We’ve wanted to do Alaska for years, but we were worried about where to stay because it always looked too “sportsman” for a trip with the whole family. We have an 8 yo boy (that part’s a slam dunk) and an 11 yo girl that prefers things more refined.

We chose Stillpoint because it looked like we could get the full Alaska experience and satisfy the whole family. It exceeded our expectations and was an exceptional experience.

Some specifics we really liked:

1. The location is a stunning cove only accessible by water (e.g boat, float-plane, etc). Very calm and peaceful as the whole cove is wake-free and full of wildlife (otters, seals, eagles). The tide swings are huge - 10-25 feet so the water is always gently moving to keep it fresh and interesting. The mosquitos weren’t too bad for us, but we were there in late June ‘23 so maybe that was a factor.

2. Our cabin was secluded and had a great view with a deck that looked over the cove (I think most/all of them do). We didn’t spend much time there because we were always doing things, but it had everything we needed. One note that I’m not sure I fully appreciated beforehand is that the bathroom is private to the cabin, but in its own little room just a few feet from the cabin entrance. All the plumbing and showers are normal and worked great. But, for those of us that get up in the night to use the bathroom, you do walk a few feet outside. Ultimately I found it to be super cool to wake up at 2:00 am, walk outside to an incredibly peaceful scene while it was still fully light outside (we were there toward the end of June). We were worried about sleeping with so much daylight, but it turned out to not be an issue for any of us.

3. The food was perhaps the most surprising. We expected good food, but this was fabulous. Beautiful presentations for every meal and it tasted great. I don’t know how they manage to do this with how hard it must be to keep the kitchen stocked in this remote location. Lots of vegetables and herbs from their garden. For example, the “special” for breakfast one day was “kimchee toast with scrambled eggs”. Not what I’d expect from an Alaska lodge, but wow it was amazing. And the oysters were the best we’ve ever had - from right there in Kachemak Bay. And they taught us how to shuck them so we ordered 6 dozen and had them shipped to us from the oyster coop on the Homer spit. Highly recommend this.

4. The excursions were great. We saw bears, caught lots of halibut and salmon, and went on great hikes. All of the excursions were led by great folks with top-rate equipment and tailored to our ability level. The first day we did a 2-3 mile hike to a glacier lake and kayaked around giant chunks of ice - it felt like a National Geographic movie. And they packed us great lunches we ate by a campfire on the shore.

5. The team that runs Stillpoint is special and has a family feel. They seem to love what they do and, because it’s such a small lodge with only a few families at any one time, you get to know the people and it doesn’t feel “corporate” or stiff. Everyone chips in to make the guest experience work - the chefs, guides, masseuses, etc. When you’re there you become part of their extended family and they really go out of their way to make it special. For example, we had trouble getting to the Homer airport due to some traffic issues on the Homer spit. They literally helped us drag our luggage by hand over a mile so we could get passed the traffic and catch our flight on time to get home. It’s a story you should ask them to share with you!

In summary, Stillpoint was the perfect mix of rustic Alaska experience with the comforts of feeling at home with wonderful people who would bend over backwards to make our stay special. Thank you to the team and Stillpoint!