'Alaska's Golden Heart': A Must-Visit City in the Northernmost US State

Bailey Berg is an award-winning travel journalist who splits her time between Alaska and Colorado. She has traveled to more than 75 countries. But Berg spent eight years in Alaska. She told the publication Travel & Leisure about the best city in the state, in her opinion.

"Fairbanks is easy to underestimate," writes Bailey Berg. "By all accounts, it's a small town—about 32 residents—but for interior Alaska, it's the center of everything. I lived in Alaska for eight years, and Fairbanks was one of those places I grew to love more and more.

Coffee shops, breweries, farmers markets, and food trucks line the downtown area, which is bisected by the Chena River. On the west side of town is the University of Alaska Fairbanks, the main research campus of the state university system and a major Arctic research center. It's also home to one of Alaska's finest museums. But drive about 15 minutes in almost any direction, and the town quickly dissolves into forests of birch and black spruce.

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The town's very existence here was largely a matter of chance. In 1901, trader E. T. Barnett was en route to Tanacross, Alaska, where he hoped to establish a trading post to service the region's gold mines, but shallow waters stopped the steamship carrying his cargo. The story could have ended as another tale of grand plans dashed by harsh natural conditions, but Barnett simply began trading where he found himself. The very next year, prospectors struck gold a few miles away, prompting a flood of miners, and a town grew on the site. Later, population growth, driven by military projects and the construction of the Trans-Alaska Pipeline, helped shape Fairbanks as it exists today.

In the summer, it's light almost 24 hours a day: you can hike through the boreal forest, raft down the Chena River, and spend long evenings on brewery terraces under the midnight sun. Situated directly under the auroral oval, the city is considered one of the best places in the US to view the northern lights. In winter, people come here for dog sledding, intricate ice sculptures, and freezing cold dips in the hot springs.

Here's what you need to know before you travel to Fairbanks, Alaska.

The best hotels and resorts

Chena Hot Springs Resort

Technically, Chena Hot Springs Resort is located about 100 kilometers northeast of Fairbanks, at the end of Chena Hot Springs Road, but people have been coming here for over a hundred years.

The geothermal springs were known to the Athabaskan First Nation long before gold prospectors arrived here in 1905, having heard of the steaming waters. By 1911, a bathhouse, stables, and about a dozen guesthouses were already in operation. Today, Rock Lake, an open-air lake only accessible to adults, is particularly popular. In winter, steam rises from the water, snow covers the pool, and on a clear night, the northern lights can appear overhead. Accommodations range from rooms in the main building and family suites to private cabins and yurts. The Aurora Ice Museum is also open year-round. It features an ice bar where cocktails are served in ice glasses. In winter, guests can go on northern lights sightings or ride electric snowmobiles; in summer, hiking trails and electric ATV tours are available. The resort also uses underground heat for farming: geothermal energy heats greenhouses where vegetables are grown year-round. The tomato soup is worth trying at the local restaurant.

Alaska Heritage House

History buffs will appreciate the Alaska Heritage House, a chance to stay in one of Fairbanks's earliest buildings. This small, eight-room hotel occupies the historic Mary Lee Davis House, named after its second owner, a writer. This spacious bungalow was built in 1916, when Fairbanks was barely a decade post-gold rush. For its time, the house was unusually luxurious: 10-foot ceilings, oak floors, central heating, and hot and cold running water. Today, the rooms and suites are fully preserved in the spirit of the past, with antique furniture and clawfoot bathtubs. The Mary Lee Davis Suite displays an Underwood typewriter and wire reading glasses. Breakfast is part of the experience: it is served in the dining room with a dining set from 1875, which made its way to Alaska around Cape Horn and up the Yukon River on a paddle steamer. The location is also convenient—the downtown restaurants, shops, and museums are within walking distance.

