Kenai Peninsula Alaska

Looking for an intimate and accessible getaway with an authentic Alaskan feel? Alaska Wildland Adventures' Kenai Riverside Lodge easily fits the bill, with 16 cabins surround a main log lodge on the banks of the Kenai River. Surrounded by 3,000-foot snow-capped mountains, this easy-access riverside lodge has a remote feel, but is still right on the road system.

Meals are served family-style, so you get to know the guides, staff, and your fellow guests on a different level than you would at a large resort. The site has been in use for over 25 years, with native species and natural landscaping. It's lush, gorgeous, and nicely wild—it doesn't look manicured. You also have easy access to the town of Cooper Landing, so you can also get a taste of local life, too.

The lodge features newly remodeled cabins, each with two double beds and private bathrooms. You won't find cable TV or Internet here, but you will find a sprawling riverside deck with awe-inspiring views of the Kenai River and all it has to offer. Spend your day hiking, fishing, or strolling down a self-guided trail. At night, take in a naturalist program, enjoy a wood-fired sauna and dip (if you dare) in the river or just relax on the riverside deck by the fire pit. You can spend hours just watching the gorgeous turquoise waters go by, listening to the sounds of gulls and eagles, or watching the fish jump.

Most Kenai Riverside Lodge guests are picked up in Anchorage, so you're taken care of from beginning to end—all of the guides are specialists in their field. When you arrive, you can tour the lodge before enjoying a welcome dinner, and your coordinator will stop by to let you know the details of available lodge activities.

Many guests book Riverside Lodge stays as part of AWA's Kenai Explorer package, which includes a scenic rail trip back to Anchorage. Along with a guided hike in the Chugach National Forest, the package includes a shuttle to Seward for a small-ship cruise in Kenai Fjords National Park. Riverside also serves as the home base for AWA's Kenai Wilderness Sampler package, which includes a stay at their remote Kenai Backcountry Lodge. The lodge is only boat-accessible, so to get there you'll raft down the Kenai, maneuvering through Kenai Canyon, and then motor across Skilak Lake.

Riverside also serves as the home base for AWA's Kenai Wilderness Sampler package, which includes a stay at their remote Kenai Backcountry Lodge. The lodge is only boat-accessible, so to get there you'll raft down the Kenai, maneuvering through Kenai Canyon, and then motor across Skilak Lake.

And if you came to Alaska to fish? Kenai Riverside Lodge is also host to the Kenai River Sportfishing Lodge package. This program includes intensive sport fishing excitement (salmon, rainbow trout, and Dolly Varden) led by some of the river's most experienced guides, using top-of-the-line equipment.