My husband & I stayed at the Marathon View with great trepidation -- it was the only hotel room we could get for the 4th of July weekend in Seward. Thankfully, we found a very friendly young couple now running the place (for only the last couple of weeks, we found out). Our room was clean, with fresh paint, new fixtures and appliances, and new flooring. This is an older hotel, and the room we had was small, and only had a view of an alley. But the price reflects this. The front rooms had a better view, and also cost a bit more. Of course, we didn't come to Seward to sit in the hotel room, but to enjoy a fun weekend outdoors. Please don't let the previous management dissuade you. Oh, and although I noted that the service was only average, that's only b/c this isn't a hotel which has much service involved -- other than checking in -- it's a very small place.

What an incredible disappointment. Where do I begin? The moldy smell, the unwashed sheets that we feared were bedbug infested, the taped towel "curtain", the scary soiled carpet, the bathtub with disturbing brown spots, the "Marathon" view of a dumpster (complete with being woken up by the garbage truck in the morning)? How about the fact that this garage-turned-into-"condo" gem cost us $150/night?! Wish I saw these reviews and had the sense to stay away. This made a Motel 6 look five star. So scary that we didn't even dare set foot in the shower.

Marathon View is conveniently located within walking distance of major Seward attractions. It had a working kitchen with a full size refrigerator and a reasonable assortment of utensils. It was also available when I needed a room on short notice, but this place was still no bargain. The furniture and floor coverings in the living room and kitchen were old and soiled, and a musty odor permeated the whole apartment . The cheap metal kitchen cabinets were rusty, bathroom corners and shower stall moldy. Overall, it was due for a complete remodel job many years ago.

We have just returned from a cruise from Anchorage to Vancouver. We decided to stay in Seward for a night before boarding our ship, and chose the Marathon View Hotel because of its "reasonable" price for a "vacation condo". The Holiday Inn and Best Western were more expensive.. However, this price was hardly reasonable considering the condition of the "condo". Granted, our room had a large kitchen and living room, but the bedroom was small and the bathroom tinier than the one in our ship's cabin. There were no towel racks to hang towels, either. However, what made our experience worse was our discovery that the front door, which opened directly to the outside, wouldn't close properly and, therefore, would not lock. We had just checked in, and were going to head out for a meal when we discovered the problem, which unfortunately was just after the receptionist had left for the day (about 6:00 PM). To make matters worse, there were no phones in the room and no pay phone handy. I went running to the Seward Bus Station, where I attempted to make calls to their emergency numbers, but these proved to be long distance. I was nearly frantic, leaving my husband to try and fix the door, so the woman at the desk and a friend of hers ran back with me to the Hotel, whereby he and my husband laboured for about an hour with another resident's tools and managed to get the door to close. The next morning as we checked out, I gave a written statement to the receptionist, who was apologetic, but no official word has come from the owners. My main concern, aside from the cost and the fee we gave to the two who heloed us, is that there is no phone in the rooms, and no pay phone around. What if there had been a worse situation? We don't all carry cell phones. I wish I had read the previous reviews before I booked this accommodation. No way would I ever stay there again or recommend it to someone else.