Denali Highway Cabins offers charming boutique lodging in the beautiful foothills of the remote Alaska Range, nestled along the banks of the National Wild and Scenic Gulkana River. Located in the small community of Paxson, positioned exactly halfway between both Fairbanks and Valdez and between Denali National Park and Wrangell-St. Elias National Park, this log cabin retreat has long offered the adventurous and curious traveler a comfortable and sustainable base at the beginning of the fabled Denali Highway. Lovely and authentic log cabins, adventurous and exotic tent-cabins, and a cozy long-term vacation rental cottage await guests. All units are thoughtfully decorated and well-appointed with the comforts a modern traveler expects. Those staying in cabins can explore on their own or take part in our naturalist-led activities with Paxson Alpine Tours. Discover why the Paxson area is a favorite region for many Alaskans. Guests will delight in our mountains, alpine tundra, boreal forest, wild rivers, birds, wildlife, peace and quiet, and the historic Denali and Richardson roadways. Denali Highway Cabins is the perfect choice for discerning and knowledgeable travelers who want to combine wild, rugged wilderness with pleasant and comfortable lodging. Get ready to be cared for with the personalized attention and friendly service of a small family-run operation. We are happy to share our home and beautiful location with you!
We stayed here for one night and really liked it much. It was very quiet and we had time to relax. We could buy eg a burger plate and grill it on our own. Owners are very Friendly. Very very good breakfast, very clean cabin. You can hear the river flow.
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Date of stay: July 2024Trip type: Traveled as a couple
Room Tip:Really quiet, wifi at Main Building, mobile ok, very clean
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My husband and I enjoyed our stay, the breakfast was delicious. The hosts are very knowledgeable about the area and we enjoyed spending time visiting with them. Their little boy is such a joy! They suggested we drive the Denali Highway and we loved it.
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Date of stay: August 2022
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This was certainly the best place I stayed on my trip. My family and I flew in to Anchorage, saw just another big city, and then started our circle tour of Alaska. First we took a boat trip and looked at glaciers, but something seemed to be missing that represented the real Alaska I was searching for. Then went up and took a tour in Denali Park and saw everything from the bus window, but something was still missing. Then took the Denali Highway over to the Richardson Highway and stayed at the Denali Highway Cabins in Paxson on this part of the trip. Here I found what I was searching for!
The hosts run an absolutely first-rate operation. All the cabins are right down along the river and extremely charming - the perfect Alaskan setting! We stayed in the guest house and I had the best night's sleep of anywhere on the trip...extremely comfortable bed, and there was plenty of room for everyone and a nice kitchen and living room also. Granted, the guest house was not as cute as the cabins, but it was comfortable and very functional for my family. The best part was falling asleep to the sound of the river - it was perfect!
Also something not to be missed are their evening float trips down the river. We saw so much and our host gave the best running commentary on what we were seeing - my camera was running the whole time! It was SO peaceful and there were eagles and salmon galore. This was the Alaska I had been missing on the trip prior to this - seeing the real Alaska up close and personal is something not to be missed!
Their hospitality is the best, and I am sure everyone who goes there will have the same experience I did. I would highly recommend a stay with them!
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Date of stay: August 2005
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Enjoyed our overnight stay here mid July, in what I would consider, one of the nicest cabins on our trip. A definite super clean LLBean decor, with nice touches of candy on the pillow, some in-room tea, coffee etc. great deck with grill. Small breakfast items of juice, boiled eggs, and huge muffins could be bought from the owner. We were able to tour 2 other cabins, which included a large one across the road, where the 2nd half of our group ended up. Nicely decorated also, just nowhere near us. Another group we had met on the road up in Healy requested and got the "family size cabin," available ONLY for 2 or more days. That had 3 seperate bedrooms & a full kitchen . Our friends were totally UNHAPPY with it, as it was not in the same class as the other very cute cabins. Very old & shabby decor, electrical wire hanging in mid air, NOT NICE, Stay Away from it unless you could care less about your accomadations and need the extra room. It should be taken off his rental program or rented at a huge discount. STAY AWAY from the evening float trip. We had very mixed emotions about that..The owner took 7 passengers, along with him & helper, for a total of 9. This was not a very large raft. A big problem was that 3 of the passengers were given a pile of life jackets to sit on instead of the usual huge bolster cushion that would be in the center of the raft, because a grizzly had ripped it apart earlier in the week! This trip was overcrowded for the condition of the raft and for the river , which was not very deep in some parts. The raft was so heavy we had to be dragged just about the whole first part of the trip off the gravel sandbars. Water was coming in the raft, and one lady who was trying to stay put on the life jackets had her bottom completely soaked. His helper had only worked 3 other float trips and did not have a clue how to navigate the raft at all. We were spinning in circles and whamming into low hanging branches. A very uncomfortable 3hrs for the money. Unless he has a new raft or less people in it , AVOID it at all costs.
