Stayed at the Dancing Bears (now called Girdwood Hotel, nightly rentals) July 2010 for 3 nights in "The Summit". The top floor suite is as spectacular as the pictures on their website, but the pictures don't nearly do justice to the size and open floor plan. The open living/dining/kitchen area is huge, with vaulted ceiling and a direct view of the Alyeska mountain. Fully equiped kitchen, comfy bed, massive double shower. It was a perfect place to relax and take in the beauty of this part of Alaska. The hosts, Matt and Mauri were delightful, and convinced me that I should also try Girdwood in the winter and ski Alyeska! So I'll be back and I am definitely staying at The Summit again. If you go in the summer, be sure to try the paraglide off top of Alyesaka - it was a rush!

We stayed 3 days in July in the Dancing Bears B&B and passed
a marvelous time there. Girdwood is a quiet location but has it
all: hiking trails, ski slopes (winter of course), nice resto's and bars. Close to many places in this largest state of the US.
Anchorage, Whittier (glacier cruise), the Kenai Peninsula
are all within 30 minutes to 3h maximum drive. We went to
Homer, Seward and met bears and salmon fishermen in Coopers Landing. It's close to the Turnagain arm too (boral tide).

The B&B is equiped with everything we (with 2 teenage children)
needed. The frig was stuffed full everyday by the owners, who
respected our privacy.. The kitchen room was the common place where we could talk to other people (from Washington state in our case). Derek give us all the information about the region. In the backyard was a hottub. All the shops were nearby (olympic drive). So Belgium is a long way from Alaska, but if we come back we head again to the Dancing Bears.

When we arrived, the first thing I noticed was that I had to have my shoes off in the B&B. I only had sandals so was expected to walk in there(with other guests) on bare feet which seemed unsanitary to me. We had to squeeze through a tiny hallway where there was a washer and dryer to get to our room. The overhead lighting was so dim there was no way to read in the room. We were disappointed that there was no internet access as had been promised. The owners were on vacation while we were there and their replacement didn't know anything about the internet connection and attempts to reach the owners were unsuccessful. The private entrance to our room was cluttered with wood and debri--making it impossible to navigate at night. The TV set was too small. I also didn't expect to make my own breakfast and clean up afterwards. I thought the B in B&B meant that breakfast would be served. Finally, when my husband emailed and expressed our conerns, the reply we received was insulting and unprofessional.

We stayed at Dancing Bears for 2 nights in the Northface room in July '08. While reading the previous reviews, I can sympathize with some, but I definitely disaggree with others. Here is my take.

The place is very confortable, although clearly not a 5 star hotel. If in need of such luxurious accomodations, try the Hilton in downtown Anchorage (and make sure you have a stuffed wallet before checking in). We have stayed in quite a few B&B's in Alaska in July '08, and this one is definitely on the "above average" side. Yes, I have seen rooms that were newer --or better furnished, or more "coordinated". And yes, most of the hosts in B&B's make your breaksfats. However, most of the times, the breaksfasts are cooked "between 7.30am and 9.30am". And God forbid you get to the table at 9.15am (with the long Alaskan summer days and the jet lag most travelers incur, no unusual occurence), you get nasty looks and leftover stuff from other guests. The nice thing at Dancing bears is that you do it at your own pace, and there is plenty of choice, with remarcable attention to detail. Hey, mostly organic stuff (milk, cereal, etc) in a place where a regular red pepper costs $4.50/piece?? I'll take it.

There are two other things that I really loved. One, is the lack of "Instruction sheets" very characteristic of B&B's in Alaska. We got really tired of things plastered on the wall of what can or cannot be done in such places. Instructions on how to flush a (very regular) toilet, anyone? Try Alaska's Garden Gate in Palmer if in need of such things. Dancing Bears had very limited house rules, and the hosts were pretty accomodating to people's needs. BTW, different that what a previous review said, we checked in just fine about 3 hours before the listed 4pm check in time, and nobody informed us of a "daily B&B closing time between 1pm and 4pm" (See Alaska's Garden Gate, again). We came in and left as we pleased at any hour of the day or night.

The other thing that we have loved was the knowledge and availability of our host for feeding us local information. At Derek suggestion, we did a great hike around Girdwood not listed in any of the typical Alaska guides (It is called Crow's Nest or something like that). Much better than any of the listed hikes! We also ate at a great restaurant within 100 ft of the B&B-- recommended by the host (the restaurant is called Jack Sprat). Not really cheap, but very good food. Go there if you can.

So, yes, there are more modern or spacious places to stay in, and yes, occasionally you can hear the little kids run above you (never past 10pm or before 8am), and yes, you have to make your own breaksfast, but as long as you are aware of this, and do not mind it too much-- I think that Dancing Bears is a great place to stay at for a few nights. BTW, none of the B&B's that we have seen have soundproofed rooms. I really enjoyed a few kids noises at 8pm, compared to a night of solid snorring of the visitors in the next room --that we have seen in a different B&B. All the rooms in Dancing bears are very separated from each other, so no chance of counting sheep while watching the water shake on the nightstand due to your neighbor's snorring :)