Exploring the History and Culture of Fairbanks, Alaska

Visitors to the Northern Alaska city of Fairbanks are often surprised at the rich tourist offerings this former gold mining boomtown has to offer. Here’s a two-day tour of Fairbank’s best tourist attractions.

Fairbanks is the largest and coldest city in the Interior region of Alaska and the second largest in the state. At 65 degrees north latitude, Fairbanks is known for their spectacular northern lights, The aurora season in Fairbanks is from August 21 through April 21. Fairbanks is also basecamp to Denali National Park & Preserve and its Alaskan wilderness.

If you are still in the planning phase of your Alaska vacation, here are a few important items to pack and a great Road Trip on the Alaskan Highway itinerary.

Best Things to do in Fairbanks Alaska

Fairbanks is known for more than a national park and the aurora borealis. Plan a trip to Fairbanks for its great museums, concerts, historic sites, and Alaskan Native culture. Below are my favorite things in Fairbanks!

Riverboat Discovery

If you name the quintessential Alaskan activities, the Riverboat Discovery cruise (1975 Discovery Dr, Fairbanks, AK 99709) offers it. From a bush pilot taking off and landing on the river beside the boat to Siberian Husky sled dog demonstrations, to reindeer grazing—this 3-hour tour crams it all in.

After boarding the large recreation of a Sternwheel Riverboat, the Discovery III, we watch the bush pilot floatplane demonstration before departing up the river.

Next we slow to a stop to watch Siberian Mush dogs from the Susan Butcher (4-time Iditarod Champion) Kennels pull an All Terrain Vehicle and a bus around a small pond. Then we “oooh” at the gorgeous little Husky puppies struggling to get over an obstacle course made of logs twice their size.

We’re back chugging along the river again on our four-story steamboat for a while before we stop at the Chena Native Indian Village. Here, we disembark and walk around a series of exhibits and shows. We sit on rough wooden benches while we learn about early Athabascan Native Alaskan culture and life from our guides.

We see spruce log cabins, a spruce bark hut, fox and Bear fur and pelts, a salmon smoking shed, a sawmill, a reindeer pen, and a demonstration of Husky mush dogs. An early Alaskan fishing riverboat and full-size (stuffed) moose are on display, and our pretty female Athabascan guide models full fur coats.

On our tour over, we winded our way back along the river to the tourist shops, where the gift shop and restaurant await.

University of Alaska Museum of the North

This spacious, futuristic-looking museum perched on top of a hill overlooking Fairbanks looks like something from a science fiction movie. Packed with historical artifacts and exhibits, the Museum of the North’s galleries give visitors a crash course on Alaska’s Native cultures, Alaskan art, natural wonders, history, and wildlife.

I’d recommend you visit this museum early in your Fairbanks tour to get an appreciation of what the town is all about.

The museum’s “Early Years” exhibit has several detailed reader boards about the huge saga of the Fairbanks Gold Rush. You can read about the early gold discoveries and its key players E.T. Barnette, Felix Pedro, and Judge James Wickersham and the tens of thousands of hopeful prospectors who surged to this town, and the hardships they faced.

Gold Rush Town

Located in expansive Pioneer Park near the center of Fairbanks, Gold Rush Town is an authentic village of relocated log cabins and homes from the gold rush era. Most of the buildings sell souvenirs or food for tourists like souvlakis, ice cream, and a jewelry store, making it a great venue for families.

Pioneer Hall & Museum at Gold Rush Town

Now, this is my kind of museum! Located on Gold Rush Street in Gold Rush Town, the Pioneer Museum is a repository for anything and everything salvaged from Fairbanks’ past. Exhibits in this former pioneer hall range from furs and men’s and women’s clothing to shoes, ships bells, and wooden sleds and racing sleds. You’ll find furniture, a cash register, an ore cart, canned goods, posters, mining tools and equipment, and carpentry tools lying around in various display rooms.

The Pioneer Museum also houses a red fire pump, a recreated dry goods store and trading post, an old bank safe, radios, books, pottery, and china, and cutlery. Other artifacts include glassware, pianos, bathtubs, irons, gold weighing scales, fishing boats, historic photographs, a gorgeous red stagecoach with yellow painted wooden wheels, and numerous other bits and pieces lying around.

Pioneer Air Museum

Also within the confines of Pioneer Park, an interesting Air Museum (2300 Airport Way, Fairbanks, AK 99701) located in a circular structure stands towards the park’s center. Unique displays like a crashed airplane (labeled “This Aircraft is Grounded by Order of Maintenance Officer”), an aluminum “flying saucer’ hovercraft, a tiny Osprey II prop plane, and a 1975 Rotoway Scorpion 2-seater Helicopter provide an hour or two of interesting viewing.

Fairbanks History Revue, Gold Rush Town

The resurrected Palace Theater (located in Gold Rush Town in Pioneer Park ) hosts a lively, entertaining comedy revue play about Fairbanks’ history. Played by professional local actors who put heart and soul into answering the vexing question, “Why would anyone want to build a town in the godforsaken swamp and how could that town survive for more than 100 years?”

Before the play, you can attend a great outdoor salmon bake held just across the park. Huge portions of side dishes provide enough grub to feed a hungry gold miner, including a salad bar, baked beans, corn, and desserts. The fire-grilled salmon and slow-roasted Prime Rib is excellent.

Fountainhead Antique Auto Museum (FAAM)

Location: 212 Wedgewood Drive, Fairbanks, Alaska 99701

This cavernous, 30,000-square-foot repository houses enough of America’s earliest and finest cars from the Veteran, Brass, Nickel, and Classic car eras to make the journey to Fairbanks worthwhile for car enthusiasts, or even those just mildly interested in vintage cars. Indeed, 20,000 people visit Fairbanks annually to tour the museum.