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Response from AudubonBakewell, Owner at Denali Highway Cabins
Responded Aug 3, 2009
We're very sorry that a site the reviewer described as "one of the nicest on our trip" rated only a "poor" in her opinion - one only can wonder at her opinion of her other accommodations! We also feel it unfair that she relied on hearsay about a unit she did not see. We had purchased that facility - NOT one of the river cabins, but on the adjacent property - and at that time, all of its guests were forewarned it was in need of renovations. Now it is fully re-finished and most definitely is our flagship unit. Lastly, we had clearly warned these travelers of the grizzly bear problem with the raft and suggested they would be uncomfortable, as the best we could do was to place life vests for them in lieu of the bear-destroyed thwart. Quite frankly, the story of traveling on a raft mauled a week before by a grizzly should, I think, be a highlight of one's trip to here!
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Horrible hosts!! Very fixed on their comfort ..not at all flexible.
1/ We had booked the place atleast a week before we landed in Paxon. We were driving south from Fairbanks and were getting a little late ..like 7 pm ... not too late for Alaska and had to have our dinner too before we could check in. They started calling us around 6 pm every 20 mins to check as to when exactly we would reach them which was quite annoying.
2/ This was worst .. After we had just checked out (it had been only 5 mins) ...remember we had just paid $160/night .. I wanted to use the restroom before we headed out ...this being thinly populated place made even more sense to use it here at the lodge. Guess what... They directed me 30 MILES SOUTH to a gas station and use it there. It took me few mins to digest that they were really not kidding. Thank god I have good holding power but if u have a weak heart (as you can have a heart attack if you hold too long) or if you have kids ... Get your own mobile loo... As you can't expect them to help you!!
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Date of stay: May 2011Trip type: Traveled with family
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Response from AudubonBakewell, Owner at Denali Highway Cabins
Responded Sep 29, 2011
We have to wonder whether this reviewer stayed with us: 1. We have no units that rent for $160 2. There is no location 30 miles south. There is a public restroom five miles north, a roadhouse 250 yards south, one 16 miles south, and one 56 miles south. 3. We never, ever call our guests to wonder if they are coming, unless it is after 9pm and we are wondering if they are lost. 4. There was one set of guests this summer who was refused re-entry to their cabin. Our check-out is the very reasonable and industry-standard 10am. This particular set of guests - who, by the way, had telephoned US any number of times, apparently trusting their non-functioning GPS unit over our explicit and easy-to understand oral directions, had arrived extremely late - after 10pm. Because of that we provided them a late check-out and use of our Great Room so they could check their email while we cleaned cabins. At 1pm, long past all units had been cleaned and made ready for the arriving visitors, they wanted once again to make use of their cabin! They were understandably turned away, and we recall they declined to use the outhouse that always is available for Great Room users. If this is the couple who wrote this review, we would like to state that we consider our offers to be more than flexible and courteous indeed.
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Don't plan on sleeping much, the water pump motor turns on and off every few minutes and it is next to the bed. Plan to read little messages placed everywhere in the cabin. Don't use too much toilet paper, place dirty towels in pamper, don't turn the heat too high, don't put bed spread on floor, don't wear shoes indoors, etc.... I paid over $200, for this place and then was told I couldn't do this or that. Not my idea of how to be welcoming. Oh! and breakfast the next morning you were only aloud 1 small cup of coffee. But a few miles down the road was a gas station where you could get a big cup of coffee $2. We meet some of the other people from cabins there too. Maybe if you give her a pound of coffee you could have more then a small cup.lol We stayed there first week of Sept. 2012. Never again.
