Hotel Review: The 98 Hotel In Whitehorse, Canada

On both our drive up to Alaska and our drive back down, we stayed in Whitehorse. Whitehorse is the largest city in the Yukon in Canada which meant it had far more hotel and Airbnb options than other towns and cities in the territory.

We’d initially booked a stay at an Airbnb there, but a few months before our stay we got a message from the host stating they had to cancel our stay. That meant I had to find somewhere else to stay, but other hotels in the area seemed pretty expensive.

Thankfully via Google Hotels I found a non-chain hotel that wasn’t on any online travel agency websites like Hotels.com – The 98 Hotel.

Check-In

This is an old-style saloon bar with accommodation in the back. To check in, head to the bar and let them know you have a reservation. They’ll take payment for your room, then you’ll get a set of keys and will be shown to your room.

In addition to a key for your room, there’s a key for a side entrance into the hotel so that you can come and go even when the bar is closed.

Bedroom

Each of the five bedrooms has a number, as well as a profession relating to the Yukon Gold Rush.

For our first stay, we stayed five nights in The Angler room. This had a queen bed, an armchair, a couple of dressers and a desk and chair. Bedside tables and lamps were on both sides of the bed.

There’s a couple of things to be aware of if you’re considering a stay at this hotel. There aren’t TVs in the rooms and the bathrooms are shared – there’s no en-suite.

On our way back down from Alaska, we stayed at the hotel again but for only one night, this time booking the Prospector room. This had two twin beds, a wooden rocking chair, a dresser and a desk and chair.

When we first stayed in late May the temperature wasn’t bad, so having our window open (with its screen) kept the temperature reasonable enough. When staying in early July, it was much warmer. I asked in the office there if they had a fan and they were able to provide one, although I don’t know how many of those they have available for guests.

Bathrooms

There are two full bathrooms and one half bathroom. All of them are available for guests at the hotel, so you can use whichever one is free; bar patrons don’t have access to these bathrooms.

The two full bathrooms each have a shower stall that’s somewhat narrow, but had good enough water pressure. The hotel provides bath towels and hand towels, but no washcloths. It’s also best to bring your own toiletries; while you might find shampoo and soap in the shower, I don’t think The 98 Hotel actually provides those.

Kitchen

The kitchen is used by both staff and guests. There’s some cooking equipment, a microwave, electric kettle and a full-sized fridge freezer. The fridge tended to have a fair amount of other food and beverage items in it, but there was enough space for us to fit a couple of bags of chilled stuff in there, along with several ice packs and an ice cube tray in the freezer.

Breakfast isn’t included, but there’s lots of cafes and restaurants within walking distance.

Bar

The bar is open from 9am-11pm, so even if you arrive late it shouldn’t be a problem checking in.

It seemed to be a very popular place for locals to hang out and there’s live music and entertainment at least a couple of nights each week.

Pet Policy

The 98 Hotel is a pet-friendly hotel. I’m not sure if they allow cats, but they do allow dogs and there’s no pet fee which was awesome.

In addition to the hotel being pet-friendly, the bar area is too. It can get quite loud and busy in there though, so bear that in mind if your pup gets easily overwhelmed.

Hopefully this’ll be unnecessary information, but if you have a pet emergency during your stay you can contact Alpine Veterinary Medical Center. Truffles had what seemed to be a serious leg injury on our return journey, so we had to get an emergency appointment. They were lovely and we were so grateful they were available as there was no emergency vet within a day’s drive otherwise.

Service

Service was very good. The bar staff were always very friendly and helpful. After checking out of our first stay, we realized Shae had accidentally left a bag of stuff under the bed in our room. When noticing that, she called the hotel and asked if they’d be able to hold on to it for when we returned 1.5 months later. Sure enough, it was waiting for her which we appreciated.

Wi-Fi

The hotel offers complimentary Wi-Fi which seemed to have a decent speed. They do ask that people don’t stream TV and videos though as that could affect how much they’re charged (or perhaps their connection would get throttled by the ISP).

Check-In & Check-Out Times

You can check in to the hotel from 2pm, while checkout is at 11am.

Location

The 98 Hotel is in a great location downtown. It’s within walking distance of loads of bars, restaurants and cafes. The MacBridge Museum of Yukon History is just across the street and it’s only a block from the Yukon River where there’s a lovely riverwalk.

Parking

Free parking is available out the front of the hotel on a first come, first served basis.

Cost

You can find the hotel rates for each of the rooms here. At the time of our stays in May and July 2024, it cost ~$91.50 per night. That’s the US dollar amount, so be aware that the prices listed on their website are in Canadian dollars.

How To Book The 98 Hotel

This hotel doesn’t show up on sites like Hotels.com, Expedia, etc. Instead, you can book directly via email, phone, or – most easily – online. On their rates page there’s a button to ‘Book Online’. Payment isn’t taken until your stay.

Final Thoughts

Overall, we had a decent stay at The 98 Hotel. Shae was a little apprehensive initially as she hadn’t realized we were going to have a five night stay in a place with shared bathrooms. However, the room was comfortable enough, it was pet-friendly with no pet fee, it was in a great location for walking around the city and it gave us an opportunity to make some new friends (hi Brighton and Nate!)

Truffles Approval Rating

Truffles gives the hotel three paws out of four – pawsome! It was fantastic that there was no pet fee, but the nature of being in a hotel behind a saloon bar meant it wasn’t always as quiet as she might’ve liked.

Our Rating

Room = 3.7 / 5
Hotel Amenities = 2.5 / 5 (there weren’t really many, but it was handy having access to the kitchen)
Food = N/A
Location = 4.5 / 5
Service = 4.5 / 5
Overall Value = 4.5 / 5

Total = 3.94 / 5

Address

The 98 Hotel & Bar, 110 Wood St, Whitehorse, YT Y1A 2E3, Canada