Add your sail date and the links open on the night before.
Booking.com links are affiliate links: Seabound Journeys may earn a commission if you book, at no extra cost to you. It doesn't change our rankings, which come only from what each hotel publishes. Affiliate disclosure.
Holiday Inn Express is the answer to a red-eye into ANC. IHG lists the airport shuttle as running around the clock, from outside door 6 at baggage claim, and breakfast is free until 9:30 AM on weekdays and 10 on weekends.
That late breakfast is a gift if you're driving south and a non-starter if you're on the 6:45 AM train; IHG puts the depot about 5 miles away.
Parking is free but “for registered guests only”, so don't plan on leaving a car for the Seward week. You must be 21 to check in, and there are no pets.
Book it when the flight lands after dark, and sleep in before the 123-mile drive, our road estimate.
Book it if
- A red-eye or delayed flight into ANC
- A late, unhurried breakfast before the drive
Look elsewhere if
- Anyone checking in is under 21.
- You want to leave the car for the cruise.
- You travel with a pet.
Your night before, from here
A Seward sail morning from the Holiday Inn Express, step by step, from what the hotel publishes and our road estimates.
A 24-hour free airport shuttle, an indoor pool and a 24-hour guest laundry, 3.5 miles from ANC.
Holiday Inn Express runs no ride to Seward, about 123 road miles away by our estimate, and IHG puts the train depot 5 miles off.
Free Express Start buffet, 6:30 to 9:30 AM weekdays and 7 to 10 AM weekends.
Holiday Inn Express & Suites Anchorage - Midtown is in Anchorage. By our road estimate the Seward terminal is about 123 miles south — roughly 2 hours 40 minutes with no stops. From the Holiday Inn Express the drive alone is about 2 hours 40 minutes on our estimate. That’s the case for the train — or for sleeping in Seward.
Complimentary parking “for registered guests only”, per IHG (checked Oct 2, 2026) — so not, by default, for a car left during the cruise.
The Holiday Inn Express, scored for Seward: 23 of 100
The Holiday Inn Express’s 23 comes only from what it publishes, scored for a Seward sailing — how the score works.
Getting here, and on to the ship
The Holiday Inn Express is the Anchorage end of the trip — about 123 road miles to the Seward terminal by our estimate. Question marks are legs you arrange.
A free airport shuttle around the clock, per IHG, from outside door 6 at baggage claim; ANC is about 3.5 miles away.
Hotel shuttle
Holiday Inn Express runs no ride to Seward, about 123 road miles away by our estimate, and IHG puts the train depot 5 miles off.
Holiday Inn Express & Suites Anchorage - Midtown is in Anchorage. By our road estimate the Seward terminal is about 123 miles south — roughly 2 hours 40 minutes with no stops.
Complimentary parking “for registered guests only”, per IHG (checked Oct 2, 2026) — so not, by default, for a car left during the cruise.
Parking at the Holiday Inn Express on a Seward trip, for the nights you stay: Free.
Holiday Inn Express runs no ride to Seward, about 123 road miles away by our estimate, and IHG puts the train depot 5 miles off.
Holiday Inn Express & Suites Anchorage - Midtown is in Anchorage. By our road estimate the Seward terminal is about 123 miles south — roughly 2 hours 40 minutes with no stops.
Landing on sail morning instead? Skip the Holiday Inn Express and go straight from ANC to Seward — the airport page checks your timing, and a car from the airport prices the drive.
Which terminal
One terminal, by the stationThere’s one terminal, by the Seward station, and it’s about 123 road miles from the Holiday Inn Express on our estimate. Your cruise documents confirm the port for a night at the Holiday Inn Express — the port explained on the hub.
Source: claalaska.comDistance
About 123 mi by road to SewardHoliday Inn Express & Suites Anchorage - Midtown is in Anchorage. By our road estimate the Seward terminal is about 123 miles south — roughly 2 hours 40 minutes with no stops.
Source: router.project-osrm.orgShuttle departures
No shuttleThe Holiday Inn Express has no ride south to time. The clock that matters is the 6:45 AM Coastal Classic from the Anchorage depot. Set an alarm.
Source: ihg.comParking while you sail
Cruise parking
Cruise parking unconfirmedComplimentary parking “for registered guests only”, per IHG (checked Oct 2, 2026) — so not, by default, for a car left during the cruise.
