We are taking an Alaskan cruise in September and will fly in the day before the cruise. So we need one night in a hotel in Anchorage. Any suggestions? Price is not important - if we book with the cruise line, they would charge us $500, so I expect anything someone recommends will be less than that!

Thanks!

When friends / relatives visit my family in Anchorage they usually put them up at the Hyatt House or Anchorage Grand. Neither is posh but both are nice. I think both are all suite -- which may be why my cousins recommend them - for the extra space.

I'd pick the Hilton, Captain Cook or the Marriott, mainly because they all offer rooms on upper floors with great views. The Hilton is the closest to the "center" of downtown Anchorage, although all of them are walkable from many restaurants etc. The Sheraton is another good option, although it's a bit east of the downtown core and a little more distant from walking destinations.

It's a shame we don't know more about your plans, because there might be more options if you had, say, a day and a half or most of two days. Where does your cruise depart, Whittier or Seward? If you were willing to pay the one-way premium on a rental car, picking up one at the airport and staying overnight at the Alyeska Resort in Girdwood would be my first choice; you could then drop the car at Whittier/Seward the next day before your cruise.

Sign on to the Alaska.org website. If you click on Transportation, you can see the option for a trip on the Alaska Railroad Coastal Route to either Whittier or Seward. This would save you the one way car rental.
Why not come earlier and see some of interior Alaska.
The best place that we stayed in the Anchorage area was the Microtel in Eagle River. You would need a rental car to get to it however.

Thanks for the recommendations. We will only have a half a day in Anchorage on our day of arrival, and our cruise leaves from Seward the next day, so no rental cars or more remote places to stay this trip.

Any restaurant recommendations?

Okay, then stay at the Captain Cook or the Marriott and walk a couple of blocks to the statue of Captain Cook overlooking Cook Inlet at Resolution Park, then a block to Simon and Seafort's for dinner with a terrific view, then down the hill to Elderberry Park for some fresh air and to see (if visible) Denali on the northern horizon and the Sleeping Lady (Mt. Susitna) to the west, then back to the hotel. Map - https://goo.gl/maps/ySs9xmW6GAL2

https://simonandseaforts.com/

Gardyloo, thanks so much!

The restaurant looks perfect for us. The link to the "map" goes to a page to reserve something - a dinner, maybe also hotel and parking in Italy! I'd love to see the map you reference,

That's pretty funny, it did the same on my phone but on my laptop it's fine. Weirdness. Here's another try, let me know if it's still FUBAR.

https://goo.gl/maps/RuXXwk5UWFM2

Edited to add - now it doesn't allow opening a new tab (Firefox) on my laptop, however if I highlight it and tell it to open in a new tab, it's fine. I suspect it's a problem with Fodor's.

Thank you, gardyloo. I had to copy and paste it into my browser window, but I was able to see the map.

I expect I will have more questions before this trip!

Hilton is a great location with wonderful views.

I like the location of the Comfort Inn on Ship Creek. Downtown Anchorage is a little grim. Don't feel bad about not having much time there.

We have stayed for a couple of nights at the Hampton Inn (part of the Hilton chain). The hotel is nice and fairly new and has free breakfast. It's a short drive (7 min or so) from downtown and about 10 min from the airport.

Most, but not all of the larger hotels offer free shuttle pickup from the airport, so if that important to you check before you book. The taxi line can be long.

We decided on the JW Marriott, as we can use our Marriott points and stay for free. Free is good.

Basingstoke, thanks for the info on the ground transportation situation. We will make sure to book the shuttle.