The majority of visitors come to Alaska during the summer months, but Alaska's winters are also full of opportunity.  There are several spectacular activities available in the winter - many of them completely unique experiences.

The Aurora Borealis is one of the most spectacular of nature's phenomena, described as flickering curtains of dancing light against dark skies. If you are traveling during fall, and the evening sky is clear, keep an eye out for the Aurora's, commonly referred to as the "Northern Lights". Better yet, plan a more specialized tour to Alaska during winter to observe the lights. The Northern Lights are typically visible throughout the state from about the third week of September through the third week of March. Higher latitudes correspond to a better opportunity for viewing the Aurora's. For this reason, most aurora viewing programs are planned for the Fairbanks area.

Alaska's "official" state sport, dog mushing, brings visitors from all around the world to Alaska. While summer dog mushing programs are available, winter snow conditions provide the best opportunity to experience this ancient tradition. Annual event races include the World Championship Sled Dog Races and the Iditarod Sled Dog Race, both of which take place on consecutive weekends in late February/early March. The Yukon Quest is another annual dog mushing race that travels between Whitehorse, Yukon and Fairbanks, Alaska each year. 

Below you will find a brief list of other annual winter events that you might consider planning a winter Alaska program around:

Near Anchorage:

• Iditarod - the most popular sporting event in Alaska! - First full weekend in March
• Fur Rendezvous Festival - takes place the full 10 days leading up to the start of the Iditarod
• World Championship Sled Dog Races (part of Fur Rendezvous Festival) - last weekend in February
• Tesoro Iron Dog, the ‘World's Longest, Toughest Snowmobile Race' - end of February
• Alyeska Spring Carnival and Slush Cup - end of April

Near Fairbanks:

• World Ice Art Championship - Last week in February thru March
• Yukon Quest - Race begins first Saturday in February, alternates starting in Whitehorse, Yukon and Fairbanks, Alaska each year.
• Winter Solstice Celebration - December 21
• Fairbanks Winter Carnival - end of February through end of March

We have also compiled a list of sample winter programs to help get the conversations started.  Please take a look and if you see something of interest, feel free to contact us. We look forward to hearing more about you so we can modify one of these programs to better suit your specific needs.