We have been staying at the puffin inn for at least 8 years. Sometimes in the summer it is only $10.00 more to stay at the Captain Cook in downtown. Winter time you can't beat the puffin new section. If you've ever stayed in the old section you won't do that again. its like having a 1 star hotel inside a 4 star. Thats why its 2x1. make sure you don't get the 2 for the 1, so you can be happy. we normally stay in the suite with the jacuzzi tub and kitchenet. Very convinient we will go back and stay at the new section anytime. Friendly workers and nice breakfast.

We liked it.
Nice place, nice people, convenient location, shuttle, very functional with things like mini-fridge + microwave in room. Looks a bit shabby from the outside, but no complaints otherwise - clean, convenient, has everything a traveler needs and a few things on top of that.
Would recommend to others and will use again

We needed an inexpensive hotel near the airport for our last night in Anchorage. After reading the other reviews here, I chose the Puffin. Everything worked out great. The room was $69.00 a night (the website showed $79 but i called and got a better rate.) for two queen beds, a fridge, microwave, and stove top.

First the good: the hotel is close to the airport, and though it's on a main road, not overly loud. The pipes upstairs do rattle, and our room was stuffy so we had to open the window. HOWEVER, the rooms are VERY clean -- not my usual experience with budget hotels. There's no smoke smell, or any other smell for that matter. The bathroom fixtures, while not new, aren't grungy at all. We stayed in the 'moderate' section of the holel which is the section with the outdoor entrances to the room. We had TONS of gear so that was easier. The Deluxe rooms in the main holel look even nicer and were only $10 more. The continental breakfast is perfectly adequate, including waffles, a couple of kinds of cereal, the usual selection of juices, coffee, milk, etc... The hotel shuttle runs every 1/2 hour to the airport and is timely and fast. The entire hotel staff was very friendly and helpful. The beds are clean and decently comfortable, if not luxurious, and, as is common with economy hotels, the sheets tend to come off the mattress if you toss and turn a lot. The maid service is efficient and discreet. The towels are decent sized and not threadbare.

The only negative I have is that our room got stuffy and we had to crack the window. There was an airconditioner in the room, but it didn't turn on. We had several rooms and none of the air conditioners were functioning. I think they may have been 'wintered,' and since it was 15 degrees outside, it was no big deal just to crack the window until the room cooled off.

The bottom line is that this is a great hotel if you're on a budget and need an affordable place to stay. We were there during the Fur Rondy, and hotels were more expensive all over town. While the furnishings aren't modern, they don't look like they came from the thrift store either.

I find that a lot of reviewers here and elsewhere seem to want luxury services and rooms for economy rates. For us, all I want in a hotel with an inexpensive rate is cleanliness, smoke free, no weird odors, and a decent bed. The Puffin delivers and throws in a free airport shuttle, friendly service, and a decent continental breakfast to boot.

On arrival and checking-in we were assigned a room in their "annex", the Chandler Inn just around the corner. No mention of this was anywhere to be found, on any site. No services are available at this location, we had to carry our luggage up the stairs to the third floor, ice and soda were available at the Puffin Inn only. The refrigerator wasn't working properly, although the air conditioner did work and it was clean. The desk help was less than pleasant. Be aware when booking, that you get what you think you are reserving.