Moby Dick Hostel & Lodging

I would say that I can give 2 stars just to the kitchen because it's cleaned by the customers. Pillows have multiple layer of concentric yellow stains and are stored on a piece of furniture and exposed to dust. When the hostel is fully occupied 3 smal bathrooms are not enough and they should be cleaned at lest 2/3 times a day. The owners forgot to send the opening door code so we had to wait until we called the owner. The building is very old and all the rooms haven't a closing door system. Moquettes is every where and is very dusty. The beds are too short not for tall people. There are no places to lay clothes in the rooms. This is the worst place l've been in Alaska so far.

We are just starting the stay and love it already. Great communication with Susanne. Rooms are cozy and just right. If anyone has a complaint ia because they are looking for a 5 star hotel... this is a hostel and I think it is perfect.

I had the best experience here last after the Blackwater Bay Cruise… had the room to myself and slept like a log- it was perfect! Great communication from Susanne and centrally located to down town!

This is a hostel and a pretty good one at that. We rented the smaller lodge rooms one night and returned a few days later to stay in the bunks. The beds were comfortable and it was an easy place to sleep and relax. The owners were great and the other guests were easy to get along with. It's a hostel so you never know exactly what you are going to get in terms of guests, but if you are looking for a proper bed & warm shower at a reasonable rate, it's a great deal.

I had a private room and shared bath. It was a great rate for the area. The owner is very pleasant and helpful, and the location was walkable to most of Seward. Loved the proximity to the coffee house. The room was clean, the bed was comfortable enough, and there weren't any noisy neighbors. No complaints, great deal

Pretty good for a hostel! There's a full kitchen, large dining table, small hangout area, and a deck. It's a walkable distance (if the weather is good) to the Sea Life center as well as the beach and harbor. Taking off a star because the wifi signal was weak and my room smelled a bit musty. Also there is no way to lock the door to your room from the outside. This wasnt really a problem for me, and there are lockers available, but take it into consideration if you're concerned about security.

We got the large private room. Beds were very comfortable, the room itself was immaculately clean and well equipped. Spacious loft. The owner and staff are very friendly and courteous. Bathroom is clean and large. Location wise, it doesn't get any better.

Very nice place to stay. Prices were excellent, kitchen well supplied. Suzanne was very pleasant and accommodating. We stayed 4 days and nights. Would have liked microwave. The steps were kinda steep, but all in all, a nice place close to everything.

We were there for 2 nights in mid July. The hostel is in a great location. You can walk everywhere. We stayed in our own room. It's very inexpensive. There is a large communal kitchen that has pots and pans and dishes, etc. The host provides coffee which is really nice. The bunk rooms house a lot of people but there seemed to be enough restrooms and showers. It has everything you probably need at a great price. It is somewhat dated and not as clean as I would have liked. My husband had no issues. We agree that we would stay there again. Seward is a fantastic place.

6 of us stayed in the dormitory (3 bunk beds) for $525 total for 2 nights. It will be cheaper if you book directly with the host on their website. Pros- Cute building, big kitchen, fully equipped with large dining area where you can also meet other travellers. There is an induction cooktop, utensils, crockery, cutlery, toatser, hot water kettle, microwave etc. 4 shared restrooms+showers (seemed adequate to us). Everything seemed clean. Economical. Good vibe! Cons- Building seems old, restrooms are tiny. Bedrooms on the 1st floor don't seem well lighted. Sleeping arrangements seem very basic. The host came out, welcomed us and talked to us and went over everything. Overall, we had a nice stay without any problems! Will stay in this place again if I revisit Seward!

I enjoyed staying here very much. I promised the lady who owns this place that I would write a review, because of how much I enjoyed this place. This by the way is my first yelp review. This place was very clean, the lady owner is very nice, upon arrival clean bed sheets were given to me, and pillow cover. Every morning I woke up they would be doing laundry and the restroom was always clean and floors were vacuumed. Yes rooms are small, but clean, bathrooms are small too, but clean. The kitchen is actually big and had a little living room with a nice view. Met some great people here that made my stay extra special. This is an old house and it looks a bit out dated, but it's been kept up, very clean. Beds are a bit small, but comfortable. Over all stayed 3 nights here, nice place. This by the way was the second hostel I had ever stayed at, I was very skeptical, since I'm very picky with even the type of hotel I stay. But after all this is a hostel, don't expect a hotel. The house is set in the middle of town, and walking distance to everything. Also the shuttle stops just down the street from hostel and you can jump in for free and it can take you all around town. Hostel does have lockers, small for valuables only, but convenient, bring your own locks. On my day of departure they allowed me to leave my pack with them while I went around town one last time. Always felt safe here. WiFi is slow, but at least there is WiFi that's always a plus. Enjoyed staying here very much and will be coming back summer of 2019

