Things to do

Wildlife, boats, trails, winter, and the meals in between. Check off what you have done. The marks stay in this browser.

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Wildlife
Watch bears at Brooks Falls
Stand on the viewing platforms at Katmai while brown bears catch salmon at the falls.
Summer · Katmai National Park · Moderate
Wildlife
Go whale watching
Look for humpbacks, orcas, sea otters, and puffins from a day boat in summer coastal waters.
Summer · Seward, Whittier, Juneau, Valdez · Easy
Wildlife
Look for the big five
Moose, bear, caribou, Dall sheep, and wolf — the set people try to see on one Alaska trip.
Summer · Denali and the road system · Easy
Wildlife
Go birding
Eagles, cranes, shorebirds, and seabirds on boardwalks and coastal pullouts.
Shoulder · Anchorage, Fairbanks, Homer · Easy
Wildlife
Visit the Wildlife Conservation Center
See bears, moose, bison, and other animals that cannot be released, on the Seward Highway.
Year-round · Portage, Seward Highway · Easy
Dog mushing
Mush on a glacier in summer
Fly to a snowfield and ride with a working team while the rest of the state is green.
Summer · Seward, Juneau, Skagway · Easy
Dog mushing
Drive a team on snow
Learn the commands and run a team on winter trails around Fairbanks or Denali.
Winter · Fairbanks, Denali, Mat-Su · Moderate
Dog mushing
See the Iditarod start
Watch the ceremonial start on Fourth Avenue in Anchorage at the beginning of March.
Winter · Anchorage · Easy
Fishing
Catch a halibut
A guided saltwater day out of Homer, Seward, or another coastal harbor.
Summer · Homer, Seward, Valdez · Easy
Fishing
Fish salmon on the Kenai
Kings, sockeye, or silvers on the river people cross the state to fish.
Summer · Kenai Peninsula · Moderate
Fishing
Stay at a fly-out fishing lodge
A floatplane, a remote river or lake, and meals you do not have to cook.
Summer · Southwest, Interior, Kenai backcountry · Moderate
Fishing
Ice fish
Fish through lake ice in the Interior, often from a heated shack.
Winter · Fairbanks and the Interior · Easy
Hiking & mountains
Hike Flattop
The short, steep Anchorage classic with a view of the city, the inlet, and the Chugach.
Year-round · Chugach State Park, Anchorage · Moderate
Hiking & mountains
Hike the Harding Icefield Trail
A long climb above Exit Glacier until the icefield fills the view.
Summer · Kenai Fjords, near Seward · Challenging
Hiking & mountains
Climb Denali
An expedition to the highest peak in North America. Most parties do not summit.
Shoulder · Denali, staged from Talkeetna · Extreme
Hiking & mountains
Walk on a glacier
Crampons, a guide, and blue ice under your boots. Several glaciers offer beginner trips.
Summer · Matanuska, Exit, Mendenhall · Moderate
Rafting & water
Raft Sixmile Creek
Class III to V whitewater in the canyons near Hope, about two hours from Anchorage.
Summer · Hope, Chugach National Forest · Challenging
Rafting & water
Raft the Nenana River
A canyon run or a milder float beside Denali National Park.
Summer · Denali / Healy · Moderate
Rafting & water
Kayak among icebergs
A guided paddle near tidewater ice in Prince William Sound or Kenai Fjords.
Summer · Prince William Sound, Kenai Fjords · Moderate
Glaciers & flightseeing
Cruise Kenai Fjords for a day
A boat from Seward to tidewater glaciers, seabirds, and whatever whales are in the bay.
Summer · Seward · Easy
Glaciers & flightseeing
Fly around Denali
A small plane from Talkeetna around the Alaska Range, often with a landing on a glacier.
Summer · Talkeetna · Easy
Glaciers & flightseeing
Land a helicopter on a glacier
A short flight and a few minutes standing on ice you cannot drive to.
Summer · Southcentral and Southeast · Easy
Northern lights
See the northern lights
Fairbanks is the practical base. Dark skies run from late August into April.
Winter · Fairbanks · Easy
Northern lights
Sleep under a clear roof
A lodge or dome north of Fairbanks built so you can watch the sky from bed.
Winter · North of Fairbanks · Easy
Northern lights
Soak at Chena Hot Springs
Outdoor hot springs an hour from Fairbanks, with a real chance of aurora in winter.
Year-round · Chena Hot Springs, near Fairbanks · Easy
Cruises
Cruise the Inside Passage
A multi-day ship past glaciers, fjords, and the coastal towns of Southeast Alaska.
Summer · Southeast Alaska · Easy
Cruises
Ride the Alaska Marine Highway
The state ferry through the Inside Passage, with or without a car.
Year-round · Southeast and Southcentral coasts · Moderate
Culture
Visit the Alaska Native Heritage Center
A living cultural center in Anchorage for the Native peoples of the state.
Year-round · Anchorage · Easy
Culture
See totem poles and clan houses
Cedar poles and clan houses in Ketchikan, Saxman, Sitka, and other Southeast towns.
Year-round · Ketchikan, Sitka, Southeast · Easy
Food
Eat seafood that was swimming recently
King crab, salmon, halibut, and oysters, cooked simply, close to where they were caught.
Year-round · Coastal towns and Anchorage · Easy
Food
Have dinner at Glacier Brewhouse
Alder-grilled seafood and house beer in downtown Anchorage, a local table since 1996.
Year-round · Downtown Anchorage · Easy
Lodging
Sleep in a public-use cabin
A wood stove, bunks, and an outhouse on public land. You bring everything else.
Year-round · Statewide public land · Moderate
Lodging
Stay at a wilderness lodge
A fly-in lodge with meals and a guide, used as a base for fishing, bears, or hiking.
Summer · Fly-in, statewide · Moderate
Lodging
Stay at the Hotel Captain Cook
The downtown Anchorage hotel with the Crow’s Nest on the top floor.
Year-round · Downtown Anchorage · Easy
Scenic travel
Drive the Seward Highway
The 125 miles from Anchorage to Seward along Turnagain Arm and into the mountains.
Year-round · Anchorage to Seward · Easy
Scenic travel
Ride the Alaska Railroad
A dome car between Anchorage and Seward, or Anchorage and Fairbanks.
Summer · Anchorage, Seward, Denali, Fairbanks · Easy
Scenic travel
Ride into Denali National Park
A bus on the park road, which is how almost everyone sees the mountain and the animals.
Summer · Denali National Park · Easy
Scenic travel
Drive to the Arctic Circle
The Dalton Highway north of Fairbanks, gravel, long, and short on services.
Summer · North of Fairbanks · Challenging
Scenic travel
Visit Kennecott and Wrangell-St. Elias
The copper mill town at the end of the McCarthy Road, inside the largest national park.
Summer · McCarthy / Kennecott · Moderate
Scenic travel
Stay up for the midnight sun
Around the June solstice the Interior barely gets dark. Use the extra day.
Summer · Fairbanks and north, statewide light · Easy
Scenic travel
Ski or ride the tram at Alyeska
Alaska’s main ski resort in Girdwood, with Turnagain Arm below the upper mountain.
Winter · Girdwood · Moderate