Borealis Basecamp

If your trip is all about seeing the northern lights, it's hard to beat Borealis Basecamp. It's located about 30 kilometers north of Fairbanks in a patch of boreal forest—far enough from the city to avoid much of the light pollution. The resort opened in 2017 with several unique fiberglass igloos, each with a see-through ceiling, allowing you to gaze at the sky from your bed. New accommodations have since been added, featuring floor-to-ceiling windows that offer views of the northern lights. There are connecting rooms for families and groups, and the more spacious Cube Suite includes a bathtub and private sauna.

There's plenty to do here: guests can go dog sledding, hike through the forest with reindeer, ride snowmobiles, or take a helicopter ride to the Arctic Circle. Three dining options are available: the Latitude 65 restaurant with a more complex menu, as well as more casual options—a pub and a daytime cafe.

Best activities

See vintage cars in Fountainhead

Even if cars don't spark much interest, time flies at the Fountainhead Antique Auto Museum. The collection boasts over 115 vintage automobiles, from early steam and electric cars to racing and luxury models from the 1930s. And for those less interested in cars, there's plenty to see: over a thousand items of clothing and accessories help immerse you in the era, while exhibits on the history of automobile transportation in Alaska illustrate the challenges of owning a car amid harsh winters and the near-total absence of roads. Be sure to check out the 1905 Sheldon Runabout—Alaska's first automobile, built by a young man who had never seen a car before but hoped a homemade vehicle would win him the heart of a local girl.

Go floating bar hopping

The Fairbanks summer bar crawl requires a life jacket. Canoe Alaska rents canoes, kayaks, and stand-up paddleboards. The standard route lasts about two hours, from Pioneer Park to Pike's Landing, but a longer paddle can be turned into an impromptu pub crawl along the Chena River. Along the way, you can dock at The Boatel, a longtime waterfront establishment with a terrace, and finish at Pike's Landing, where a spacious veranda opens directly onto the water.

Meet Blue Babe

Even those who don't usually enjoy museums should make time for the Museum of the North at the University of Alaska. Located on campus, it offers a glimpse into Alaska: it features exhibits on indigenous cultures, prehistoric animals, the state's fauna, and the people and industries that shaped modern Alaska. The collection's star attraction is Blue Babe, a 36-year-old prairie bison discovered in 1979 by a gold miner near Fairbanks. It was so well preserved that scientists were able to determine that it was killed by an American lion. The museum also houses North America's northernmost planetarium.

See musk oxen up close

Just minutes from the university's main campus is the Large Animal Research Station, home to herds of musk oxen and reindeer. Unlike a zoo, these animals participate in scientific research on the survival of large mammals in northern latitudes. Summer tours of the station allow visitors to get up close and personal to appreciate the musk oxen's size and thick fur, while researchers explain their adaptations, such as qiviut—an exceptionally soft and warm undercoat that helps them survive Arctic winters.

Pan for gold

Fairbanks owes its origins to gold mining. The Gold Dredge 8 gold mining station features a massive dredge with buckets that mined the local gold fields from 1928 to 1959. The tour begins at the Trans-Alaska Pipeline, another project that had a profound impact on the city's development decades later. Guests are then taken by train to the dredge complex. Each guest is given a bag of rock to wash, and unlike Fairbanks's first prospectors, you're guaranteed to take home at least a few gold nuggets.

Best places to shop

Tanana Valley Farmers Market

At the Tanana Valley Farmers Market, stalls are filled with vegetables, herbs, berries, flowers, and other produce grown in this part of Alaska. Jams, honey, baked goods, and locally made pottery, jewelry, and artwork are also sold. Come hungry: hot food stands make the market a popular spot for a summer lunch.

The Roaming Root Cellar

The Roaming Root Cellar is a complete contrast to the cliched souvenir displays you see elsewhere. It sells Alaskan produce, meat, locally roasted coffee, teas, jams, books, art, jewelry, cosmetics, and gifts from local artisans. It's also a convenient place to pick up travel essentials.

The Great Alaskan Bowl Company

The Great Alaskan Bowl Company is one of the few active workshops in the country that makes wooden bowls. They craft solid pieces from Alaskan birch using a 22-step process. At their Fairbanks store, you can choose not only bowls but also birch mugs, cutting boards, kitchen utensils, and more.

