Visiting Anchorage

Anchorage is a short drive away from the Resort and offers a variety of cultural activites from native heritage to artistic delights. During the holidays, Anchorage celebrates with tree-lighting ceremonies and Santa comes into town with a sleigh of real reindeer. Throughout the winter, find ice sculptures and other winter festivities. The highlight of winter in Anchorage is the arrival of the Iditarod and the two week-long celebration, Fur Rendezvous.

A bustling metropolis with a population of over 250,000, Anchorage was founded in 1915 as a railroad camp. Anchorage is now Alaska's largest city, and serves as a convenient jumping-off point for all sorts of excursions. Navigating downtown Anchorage's streets is simple. The grid plan was laid out by the Army Corps of Engineers, and streets and avenues run exactly east-west and north-south. The city has a local bus system and a network of more than 120 miles of paved urban trails which translates into great avenues for bicyclists and walkers in the summer and extraordinary cross country trail network in the winter.

Excellent restaurants can be found through the city, though many of the best places are found in some unlikely locations—Anchorage boasts a surprisingly huge number of very good restaurants in strip malls. Plus, Anchorage really gets going at night. Check out current event and night spot listings in the Anchorage Daily News entertainment section, published on Friday, and in the free weekly Anchorage Press.

View the Anchorage Visitor Guide online >

Anchorage Attractions

 Anchorage Museum at Rasmuson Center
The largest museum in Alaska, the Anchorage Museum is a community-based institution with exhibits and programs on the art, history and cultures of Alaska. Over 20 exhibitions are presented each year to more than 200,000 visitors. The Museum also presents a full calendar of public programs and art classes. The Museum features standing exhibits as well as a dynamic mix of revolving exhibits including the Mammoths and Mastodons: Titans of the Ice Age on view until October 2011. Exhibits celebrate art, science, Alaskan feats and history, and much more.

Alaska Native Heritage Center
The Alaska Native Heritage Center offers a glimpse into the rich culture of Alaskan natives. The center offers a variety of experiences - from listening to ancient oral traditions shared by a village elder to learning from a master artisan. Alaska's first people have been living here for over ten thousand years, and their stories are vivid and important. Join in a dance performance and stroll around Lake Tiulana to learn about ancient village life in five authentic village exhibit sites. Open daily: 9 am - 6 pm.  

Take advantage of the Alaska Culture Pass and save 20% off admission to both the Anchorage Museum and Alaska Native Heritage Center.

Alaska Native Arts Gallery
Alaska Native cultures are vibrant, various and very much alive. The Alaska Native Arts Foundation is a non-profit corporation founded in late 2002 to broaden understanding of, and stimulate demand for, Alaska Native art. We formed this foundation after realizing how little awareness there is about Alaska’s Native people, cultures, and art forms.

Travel Assistance

The Alyeska Concierge Team can help you make arrangements for travel and admission to the above Anchorage attractions as well as provide additional resouces and ideas for your day in Anchorage. Email Concierge or contact them at 907-754-2108.