If you’ve never made the trek to Alaska before because you found the planning daunting, I’m here to help.
For many of us in the Lower 48, we’ve been told that the only way to do it is on a cruise ship, where you don’t have to make a decision about where to spend the night, your meals are mostly taken care of and you get limited time to explore.
Most cruises will take you from Seattle or Anchorage to Juneau and the Inside Passage. But what about flying directly to Anchorage and connecting to the interior city of Fairbanks, land of the summer Midnight Sun, great Northern Lights, proximity to majestic Denali National Park and sub-zero winters?
“I always suggest doing your own thing,” Mai Moua, who manages a local Best Western Plus in Fairbanks says. “On a cruise, everything’s planned. But when you’re in your own car, you can pull off anywhere—and that’s when you see the wildlife.”
And wildlife is everywhere here. Moose sightings are common, even near town. “We’ve had guests complain because a moose was licking their window,” she laughs. “But it’s a wild animal—what are we supposed to do?”
Here’s how to spend 36 hours discovering Fairbanks without cruising—through its streets, its history, and the people who call it home.
Day 1: Arrival + A Walk in Midnight Sun Territory
Arrive in Fairbanks and get yourself situated. There aren’t a lot of hotels in town—we stayed at the Best Western Plus near photogenic Pioneer Park and loved it. (Full disclosure: Best Western sponsors Photowalks.) There’s also a string of familiar names (Marriott, La Quinta, Hampton Inn, Hyatt) either near the airport or nearby downtown, which you can browse via Explore Fairbanks’ lodging listings.explorefairbanks
The sun shines for nearly 22 hours from late June through most of July. Fairbanks regularly sees 21–22 hours of daylight around the summer solstice thanks to its latitude just below the Arctic Circle. If you’re wondering how anyone sleeps, there’s a simple answer: blackout shades are standard in every room.
Our guide, the local comedian, broadcaster and travel pro Jerry Evans recommended starting your 1‑mile downtown walk at the Morris Thompson Cultural and Visitors Center, where exhibits and staff offer a primer on life in Alaska’s interior and offer maps to getting around.morristhompsoncenter+1
From there, follow the path toward the Antler Arch and along the river to Golden Heart Plaza, where you see the fountain of a native family. Downtown shops like Big Ray’s, the Fairbanks Ice Museum and restaurants are across the street. We loved two local favorites: The Crepery and Soapy Smith’s.
If you’re in town during the summer solstice, you’ll want to take part in the many festivals, including the Midnight Sun Baseball Game, the Midnight Sun Festival that takes over much of the downtown, and the Midnight Sun Run evening fun run that starts at the university and ends at Pioneer Park. Both the game and the run start at 10 p.m., when it’s still bright outside.
Day 2 Morning: History at Pioneer Park
Start your day at Pioneer Park, a compact but rich look into Fairbanks’ gold rush roots. The park features relocated historic cabins, each telling a piece of the story that built the city.
“Gold was first,” one local guide tells me. “That’s what brought people here. Without it, Fairbanks probably wouldn’t be.”
Walking through the park feels like stepping into an earlier Alaska—wooden structures, old storefronts, and stories of outlaws and entrepreneurs who came north chasing fortune. Many of the original mining‑era buildings were moved here to create a preserved Gold Rush village experience.
Conversations and Community
One of the best ways to understand Fairbanks is to simply sit down and talk to people. Head to a local brewery or distillery—options include places listed on Explore Fairbanks’ food and drink guide—order a drink, and be ready for a conversation.
“You might not get the chance to ask them their story,” Jerry tells me. “There’s a good chance they’ll ask you yours first.”
It’s that kind of town—curious, open, and a little off the beaten path.
Day 2 Evening: A Surprising Food Scene
For dinner, there’s a twist: Thai food. Fairbanks has an unusually high number of Thai restaurants, a reflection of the city’s diverse influences, and local roundups often note its dense Thai scene relative to population. It is said that Fairbanks has more Thai restaurants per capita than anywhere else in the United States.
At Nim’s House of Thai Food, the Pad Thai is as good as anywhere, and you’ll find similar menus at spots like Thai House and Bahn Thai around town. Even in winter, when temperatures drop to extremes, locals still come out.
“When it’s 40 below, people still want Thai food,” Nim’s co‑owner told me. “They’re going to come get it.”
And at those temperatures, daily life shifts dramatically. “When it gets to 50 below, nobody’s outside,” another local says. “You don’t see traffic. You just go from one place to another as fast as you can.” Fairbanks can experience winter temperatures below −40, with residents relying on engine block heaters and plug‑ins to keep cars running.
Day 3 Morning: North Pole and Reindeer
Before leaving, take a short drive to North Pole, Alaska—a town built on the idea of keeping Christmas alive all year long.
At the Santa Claus House, you can send postcards stamped from the North Pole and browse holiday decorations no matter the season. “Our motto is where the Christmas spirit lives year‑round,” a staff member explains. The shop has been welcoming visitors since the early 1950s and is one of the area’s most popular roadside attractions.
Nearby, a visit to the Running Reindeer Ranch offers a different kind of encounter. Despite their association with holiday stories, reindeer are very real—and deeply tied to life in the Arctic.
“They’ve been around people for thousands of years,” ranch owner Jane Atkinson says. “They used to carry mail and freight across Alaska. Today, they’re a little more relaxed—they prefer going for walks.” The ranch offers guided walking tours through the boreal forest with their herd, by reservation only.
Optional: Gold Panning Experience
If you have extra time, try your hand at gold panning at a local mine on the Gold Dredge 8 tour or similar Gold Rush experience promoted by Explore Fairbanks. It’s a hands‑on way to connect with Fairbanks’ origins—and a reminder of how this remote outpost became a city, built first on gold, then on oil and the military presence.
Winter Return: The Northern Lights
While summer is defined by endless daylight, winter offers the opposite: long, dark and cold nights and one of nature’s most extraordinary displays.
“The northern lights are a very personal thing,” Jerry Evans says. “You could be standing next to someone, but when you look up, it’s just you and the sky.”
Fairbanks’ inland location gives it an edge, with clearer skies than many other aurora‑viewing destinations; it sits under the auroral oval and has relatively low winter precipitation compared with coastal locations like Tromsø, Norway. “If Vegas were giving odds,” he adds, “they’d say Fairbanks.”
For official trip‑planning info, you can start with Explore Fairbanks’ aurora resources and local tour operators.
For more info about Fairbanks, feel free to download our travel companion PDF, which includes additional planning tips, maps, and links to our favorite tours and experiences. You can also check out our Fairbanks edition of the podcast, with extended interviews.