Chena Hot Springs Resort: Alaska's Geothermal Wonder

A great place to stay to see the northern lights from October to April. Hot Springs were awesome. Stayed there four days ice museum, swimming pool, hot tubs and springs. Restaurant ambience was delightful. Food and drink were excellent. I stayed in a dry cabin outside but no running water than an outhouse. Wasn’t sure how that would be but turned out. It wasn’t major. Could shower at the pool. Nice getaway place.

Me and my Father stayed in the Forget-me-not cabin. it was a dry cabin with a private real outhouse. Even though the Cabin had a bathroom, not sure why we weren't able to use it. But, we still had a blast. The food at the restaurant was expensive and some of it was just not at all enticing, due to most of the food was probably frozen. The place is definitely unique and has breathtaking scenery. The staff is actually very helpful and friendly. My father and I felt that since some of the cabins are actually quite a bit of a walk, The Resort, should either let those Guests use a golf cart or provide a ride to those cabins and certain activities. I will say that we were definitely Blessed to have gotten to see and take pictures of the Aurora Lights the first night we were there. The Activities there though pricey, some were definitely worth it. While others were more like gambling. I have to mention the Guy from the Ice Museum that was our Guide of the ATV Ride Made it well worth every cent. It was great to see my elderly father not only look like a teenager again, but made him feel like a teenager again. My very special thanks to him. The Hot Spring was nice to go lounge in and relax, especially after a spectacular hike on some trails where all around you is beautiful of Mother Nature and Great painter of the Galaxy God himself. This place is definitely a must visit on any Alaska vacation.

I stayed at the facility for 1 night. I am informing you about 2 problems I encountered. I checked in at 17:45. I made the payment and deposit and went to the cabin. The cabin heating was not working and it was 0 Fahrenheit inside. I went to the reception and reported the problem and they immediately sent an authorized person to the room. They cleaned the heater filters and got the heater working again. They added a small heater to the cabin. At 12 o'clock at night the temperature in the room returned to normal. I had to sit in the cold. I also bought an ice museum ticket and a drink for the next day (December 2 at 11 a.m.). When I went to the museum at 10:55 a.m. the next day, the door was locked. I waited for 5 minutes and went to the information office where I bought the ticket. The attendant there tried to reach an official by walkie-talkie. No one came. I told the attendant that I had to leave the facility and it was 11:20 a.m. Why are you selling tickets if I can't enter the museum? You charged me 41 dollars for museum entrance and 1 drink. I asked the attendant to give me a refund and he said no. I sent an e-mail about the reservation before and they responded. Now they don't answer my e-mails. Definitely not worth traveling all this way to see

We didn't stay the night but wanted to visit the Hot Springs as part of my extended weekend trip to Alaska. The hot springs pool is an 18+ pool at the resort and was not overly crowded. It is deep enough for swimming and lighting is kept dim enough that you should be able to see the beautiful night skies clearly. We left just before sundown so we didn't get to see the explosion of stars. This is an open pool with a boulder edge. I'm just over 5' tall and could stand with my shoulders well above the surface of the water but there isn't any good place to just sit around the edge. There is a ramp that goes into the pool that was crowded with people sitting on the smooth concrete edge, next to the handrail. Once in the pool, we were able to find a spot where we could relax and talk but, after paying around 50.00 for entry and towels, we stayed less than an hour. The locker room for changing was a standard gym locker room with sufficient showers for changing. The floors were very wet and slick. All in all, I'd return, if we went as a guest of the resort, but not for just a trip to the hot springs pool.

Made a half day trip of it. Visited the ice museum and hot springs. The ice museum was cool, but they had a mechanical issue that melted a good amount of the attraction. Were we told that before we paid 20 dollars per person plus 20 more for an apple martini? No. Probably wouldn't have gone had I known the issue. The hot springs were nice. It was hot... like real hot. The pictures on the site are very deceptive. It may have been that nice at one point in time, but it no longer is. As much as a tourist trap as it is, and how expensive it was, I would hope for better facilities. In general, ice museum 2 out of 5 stars, hot springs 4 out of 5. So average it out and 3 still feels generous.