FAAM’s vehicles, immaculately restored and painted and shined to a dazzling finish, are fully operational. “It’s one of the best early collections in the United States”, says Willy Vinton, the affable Museum Manager. “And being a living museum where we drive all the cars makes it unique”.

Inside FAAM, strategically placed overhead lights reveal an impressive array of 67 vehicles arranged in chronological order from 1898 to 1936. Alongside the cars stand dozens of mannequins dressed up in historic fashion clothing and formal dress. Dating from the 1700s through the swing era, these outfits complement the vehicles nicely, making it a lot easier to imagine these automobiles chugging along in their heyday.

See the Antler Arch

Capture a quintessential Alaskan moment by snapping a photo at Fairbanks’s Antler Arch, adjacent to the Morris Thompson Cultural Center. This iconic arch, crafted from moose and caribou antlers, offers a uniquely Alaskan touch. Whether you visit in summer or winter, this must-do experience provides a picture-perfect opportunity for your ‘gram, ensuring you don’t miss out on one of Fairbanks’s defining attractions.

Attractions Near Fairbanks

Pedro Monument

Now it’s time to visit the place where Felix Pedro struck gold—Fairbank’s defining moment. A short drive out of town you’ll find the exact spot where Felix Pedro found his rich deposit that launched Fairbanks at Mile Post 16.6 on Steese Highway. It’s an unassuming creek, two meters wide and six inches deep, with a loose bank of gravel and silt.

You often find several people working rockers, sluices, and panning for gold here. Make sure you visit the stone monument opposite Pedro’s Creek for further details about this Italian immigrant.

Gold Pan at Gold Dredge 8

After Fairbanks gold mining petered out in 1920, it was revived by the installation of eight enormous gold dredges. Fortunately, one dredge is still open to the public. Gold Dredge 8 (1803 Old Steese Hwy N. Fairbanks, AK 99712) is an action-packed tour where you can see gold mining techniques demonstrated and pan for gold.

The self-guided walk through the behemoth, authentic gold dredge is like walking through a machine from a steampunk novel. The Binkley Family, owners of Gold Dredge No.8, have managed to compress all of these activities into a two-hour visit to their site in the Goldstream Valley on Old Steese Highway, a 10-mile drive through the countryside from Fairbanks.

Head to an Alaskan Brewery

Local microbreweries offer tasty ales and beers at Silver Gulch Brewing and Bottling Company (2195 Old Steese Hwy N, Fairbanks, AK 99712), and Hoodoo Brewing Company (1951 Fox Ave, Fairbanks, AK 99701). Silver Gulch, the larger of the two operations, has a restaurant and gift store on the premises. Silver Gulch’s beer tasting menu offers over 100 types of exotic and locally brewed beer.

Fairbanks makes a great family tourist destination. It has the right combination of activities that children and adults alike will find absorbing and interesting. Combine this with the gateway to the Denali National Park, good food, and friendly locals, and you have a great escape “up North”.

Best Time to Visit Fairbanks

For an optimal Fairbanks, Alaska experience, plan your visit between June and August, during the vibrant summer season. Enjoy temperatures reaching the 80s and an extraordinary phenomenon where darkness is absent for a continuous 70-day stretch from May 17 to July 27. Keep in mind, however, that this period is peak tourist season, resulting in higher accommodation costs.

Alternatively, explore Fairbanks during the shoulder seasons for a more tranquil and budget-friendly trip. Fall offers crisp days with temperatures in the 40s, showcasing the mesmerizing transition of colors. Ideal for comfortable hikes, the darkening skies also signal the beginning of the northern lights viewing season.

If you’re an aurora enthusiast, plan your visit between December and March, the winter months when the northern lights illuminate the sky. While temperatures can drop to -30 degrees, and snowfall is common, winter accommodation prices, though slightly higher, remain reasonable compared to the bustling summer season.

Fairbanks Tourist Information

The Morris Thompson Cultural & Visitors Center (101 Dunkel St, Fairbanks, Alaska 99701) should be your first stop in Fairbanks. You’ll walk out with a handful of brochures and tourist information. The helpful people here will help you plan your itinerary.

Where to Stay in Fairbanks

Bear Lodge at Wedgewood Resort (212 Wedgewood Drive, Fairbanks, Alaska 99701)
This lodge is near the Fountainhead Antique Auto Museum. If you’re an antique car buff, this museum is not to be missed. The lodge has nice rooms and great breakfasts.

Read Bear Lodge reviews on Tripadvisor and find best deals at Hotels.com and Booking.com

Pike’s Waterfront Lodge (1850 Hoselton Rd, Fairbanks, AK 99709)
This hotel is located on the riverbank with very nice rooms and excellent meals.

Read Pikes Waterfront Lodge reviews on Tripadvisor and find best deals at Hotels.com and Booking.com

Where to Eat in Fairbanks

• Pikes Landing Restaurant & Lounge
• The Pump House Restaurant and Saloon
• Fine dining in a historic atmosphere overlooking the Chena River.
• Silver Gulch Brewing & Bottling Co
• Loose Moose Café (Great lunches)

More Alaska Adventures

• 31 Best Places to Visit in Alaska
• What to Pack for the Perfect Alaska Adventure
• Alaska Cruise for Seniors: 3 Incredible Wildlife Encounters For Your Itinerary
• How to Plan a Road Trip on the Alaskan Highway

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