Alaskan Hotels Need to Learn From Las Vegas Casinos
I think a meeting of the minds is in order for the hotel owners in Alaska, and the folks that run the big casino hotels and resorts in Las Vegas. It might seem to be a very strange pairing, but one that makes a bunch of sense in one respect. You see, folks in Vegas often party it up until late and night and consequently sleep through the bright hours of the morning. Alaska visitors often just want to sleep at night after exploring the great outdoors during the day, but in the summer this means sun at midnight, and even later. In Northern Alaska it can mean sun 24/7. Both groups of tourists count on the hotels to utilize drapes and shutters that keep out the sun in order for good sleep to occur.
The big Las Vegas resorts I have stayed at usually get this right with fantastic blackout shades and systems. Not to mention the beds are often fantastic as well.
So far the two hotels we have stayed at in Alaska have needed help in the blackout drapes department. The Sheraton Anchorage wasn't perfect, but I suppose was tolerable.
However, at our hotel from last night (Holiday Inn Express in Seward) we ended up having to have a "MacGyver Moment" and use the desk chair, luggage rack, ironing board, and blanket to build a contraption to block the sun that was just streaming through the flimsy white plastic blinds on the patio door. The blackout curtains on the window were far from perfect as well, but the door was just insane.
It still was far from perfect, but it was an improvement over the practically nothing that we had before.
But come on, seriously?! This nighttime sun issue is the norm for summer in Alaska, so I'm a little surprised that so far the two hotels we have hit (and especially the one from last night) don't seem to really be addressing this issue. I guess we will have to add aluminum foil to the packing list for our next trip to this great state! In the meantime, if some hotel reps from Alaska could please visit with the fine hotel folks in Las Vegas to get some blackout tips that would be fan-tas-tic.
If you have visited Alaska, what was your experience with hotels and blackout drapes?