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Date of stay: September 2012
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Trip type: Traveled as a couple
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Response from AudubonBakewell, Owner at Denali Highway Cabins
Responded Jul 9, 2013
The water pump turns on only when a guest flushes a toilet. As we suggest to all visitors when we show them their cabin, if you don't flush the toilet in the middle of the night, the pump doesn't turn on. Common sense. We have unlimited cups of coffee in the morning. The "limit of one" last year was for the hard-boiled eggs from our chickens. Occasionally the chickens go on strike and stop laying and then we have limited numbers of eggs available. We are self-sufficient here...no grocery stores nearby! I'm sorry this guest was confused about this.
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Wow, what a great place! Individual, standalone cabins located right on the river bed are extremely well maintained. Attention to detail is everywhere - from being asked to leave the shoes on the porch, to chocolates left on each bed. It's peaceful and quiet. Each cabin has a deck to enjoy the surrounding nature. The hosts run the place well, provide home baked muffins made from local freshly picked wild blueberries (delicious!), capuccino, coffee, breads. Excellent stay!
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This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
I am a travel agent and called the lodge for information for my clients. The man who answered the phone was very short and rude. I was asking questions about their location and tried to ask about the availability but was abruptly cut off with " we have an extensive website that can answer everyone of your questions. You can go there and look" and then he hung up on me. WOW....some one must have taken a crap in his cherrios today.If he treats people this way in the middle of the winter, I can only imagine how he must treat them at the end of tourist season in the summer. I will not be recommending this place to my clients or anyone else.
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Date of stay: February 2017
Service
Trip type: Traveled as a couple
Room Tip:Find a friendly hotel down the road.
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
You will find your hosts to be snobby, aloof and arrogant. The area is very isolated which they do point out in their website. This seems better suited for travelers who are camping and want a place to crash and get out of the elements. I would be okay with all of this but the hosts seem so snobby. We truly felt like we intruding on their time and space. I don’t know what they are so snobby about, the place looks like a dump when you drive in. There are plies of junk and unfinished projects all over the place. You get this sense that you are living on their property. Just very odd.
Our cabin did not have a table on the deck or the inside. It also did not include a fully private bath. The sink was in the common cabin area. Because they have a fully winterized cabin, anytime you flush the toilet or take a shower a pump runs for a few minutes which wakes everyone up in the middle of the night. There is no place to store your food in a refrigerator, unless you use their refrigerator. Again, they point this out on their website. So be prepared for this. The common rec center they just opened does not have heat or reliable wifi. So it's not comfortable to hang out there.
They do offer a cup of coffee and a muffin in the morning. You have to walk to their office and wait while they individually grind each cup of coffee. While you wait in their store, I guess they hope you buy some for their products. I felt like a beggar asking for a cup of coffee. Just have a pot out in a common area and the muffins also for your residents to enjoy. You got the feeling they were doing you a favor by grinding a cup of coffee. I'll make my own if you'd supply a pot. After coffee is served, you walk back to your cabin with your muffin and coffee. The coffee is cold at this point because they do not give you a lid, but you can "buy" their coffee mug. Again, no other cabin we stayed in in Alaska promoted items to buy the way these hosts did. Can't eat in the cabin, no table. Can't eat on the deck of your cabin, only chairs, and no table.
They pride themselves on providing expert touring info of the area but we were not able to take advantage of their float trip on the first night due to lack of 4 paying customers. They told us to come back and check later to see if they were running a trip. Claimed to be all booked up that night, Hoping to get other paying customers on the tour. But I only saw one other cabin with people. No one else wanted the tour so it was not provided that night. Frankly, this was the only reason we stayed here. But because they have a mandatory two night’s cash only booking we were forced to stay another night. No other cabin we booked in Alaska asked for cash or made it mandatory to book two nights.
We asked about dinner. They told us of a new restaurant 16 miles away. I asked if they were open on a Monday, Dr. Blackwell’s response was “Yes they just opened.” We drove 16 miles, they were closed. We knocked on the restaurant door a little girl answered and said we are closed. I asked why she said “We just are” and closed the door on us. We drove 16 miles back and 20 miles the other way and had a great dinner. Why couldn't Dr. Blackwell call ahead to see if the restaurant was open? We couldn't. Cell phones don't work out in this area.
