Second bedroom: two smaller beds. I lay down on one. For kids, I think they’d be comfortable. For adults, I’m not so sure.
- Sofa bed: the same. Fine for a lighter child, but I think an adult might find it uncomfortable.
The Kitchen Saved Us a Lot of Money
This was my favorite part of the suite. The kitchen had:
- Spoons, forks, and knives
- Cooking utensils and a cutting board
- One pot or pan of each kind
- A microwave
- A toaster oven (not a full oven)
- A dishwasher, with detergent provided
- A coffee maker with coffee
- An island with two seats
There were even soup bowls, so we could all eat together as a family.
There was no dish sponge. I had already brought my own, so I used that. If you plan to wash dishes by hand, bring one.
I’m usually hesitant to use hotel coffee makers, but this one was clean. The only downside was the water. You could taste and smell the chlorine, which I think is just how city water is.
What we cooked and reheated
- Leftovers from the road: we reheated the pho we’d gotten to go at a pho restaurant in Anchorage that afternoon, plus leftover fried rice I’d made at the cabin. We also reheated pizza in the microwave.
- Pasta: I had canned pasta sauce from Costco and dried pasta with me. I browned ground pork and ground beef together, added the sauce, and that was dinner.
- S’mores in the toaster oven: we had planned to make s’mores at the cabin but couldn’t. So at the hotel I lined the toaster oven tray with cookies and crackers, put marshmallows on top, baked them, and pressed them together.
- BBQ chicken for the drive home: I had already boiled chicken at home, so it was almost fully cooked. The morning we left, I poured store-bought barbecue sauce over it and heated it in the toaster oven at 350°F for about 20–30 minutes. That became our packed lunch.
A toaster oven isn’t really meant for oven cooking, and it took a while. But for reheating and finishing food that was already cooked, it worked.
Between the kitchen, the microwave, and the free breakfast, we didn’t have to buy restaurant meals at the hotel, and that saved us a lot.
Breakfast: Lots of Choices, and It Didn’t Run Out
I had read reviews saying that if you don’t go early, the food runs out. That wasn’t our experience. We went down between 7:30 and 8:00 and stayed until about 9:00 or 9:30, and there was still food out until the end.
What I saw:
- Scrambled eggs (these were good) and other eggs
- Sausage stir-fry and rice
- Lots of fruit
- Yogurt with granola and toppings
- Almond milk
- Pudding and Jell-O cups
It felt like the hotel really tries to make breakfast good. There were a lot of different fruits.
A few things I didn’t like:
- The milk didn’t taste good to me.
- The yogurt was a very sweet plain yogurt, not Greek-style. The kids liked it. I didn’t eat it.
- The breakfast coffee was really bad. I tried, but I couldn’t drink it. I went back to the room and made coffee with the in-room coffee maker instead.
I also saw that they offer to-go breakfast boxes starting at 3:30 a.m. for guests who leave early. I didn’t try one, so I can’t say what’s in it.
Pool and Hot Tub
The pool was quiet and nice. This, along with breakfast, was probably the kids’ favorite part.
The hot tub temperature was just right. But when I pressed the jet button, a lot of foam came up, and my eyes started to hurt, I think from the chemicals. I couldn’t stay in very long.
Laundry
There is a washer and dryer for guests, and I was really happy with them. Detergent isn’t provided, so bring your own or buy it downstairs. After two nights in cabins, I was just thankful to be able to do laundry.
The Small Shop Downstairs
There’s a small market corner downstairs with laundry detergent, snacks, small ready-made meals, and frozen food. It was better stocked than I expected.
The one thing I didn’t like: there were no price tags. You have to ask the staff about each item.
Location and Safety
The hotel is right next to Walmart, so it would be easy to pick up anything you forgot.
Some reviews I read mentioned concerns about safety in the area. Here’s what I saw. To get in, you either call through an intercom at the gate or tap your room key card. And while we were there, a security patrol car kept driving around the hotel.
To be honest, I had been thinking that even with cameras, if something got stolen from a car there wasn’t much anyone could do. Seeing the patrol made me feel more at ease.
Would We Stay Again?
Yes. It was very clean, breakfast was generous, and the kitchen made the stay much cheaper for us.
I’d especially recommend it to families who want to make some of their own meals during a trip. If you’re bringing food from home or leftovers from camping like we did, the kitchen makes a big difference.
If you’re also planning a night at Bird Creek, see my Bore Tide Cabin review for parking and packing tips, and my Black Bear Cabin review for how the two cabins compare.
Independent, unsponsored review based on our one-night stay in October 2026. Rates and amenities can change, so check with the hotel before you book.
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