Visitor’s Guide
First time in Anchorage? Start here. Essential tips, suggested itineraries, transportation advice, and everything you need to know to plan your Alaska trip.
Discover Anchorage's surprisingly diverse food scene in 2026: Filipino, Korean, Thai restaurants, iconic diners, best coffee, and must-try Alaska ingredients.
Kachemak Bay State Park — 400,000 roadless acres across the bay from Homer — offers the Grewingk Glacier hike, sea kayaking, brown bears, and some of the best accessible backcountry on the Kenai Peninsula.
Ketchikan gets 160+ inches of rain per year and wears it proudly. A guide to totem poles, Misty Fjords, Creek Street, salmon fishing, and the lush Southeast Alaska character that only rain can produce.
A 4–24 hour Anchorage layover gives time for Ship Creek salmon, the Coastal Trail, downtown museums, and Cook Inlet views — here's how to use it.
From the Anchorage Museum's 150-year Alaska art collection to the IGCA's cutting-edge contemporary shows, Anchorage's creative scene goes well beyond the wilderness. 2026 guide to galleries, public art, and First Friday.
Alaska has the largest state park system in the US. Here's your complete guide to the best parks near Anchorage, how to camp them, and what to expect in 2026.
See critically endangered beluga whales for free — from a downtown fish ladder, a Seward Highway pullout, or a paved coastal trail. Complete 2026 guide to Cook Inlet beluga watching from Anchorage.
Zentangle workshops in Anchorage: the official method, tangle patterns, pen and paper, and mental health research behind repetitive pattern drawing.
The Denali Highway is 135 miles of gravel road across the Alaska Range foothills — one of the most remote and scenic drives in the state, with Denali visible on clear days and virtually no traffic.
Lake Hood is the world's busiest floatplane base — and one of Anchorage's best free attractions. Here's where to watch, what you'll see, the Alaska Aviation Museum, and how to book a floatplane tour yourself.