As far as being experts in this area of Alaska, I got more from the Denali Highway Brochure than I got from Dr. Blackwell and his wife. We asked twice about hiking trails. They pointed across the street. Big deal, I can do that! All in all they acted like we were invading their space. They pride themselves on being on property at all times and “Not like other Alaskans who have other jobs.” So I guess we will be in your space. What's the problem with having two jobs? Every other cabin we stayed in during our 3 week trip to Alaska was excellent. All owners had a variety or work to sustain their living and we became fast friends with all of our hosts. And they had fabulous properties for similar or lower rates. I do not recommend this property. Primarily for the owners over inflated ego and their lack of ability to provide a traveler with reasonable service and accommodations. Jezz sorry we bothered you!!
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Date of stay: August 2009
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Rooms
Location
Cleanliness
Service
Trip type: Traveled with family
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Response from AudubonBakewell, Owners at Denali Highway Cabins
Responded Nov 23, 2009
Wow. It’s worse than disheartening to have unhappy guests here. The reason we have opened our homestead to visitors is because we WANT to share our lifestyle and love and knowledge of this wonderful region with others. We had no inkling of any unhappiness these travelers now so obviously suffered… until we read the truly vitriolic cabin note upon their departure… and now this. The primary reason we were ignorant of this is that effectively, we never saw this trio. Far from being haughty, we were embarrassed when they showed up a few hours before check-in and their cabin was not yet ready. So while Audie apologetically replaced their propane tank and re-lit their water heater, Jenny gave these guests the same extended check-in process that all our guests receive. We talk about food options, activity options, provide a short tour of the property, and we like to chat and find out where people are from and what other places they are visiting in Alaska. When Jenny finally left these guests to settle in to their cabin, their introduction to the property, their cabin and the area probably took well over half an hour, which we consider an extensive and quite personalized check-in that guests don’t often find at similar properties. Jenny did mention to these guests that we need a minimum four persons for our float trip…and if this New Jersey guest had read our website as thoroughly as she claims, she would have seen this. It is standard practice with any tour company to require a minimum number of persons. Our cabins were full their first night, so we said there was a good probability we would go on the tour, if it wasn’t raining. Audie also told them that because they were here for two nights, if we weren’t able to take them down the river the first night, we would offer them a PRIVATE tour their second night. This is not something we normally do. Does the reviewer mention this offer? No. As it turned out we didn’t go down the river the first night because the weather suddenly turned very cold and rainy. The next morning, the husband and wife came up to the office for muffins and coffee. YES, we grind the beans for each cup, and rather than complaining about this, most people praise this! We could set out a jug of coffee that gets watered down, or reheat the unused coffee from the prior day (what many of these thermoses that she mentions are!), but we like to provide exceptional coffee. If they didn’t want to peruse our gift shop emporium, they could have always entered the other part of the office where we have maps on the walls, trail guides, and a small library to enjoy. Selling mugs in the cabins? On the contrary, the sign in the cabins indicating the mugs are for sale is not to get people to buy them, but rather to prevent people from taking them. When we first put the mugs in the cabins, within a few weeks we had some people think they were complimentary gifts and walk off with them. Did they mention the restaurant incident to us? No. And again, to call a roadhouse in the middle of the summer to ask if they’re open is like calling a hospital to ask if it’s open. Highly unusual that this newly-opened restaurant sixteen miles south would be closed (the wife/cook had taken sick), and unfortunate for these guests, we agree. However, we wouldn’t have been able to call the restaurant anyway because the new owners had yet to get their telephone installed. Other guests of ours that same evening went to this same restaurant, saw the closed sign, knocked on the door, and were ushered in by the cook’s husband and his friend, who cooked these other guests up a delicious halibut dinner. A point we would make is: there is also a restaurant within walking distance to us. Many guests go there and find it acceptable for a simple dinner. But I guess this guest didn’t feel it was good enough for her. Cell phones DO work here. There is a cell tower only six miles to our south. The hiking trails: Here an unfortunate miscommunication about which we truly are sorry. When Jenny handed the coffee/ muffins to the parents, they asked about hiking trails and Jenny indicated that there are a number of trails nearby to us on the other side of the river and also on the Denali Highway. Jenny told them to enjoy their coffee and muffins while they were hot, and once their daughter was awake, to come back and we could talk in more detail about all their activity options for the day. There are very few trail