Lichen

Lichen, a small shop in the city center, specializes in contemporary art, jewelry, and goods made in Alaska. The selection changes regularly, but typically includes jewelry, graphics, ceramics, textiles, candles, and homeware.

Santa Claus House

Officially located in North Pole, about 15 miles southeast of Fairbanks, Santa Claus House has been selling Christmas goods since 1952. Today, it's easily recognizable by its 12-meter-tall Santa Claus statue. Inside, you'll find Christmas tree decorations, toys, gifts from Alaska, and souvenirs featuring North Pole symbols.

Best restaurants

The Pump House Restaurant & Saloon

This long-standing Fairbanks restaurant occupies a 1930s pumping station that once served gold mining. The Pump House menu features Alaskan steakhouse classics: beer-battered halibut, king crab claws, venison tenderloin, prime rib, and excellent fish soup. In summer, the main attraction is the large riverside terrace overlooking the Chena.

Lemongrass

Thai cuisine in Fairbanks is unusually well represented, and one of the most popular restaurants is Lemongrass. The menu draws on northern Thai cuisine and utilizes readily available local ingredients, including seasonal Alaskan vegetables and wild fish—halibut and salmon appear in curries, soups, and noodle dishes.

Soba

This is a Moldovan restaurant. Soba started out as a food truck and later opened a location in the city center. They serve hearty Eastern European dishes: pelmeni (dumplings), cabbage rolls (cabbage rolls), soups, mamaliga (maize), and other hearty meat and potato dishes perfect for the long winter.

End of the Line

Fairbanks and neighboring North Paul are now home to over 50 food trucks, offering everything from barbecue and tacos to Filipino and Hawaiian cuisine, coffee, and desserts. The End of the Line site has become the city's first year-round food truck yard: several mobile kitchens have found permanent locations, and most importantly, there's an indoor area for visitors when the weather turns bad.

Midnite Mine

The Midnite Mine bar has been operating on Second Avenue since the 1970s and occupies two levels. The most memorable spot is the low-ceilinged basement lounge with pool tables, darts, a jukebox, and inexpensive drinks. It's not uncommon to see a dog lounging on the floor while its owner drinks a beer.

Best time to travel

Fairbanks is a city of extremes, and the weather illustrates this well: recorded temperatures range from -54 to +37 Celsius. The travel experience varies just as much depending on the season, so the best time to visit depends on how you want to experience the city.

June through August is the best time for hiking, rafting, and enjoying the midnight sun; in September, the darkening skies usher in the northern lights season, which lasts until April and often peaks around the autumnal and spring equinoxes. For dog sledding, ice fishing, and a full-blown northern winter, visit December through March, but be prepared for temperatures well below freezing.

Getting there

Most travelers fly into Fairbanks International Airport, which is located about eight kilometers from downtown.

Driving here easily becomes a trip in itself. From Anchorage, the Parks Highway is about 580 km (360 mi), passing through Talkeetna and Denali National Park. If driving through Canada, Fairbanks is about 153 km (93 mi) beyond the official end of the Alaska Highway. This route begins in Dawson Creek, British Columbia, passes through the Yukon to Delta Junction, where it joins the Richardson Highway—the final stretch north to Fairbanks.

A more leisurely and much more scenic option is the Alaska Railroad. In the summer, the Denali Star connects Anchorage and Fairbanks, stopping in Talkeetna and Denali; the trip takes about 12 hours. In the winter, there are fewer trips: the Aurora Winter Train operates between the cities only on select dates.

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How to move

The most convenient way to get around Fairbanks is by renting a car. The downtown area is compact enough for walking, but many museums, breweries, restaurants, and trailheads are scattered, often requiring a significant drive to reach key attractions around the city. For example, Chena Hot Springs is located approximately 60 miles (97 km) from downtown.

Fairbanks has public bus transportation, as well as taxis and ride-sharing services, but these are less convenient for sightseeing.

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