With snow from the Chugach Mountains blanketing the sparkling “City of Lights,” Anchorage stages are set for a spirited season of classical and contemporary performing arts, winter sports, world-class events and timeless festivals. Mild temperatures and piles of snow create ideal conditions for outdoor adventure. Here are just a few events worth traveling to Anchorage for:
Kendall Hockey Classic
Watch collegiate hockey at its finest as four top-ranked, Division I college teams compete in the tournament held annually the second weekend in October. The contest features the talents of the city’s hometown University of Alaska Anchorage Seawolves.
Carrs/Safeway Great Alaska Shootout
The hottest early season college basketball tournament in the country features men’s and women’s teams drawn from across the university universe. Held annually Thanksgiving week and weekend and coincides with Downtown for the Holidays events.
Downtown for the Holidays
The weekend kickoff to the holiday season starts with entertainment and the official lighting of the downtown holiday tree and a visit from Santa.
Crafts Weekend and ReadAlaska Book Fair
Also Thanksgiving weekend, Alaska artists sell their handmade, one-of-a-kind works in this only juried holiday crafts show in Anchorage. Crafts Weekend runs in conjunction with the annual ReadAlaska Book Fair, featuring Alaska authors and illustrators selling their work. Whether crafted with a paintbrush, a potter’s wheel or a pen, the weekend highlights the creative works of Alaskans.
Anchorage International Film Festival
Provocative and independent films are screened at Anchorage’s best big screens and venues. The festival is a showcase of “films worth freezing for” and is held each December.
NECA/IBEW Fire and Ice Extravaganza
The city of Anchorage lights up the night with a big, wild celebration for the whole family. Live performances, skating in Town Square and fireworks cap one year and welcome in another.
Torchlight Ski Parade (Girdwood, Alaska)
Skiers traverse Mount Alyeska with glowing lights in hand, followed by an awesome display of fireworks to ring in the new year.
Great Alaska Beer and Barley Wine Festival
Whether you fancy stout or prefer pale ale, this annual showcase of suds has a pint for you. Featuring beers of the Northwest and beyond – with special attention to Alaska’s brews – the whole weekend in January is a celebration of brewing beer, mead and barley wine.
Anchorage Folk Festival
Anchorage unplugs with great folk performances from passionate local musicians and masters from beyond the state. All concerts and workshops are free and open to the public, and typically spread across two weekends in January.
Winterfest (Girdwood, Alaska)
This family friendly event celebrates the heart of winter. Weekend activities include various freeride competitions and clinics, snowshoe tours, kid’s fun races and motorized sled rides.
Alaska Ski for Women
The Alaska Ski for Women takes over Kincaid Park every year on Super Bowl Sunday. Participants don elaborate, colorful costumes for the race, making it an amazing spectator event as well. Ski for women has a twofold mission: encourage women of all ages and abilities to take part in an organized Nordic skiing event and raise money to support local non-profit organizations that provide safe harbor and support services for women and children affected by domestic abuse.
Tesoro Iron Dog (Pro race start in Big Lake, Alaska)
Two-man teams top speeds of more than 100 miles per hour in the world’s longest and toughest snowmobile race. The competition spans 2,000 miles from Big Lake to Nome to Fairbanks, Alaska.
Anchorage Fur Rendezvous
Celebrating winter like nowhere else, Alaska’s largest and oldest winter festival has many fan favorites and zany events that include outhouse races, snowshoe softball and the Running of the Reindeer, a mass dash down Fourth Avenue with sprinting caribou giving chase. Events are held all over Anchorage in the two weeks leading up to the Iditarod.
Iditarod Trail Sled Dog Race® Ceremonial Start
A field of more than 60 world-class mushers and their dog teams mush toward the Bering Sea coast through rugged remote mountain ranges and snow-capped forests in the "Last Great Race on Earth." The Iditarod’s 1,049 miles of pure adrenaline begin in downtown Anchorage the first Saturday in March.
Tour of Anchorage
Rush hour takes on a whole new meaning! Glide into a pair of skis, grab some poles and push off to see some of the most breathtaking sights in Alaska. The event is part of North America's longest running and largest citizen's ski racing and touring series. Designed for all abilities, this point-to-point marathon has 25K, 40k and 50K routes. Whatever the distance, the course crosses Anchorage on pristine trails.
Arctic Man Ski & Sno-Go Classic (Northeast of Anchorage on the Richardson Highway)
In this extreme winter race, skiers and snowboarders make a speedy solo descent down the mountainside before grabbing their snowmobile partners’ tow rope for an adrenaline-filled climb at speeds ranging from 70 to 90 mph and a final plummet to a finish line in front of thousands of people. Downhill speed and horsepower combine for an electric spectacle.
Alyeska Spring Carnival and Slush Cup (Girdwood, Alaska)
Elvis navigating downhill and skimming the surface of a slushy pond is an image that stays with onlookers a long time. Usher in spring with the costumed insanity of the annual Slush Cup, great skiing and snowboarding. Held annually near the end of April.