markers in this area. We like to invite guests to sit down in the office and we look at maps and discuss their interests, their hiking skill level, and decide what would be best for them for the day. We’ve been doing this for twelve years. Everyone always comes back after they’ve enjoyed their breakfast and we have a nice long chat. These guests never returned, and in fact, we never saw them again for the rest of their stay, which is highly, highly unusual! These visitors’ second night (the night we had offered them a private float trip tour even if no other guests wanted to go), we did have four other guests wanting to go on the trip. We waited close to half an hour past our normal departure time for these New Jersey guests to arrive, all the while apologizing to the other guests (who were not put-out) that we didn’t know where this family was. We ended up having to leave, worried where they might be, but had a fabulous time on the river. No heat in our new upstairs room? That certainly was our fault. It had been one of our hottest summers in decades in Paxson and installing the new wood stove was not our top priority. Unfortunately a cold snap arrived at the same time as these critical guests, unfortunate timing indeed, so there was no heat upstairs, though with its double-wall insulation, it didn’t cool down too much…it was about sixty degrees. We are sorry they were not able to enjoy our beautiful new room. As to internet: we did warn them that when the weather is cloudy, and especially rainy, our satellite internet does not always function (our service provider has since come and re-aimed our dish to their new satellite, which we believe has solved this problem). This is what we have to live with because we do not have fiber-optic lines in this part of the world. We immediately emailed a response to these guests’ unhappy and immensely long note, upon our discovering it the following morning; the only reply we received to that was that we spent more time on it than we did talking to them. It had to be that way…we never saw them. We implore other readers to wonder of the objectivity this review’s single ticks in all categories when even all of the other few negative reviews we have received consistently put high marks in all but one or two areas. There is something going on here we do not understand. Was it the sudden cold and wet weather that put these guests in a foul mood? Was it the unfortunate restaurant incident at the beginning of their stay with us that spoiled their opinion of our hospitality? As everyone knows and especially in this business, it is impossible to please all guests all of the time. We do please most of our guests most of the time. We are very sorry we did not please these guests.
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My husband and I and our children (2 daughters aged 9 &12) are still raving about our recent trip to Alaska in July 2006. We wanted a chance to see some of the "less travelled" sights, and to this end we booked a week at Denali Highway Cabins. What a find! We had one of the four cabins that are directly on the Gulkana River, and from our deck could watch bald eagles and arctic terns wheeling above the river. The cabin was delightful, sleeping the four of us in incredible comfort and warmth, and on the warmer evenings, we had the windows opened (they are screened to keep out the mosquitoes) and were lulled to sleep by the river.
Two of the highlights of our stay were a birding tour up the Denali Highway led by Audie Bakewell, the host, and the float trip that is offered (weather permitting) down the river to Paxson Lake. The birding trip was a complete success as we managed to see both a Smith's Longspur and a Willow Ptarmigan, as well as many more common species and a wealth of wildflowers. The float trip was absolutely magical. There were seven guests on the trip + Audie and Jenny (while it says the raft holds 12 - that would be too tight) and we all fit comfortably. While the girls were disappointed not to see any bear or moose on the float, we did see beaver, muskrat, porcupine, bald eagles, chinook salmon, artic tern, a grey owl and Trumpeter swans. The float trip is long - it took about 3&1/2 hours and I was glad that we had packed snacks and drinks as we were pretty hungry by the end of the trip.
The only caveat I would make about Denali Highway Cabins is that it is fairly far from the nearest decent restaurant and the cabins do not have cooking facilities other than propane barbeques on the deck. They do sell good muffins and coffee for breakfast, and they have some things available for the barbeque - but you are pretty much on your own to come up with creative solutions to eating. We had a nice dinner up at the Maclaren Lodge but for the rest - the girls were pretty tired of hamburgers by the time we returned home!
One other intereting excursion in Paxson that I would recommend is the tour of the hatchery just up the road. All of us found it very interesting and informative.
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Date of stay: July 2006
Value
Rooms
Location
Cleanliness
Check in / front desk
Service
Business service (e.g., internet access)
Trip type: Traveled with family
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
The cabins are luxurious and include a bathroom and shower. The tents obviously dont have showers or bathrooms in them - but they do have a very nice bathroom/shower close-by. Either are a great choice!
There are more places to choose from in the Paxson area.
ALSO KNOWN AS
denali highway cabins hotel paxson
LOCATION
United StatesAlaskaPaxson
NUMBER OF ROOMS
8
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