During a two week trip around Alaska, I quickly found this is one of the only places - reasonably priced - to stay in Seward. It appeared that Couchsurfing was not an option for me in Seward. So it was to Moby Dick Hostel we went. Check in started at five which was explicitly stated, thank you. It is slightly cheaper to pay with cash... $25 per night cash or $27.75 per night if paying with a credit card. With my friend losing her wallet just days before, I had to put both nights on my credit card. It's okay. So we arrived, found a parking spot in the Moby Dick Hostel parking lot and went into the office. I can't lie, it smelled a little funky in there and was a huge turn off. I think it's because of the dog. No matter the reason, I was SO thankful the rest of the hostel did NOT smell like that - phew! We were shown to our beds in the Orca room and unpacked our stuff. The first night we were actually the only two people in a six bed dorm room - awesome! The second night one other bed was occupied. Everything was clean. Note, bed sheets and comforters are provided, sleeping bags are not allowed. Walking up the stairs to our room we saw a bulletin board with local attractions and a list of free things to do in Seward, pretty cool. There were also tons of pamphlets for these attractions as well. Very convenient. You know what else was convenient? The kitchen area with refrigerator, stove, microwave, cups, utensils, etc. That microwave was clutch for making oatmeal on the go! We should have bought groceries at the nearby Safeway and cooked dinner but we ended up eating out instead. The young man who was cooking both nights we were there, dang, smelled pretty impressively delicious! Everyone was very friendly and I loved hearing about their Alaska adventures as well as sharing our own. The only thing we had to do for check out was put our bed sheets in the hamper and we were on our merry way. The Moby Dick Hostel is by far the most reasonably priced place to stay in Seward and is pretty centrally located. Everything appeared clean to me and I was thankful for the parking lot and ample on street parking. If you're looking for a cheap place to stay, I'd recommend the Moby Dick Hostel in Seward.

The owner's daughter was super sweet and accommodating. This area is so beautiful and we were happy to get a last minute crash pad.

This is the only hostel I've stayed at in Seward proper. (I've stayed at one on the outskirts of Seward that I AGGRESSIVELY recommend you AVOID AT ALL COSTS.) It's your standard hostel setup, no more, no less: You get a bunk and a roof over your head for very little money. The location is excellent and you can walk to everything Seward offers. You might even make some friends to hike/eat/drink/make-out with. I can't comment on how this compares to the Nauti Otter because I've never stayed there, it's ALWAYS booked up!

Standard hostel setup - nothing more and nothing less. The place itself is pretty competitively priced for Seward ($94 a night for a single room, or $25 a night for a bed). The location is a bit off the road - about .5 miles from the boat/main harbor area. The room is quite small comes with a little kitchenette - not sure there is much else to the room. The sheets weren't terribly clean - as others have mentioned. The bathroom was a bit grimey and had a sewer smell to it - it was clean looking but definitely not a place i'd want to shower in. The wifi is pretty weak so don't expect to be able to do much on it.

My grand daughter and I stayed here and we had a great time. The people that run the hostel are great and they have a very clean place. You have a great view of Mt.marathon. highly recommend to all if you are planning a trip to Seward Alaska. It's only a 5minute walk to down town.

This place is god awful! Do not stay here. The whole place is dilapidated and unkempt. It smells of over cooked food and mold. The rooms are dark, dank and don't even have real furnishings, just some beds that were made from plywood and matresses that look like they're from the 50's. The bathroom is horrid and small like a motorhome bathroom. The carpet is stained and coming up at the seams. My friend and I seriously took one look at this place, got our money back AND SLEPT IN THE CAR. Yes people, sleeping in the car was far better than sleeping in this armpit of a hostel.

Bedbugs. One was crawling on the shirt i'd hung on a hook on the bunk. Not happy. No towel was offered. I asked for one and since the lady made no move to get one, I just said I'd just grab it later. Got back from exploring after 9 so I didn't want to bother her...she could have left one on my bunk. After showering I thought I could just dry off with the hand towel. Then I smelled it. Disgusting is an under statement. Dried off with my shirt. Also, I found out after paying my $25 bucks for the dirty bunk that when my friend called she was told the price was $20 when you pay cash... Which I did. Pros: great location, hot showers, kitchen has everything you need to save $ by cooking your own meals.

