Alaska

Fairbanks is Alaska's interior hub and America's finest northern lights destination. Sitting at 64.8°N inside the auroral oval, it benefits from the dry continental interior climate — far less cloud cover than coastal Anchorage — giving it exceptional aurora viewing statistics. The University of Alaska Fairbanks operates a world-class aurora forecasting service that locals and tour operators use daily. The Chena Hot Springs resort (60 miles out) is a beloved combination of soaking in geothermal pools and aurora watching from an outdoor pond. Aurora viewing domes — heated glass pods for night-long aurora watching — have become enormously popular with Japanese visitors. The Iditarod Trail Sled Dog Race begins in Anchorage in March, with Fairbanks as a staging point. Temperatures of -40°C are possible in January — proper gear is absolutely essential.

Denali National Park preserves six million acres of Alaska's most dramatic wilderness, centred on Denali itself — at 6,190m, North America's highest peak and one of the world's great mountains. The aurora viewing around the park entrance area is exceptional: at 63.3°N within the auroral oval, with no light pollution across hundreds of kilometres of boreal forest and tundra, winter nights regularly produce intense displays with the mountain as backdrop on clear nights. The park corridor village of Healy and the Denali Park Road entrance area offers the practical visitor experience. In winter, the park road beyond Mile 30 is closed to vehicles but opens to snowshoe, ski, and dog sled travel — a wilderness experience of profound solitude. Denali's resident wildlife includes wolves, caribou, moose, Dall sheep, and golden eagles, all adapted to interior Alaska's severe continental climate. The proximity to Fairbanks (2 hours north) — Alaska's aurora capital — allows combining both destinations. The park's September aurora window is particularly beautiful, with tundra ablaze in autumn colours beneath the dancing lights.

Anchorage is Alaska's largest city and the most accessible gateway to Alaskan wilderness. For dedicated aurora chasers, the coastal location and city light pollution mean it ranks lower than Fairbanks — but Anchorage's enormous advantage is its international airport, connecting directly to Japan, South Korea, and major US cities. Most aurora-focused travellers use Anchorage as a hub, then drive or fly to Fairbanks. That said, aurora viewing from Anchorage is very possible — guided tours head into the Chugach Mountains and Mat-Su Valley where dark skies begin just 30 minutes from downtown. The city is excellent year-round: Denali National Park is accessible, glaciers are nearby, and the Iditarod Trail Sled Dog Race ceremonial start takes place in Anchorage every March to significant fanfare.

Juneau is one of the world's most extraordinary capital cities — Alaska's state capital is inaccessible by road, perched between the sea and near-vertical mountains, and home to the Mendenhall Glacier, a vast river of ice flowing almost to the city suburbs. At 58.3°N, Juneau sits on the fringe of the auroral zone — northern lights are seen several times per year on clear nights, particularly during solar maximum periods, but the notoriously wet Southeast Alaska climate means cloud cover is frequent. The Mendenhall Glacier has 19 square miles of accessible glacial terrain with easy guided hikes from the visitor centre. Between May and September, humpback whale populations in nearby Frederick Sound and Lynn Canal offer world-class whale watching. Bald eagles are abundant year-round. The Alaska Marine Highway ferry journey through the Inside Passage to Juneau is one of North America's great scenic sea voyages. Juneau's downtown offers excellent fresh seafood, locally brewed beer, and the Alaska State Museum. Aurora viewing is possible but not reliable — visit for the glacier and wildlife first, with aurora as a welcome surprise.