What to Do in Fairbanks
Fairbanks is a small city but still offers many activities to do! There are events
year around, you can check out the upcoming ones on the News Miner website.
Do you know how to access those places and activities? Take a look to our Transportation Guide (PDF)! Also view all the routes on the complete bus map (PDF)!
Year-Round Activities
Regal Movie Theater
It is the biggest movie theater in town, including 16 theaters. It is open everyday and is on Airport Way. To see the movie times, go on Fandango.
It is a bar/restaurant and movie theater. There are a lot of concerts and night themed there. For movie schedule and event schedule, please go on their website or on Fandango.
Bentley Mall
It is the only mall in Fairbanks. You can find different stores, food, jewelry, glasses, phones, clothes, etc. For more details about where to shop in Fairbanks, please see our Fairbanks Shopping Guide page.
Arctic Bowling offers open bowling everyday. You can also sign up for leagues there. There is also a bar and may events throughout the year!
It is a great place to learn more about Alaskan history and art. There are also different exposition and kids activities. For more information go to their website.
Winter Activities
Skiing/Snowboarding/Tubing
There are three places where you can go skiing/snowboarding. In any of those places you can get a pass for a half of a day, a day or the season. You also can rent gears directly to them or rent from the UAF Outdoor Adventures.
- Moose Mountain: UAF discount. There is no ski lift, a bus drives you at the top of the mountain.
- Skiland: UAF discount. There are ski lifts in this resort.
- Birch Hill: No UAF discount. Offers tubing. It is a smaller resort and in the Fort Wainwright Military base.
There is no specific place to go sledding but a lot of people go sledding on the hill by the SRC at UAF.
Ice Park
The Ice Park is an annual event where people from around the world come to sculpt ice blocks and expose them to the Ice Park. It is usually from the end of February to the end of March.
Most of the people go there during the winter to enjoy the pool geothermal heated pool. It is also a great place to watch the Northern Lights and go to the Ice Museum. There are more activities such as dog sledding. Chena Hot Springs is also a hotel, so you can enjoy all the activities by staying the weekend there!
Summer Activities
Lakes
There are several lakes around Fairbanks, where you can go to swim, relax but also go on a boat and do other activities.
- Tanana Lakes: Free. It is the closest from UAF, situated at the end of South Cushman Street. There is a picnic area, a swimming area and also a boat launch.
- Chena Lake: You need to pay a small fee to enter the park. It is bigger than Tanana Lakes and you are able to camp there. It is situated in North Pole
- Harding Lake: Free. This is the biggest lake out of the three. It is also the farthest, it is after North Pole. There is a camping area and you can also bring your boat.
River Float
An usual activity for the people living in Fairbanks is to float on the river. You can rent a kayak, canoe, or a raft from the UAF Outdoor Activities or buy one from the stores.
Angel Rocks
Angel Rocks is a hiking place, over an hour away from UAF, on the Chena Hot Springs road. You can hike (from 1 to 3 hours) on top of the rocks and also to Chena Hot Springs.
Solstice Festival
It is one of the biggest of the summer in Fairbanks. We are celebrating the longest day of the year with many activities all around the city. Activities include Midnight Sun Run, Festival with food, music and other stands downtown, concerts at the Blue Loon etc. For the details, please go on the NewsMiner website.
Every year in August, there is a fair on the Tanana Valley Fair Ground on College Road. There are food, attractions and other fun activities to do there! It is very busy and you should walk there or take the bus to avoid to have to park.
The Farmers Market is from May to September every year. The market is open Wednesday, Saturday and Sunday. It offers fresh products and alaskan made food and produce. It is popular in the weekend but UAF offers free rides on Wednesday at 12 p.m. and 1 p.m.
Most of the people go there during the winter but there are also activities for the summer, such as plane rides, horse riding, guided ATV tours etc.