Source: ihg.comParking in Seward
No terminal lotRoyal Caribbean says long-term parking isn’t available at the Seward terminal, and the city’s lots charge $10 a day that ends at midnight. A car left for a week from the Holiday Inn Express needs a plan, not a guess. If the car stays in Anchorage instead, ANC’s long-term lot is $13 a day with a $78 weekly cap, checked Oct 2, 2026 — a short hop from the Holiday Inn Express. Ask before you book.
Beyond the Holiday Inn Express: where the car goes while you sail · Seward cruise parking, compared.
Source: royalcaribbean.comThe evening and the morning
The evening
PoolA 24-hour free airport shuttle, an indoor pool and a 24-hour guest laundry, 3.5 miles from ANC.
Breakfast
FreeFree Express Start buffet, 6:30 to 9:30 AM weekdays and 7 to 10 AM weekends.
Address
West 48th Avenue, midtown160 W. 48th Avenue, Anchorage, AK 99503
The Holiday Inn Express website
The fine print, in one place
The small print the Holiday Inn Express publishes — read for a Seward cruise night, not a vacation week. The gaps are whether you can park while you cruise — one call to the Holiday Inn Express settles it.
Check-in and check-out
Minimum age
To check in, per the hotel.
Resort fee
None stated
Wi-Fi
Free
Parking for your stay
Free
Breakfast
Free Express Start buffet; 6:30–9:30 AM weekdays, 7–10 AM weekends
Pool
Indoor pool
Pets
No pets.
Sail morning, on the clock
From the hotel’s published hours. Your Seward cruise documents set the terminal check-in window, not the Holiday Inn Express.
Food and drink on site
- CoffeeBean-to-cup machine and Costa Coffee in the lobby
Rooms
The Holiday Inn Express doesn’t list room types on the pages we read.
Accessibility
The Holiday Inn Express’s pages we read don’t detail accessible rooms, so call before you book one.
On site
- EV chargingNot stated
- Guest laundryYes
- Fitness centerYes
- Pets allowedNo
Nearby, by the hotel’s count
- Alaska Railroad depot5 miles, per IHG
- Downtown Anchoragewithin 5 miles
Distances as the Holiday Inn Express or its brand lists them, on a square-root scale.
Before you book
Worth knowing
- Minimum check-in age 21. Check-in 4 PM, check-out noon.
- Free parking.
- IHG puts the Alaska Railroad depot 5 miles away.
What we couldn’t confirm
- Whether you can park while you cruise
Facts for the Holiday Inn Express come from its own pages, read September 26, 2026, with the shuttle, parking and airport-ride lines re-read October 2, 2026 where it published them. Before a Seward sailing, confirm the shuttle pickup point at ANC — before the deposit, not after.
Worth a look alongside it
Around the Holiday Inn Express: the Seward cruise guide, the splurge list and renting a car for Seward.
Wake up after a red-eye, with breakfast until 9:30.
Send us your Seward sail date and we’ll check the Holiday Inn Express for the night before, with no payment on the form.
Holiday Inn Express FAQ
Where do I catch the Holiday Inn Express Anchorage airport shuttle?
Outside door 6 at baggage claim, across the walkway to the commercial-vehicle island, per IHG. It's free and listed as running 24 hours (checked Oct 2, 2026).
Can I leave my car at Holiday Inn Express Anchorage Midtown while I cruise?
IHG says parking is complimentary and “for registered guests only”, so not by default. Ask, or use ANC's long-term lot, $13 a day with a $78 weekly cap.
How far is Holiday Inn Express from the Seward cruise terminal?
About 123 miles by road, roughly 2 hours 40 minutes with no traffic, by our estimate — the Holiday Inn Express doesn’t publish a figure. If you'd rather not drive it from the Holiday Inn Express, the Coastal Classic leaves the Anchorage depot at 6:45 AM and arrives at 11:20 AM. No traffic is a big assumption.
How far is Holiday Inn Express Anchorage from the train depot?
About 5 miles, per IHG — a cab before the 6:45 AM Coastal Classic, not a walk.
Does Holiday Inn Express Anchorage Midtown have a guest laundry?
Yes, open 24 hours, per IHG.
Booking the Seward cruise too?
Tell us the Seward sailing you're looking at, and a real advisor will line up the ship, the Holiday Inn Express and the ride between them. No obligation.
Got it — thank you.
Seabound Journeys will follow up within one business day. While you wait, the Seward hub has the nineteen others ranked around the Holiday Inn Express.
Want to talk sooner? Book a free 30-minute call.
Journey further.