One of the most economical and in-town options. The lodge or privates side has a better bathroom than the dorm side. Small driveway with a few spaces and street parking is readily available. Beds aren't the greatest, but for what you pay.. it's the convenience. I would stay here again if I ever return to Seward for another visit. It's a beautiful town, food especially fish is fresh- I typically don't partake in fish, but did try sockeye salmon, rock fish, cod and .. one other one.. rock fish was my favorite! Next time we'll bring our own cooler, and going out on a boat to fish, especially during the derby would be really fun! Stay here! Owners are chill. Rates are affordable. In-town and walking distance to mostly everything. Board in stairwell/landing -you can find boats to hop on, work, restaurants, local activities, etc. Gay friendly.

This is an amazing hostel. I would strongly recommend this to anyone visiting seward. It was in the heart of the town with easy accessibility to nearby hikes and tours. We got the large lodging room and it was clean with a shared bathroom. The bathroom was clean as well. Can't beat the price.

This was the perfect set up for our Scout troop. We had 15 (10 Scouts, 5 Adults) in our group for a 10 day stay. The owner was very gracious, ensuring we had everything we needed. Having a kitchen was one of the primary reasons we chose this hostel. We were able to cook all of our meals with a table that sat 12 plus an outdoor picnic table. The bunks were perfect for the Scouts, just like being at camp. Three of the adults stayed in private rooms. The hostel was clean and had everything we needed as a base camp for all of our activities. Perfect location within walking distance of shopping and activities. We met some great people from all over the world including China, Italy, and Switzerland. The owner personally shows everyone around and treats everyone like family. She gave us many tips on local events and which trails were best. Bedding is included which was great not having to bring sleeping bags. Towels are available to rent if needed. We thoroughly enjoyed our stay and would recommend it to anyone.

Do yourself a favor, go to the Nauti Otter. Paid the same price for cramped bathrooms, stiff/scratchy towels, no extra space to put your stuff anywhere (had to sleep with my purse and hiking pack in bed with me), thin and worn mattress where I could feel right through it so I woke up with sore hips. Nauti Otter is just better. If you want to be right in Seward and dont care abt anything else, then stay here. Its a bed, roof and shower sure... but for the same price, Ill go back to Nauti Otter.

I'm completely puzzled by the other review of this place. We stayed there for three nights (at $60/night) and loved it. It's a hostel so it's not going to be too wonderful but if you're in Seward then you should be outside all the time (unless it's winter). We got a private room and shared a bathroom with one other room. The room had a kitchenette with a fridge and the beds were not the greatest but try finding anywhere else to sleep in Seward for $60/night. Fat chance. The hostel is most certainly not "dilapidated" although that's a fun word to say. The bathroom was clean and the shower seemed brand new. It's not luxurious but it's an absolute steal for the price in a town that can really gouge tourists for sleeping rooms.

My mother, my sister, & I stayed for 4 nights. The total cost with taxes was $444. I felt it was diffucult to get my luggage up the stairs because the stairs were so steep. Our room had a refrigerator, toaster, coffee pot, a table with 4 chairs, dishes, stovetop, a double sink, a full size bed and a twin bed. We had to share a bathroom with 2 gentleman which I didn't think was a big deal. They were very quiet. The bathroom was large and had a large counter top for storage. I felt that the internet worked great.I wish our room had a microwave. I would definitely recommend this place for your vacation.

I enjoyed my stay here but thought it could be kept cleaner, compared to others I've stayed in. The staff was nice but pretty short with me when I had questions. If you just want to be invisible while traveling, this is a good place.

A very clean, nice and affordable place. Stayed in a large room with cooking facilities. My wife and me really liked this place. Overall, quite positive.

go to moby dick's while you still can because the the sign outside says it's for sale. while it is certainly not luxury living (is any hostel??) we stayed in two different rooms with three sets of bunk beds each. at $19 each per night and with a group of 5, this was perfect. the family who runs the hostel is swiss and friendly-enough without being overbearing. they recommended an amazing day trip to kayaker's cove that turned out to be an incredible highlight. the best part? a random thai woman who has been going there once a year for 11 years who cooks up a feast in the kitchen and is dying to share it with everyone. she even met her husband here! awesome with awesome sauce.