Andrew H.
Yelp
I recently moved to Anchorage. The whole move was sort of ad-hoc and minimally planned. And, since we all know moving in general sucks (let alone moving from the lower 48!), there were many snags along the way.
For a couple weeks, off and on, Base Camp Anchorage was my home.
I'm not sure why I initially booked this hostel given all the options in town, I think I was attracted to the name. I'm really into mountaineering, alpinism, ice/snow/rock climbing, whatever you call it, and the name of this place spoke to me. Also: one of my favorite breweries back in Portland shares this name, so that didn't hurt!
Anyway, this place was great. If I could sum it up in one word it would be: "accommodating".
The guys that work here have a wealth of local knowledge, stuff that you definitely cannot get from some boring guidebook and that would take a while to gather from the internet. Want to know where to stay in Denali/Seward/Homer? They got you covered. Want to do a local hike? They'll probably take you with them. Want to know where the good beer is? Easy. Have NO IDEA what you want to do with your time in Alaska? Tell them how much time you have and they'll give you some ideas.
The owner, Ole, is very friendly and was a great help to me in moving to the Great White North. Every idea I ran by him he elegantly fine-tuned with his wealth of local knowledge. It's nice to be able to do the "cool" stuff in a new place and not get trapped into the "touristy" stuff.
Also, the location is pretty great. This isn't downtown, but it's only about a 15 minute walk. And only a couple blocks from the Hostel are some of the greatest eats and drinks in Anchorage (Spendard Roadhouse, Taproot, Bear Tooth, etc.) It's also close to the infamous Chilkoot Charlie's (known quasi-affectionately to locals as "Koot's")...if that's your kinda thing.
I also met many great and interesting guests while here, including many, many Denali climbers. I plan on getting up that hill sooner rather than later so it was great to chat with some sun burnt souls with fresh, inside knowledge.
Definitely check this place out, you won't be disappointed.