Best time to visit Alaska

30.03.2024 - 06:57 / lonelyplanet.com

Bask in the sun at midnight. Experience 24-hour darkness punctuated only by the shimmering aurora borealis. Celebrate an ice-worm festival and witness grizzly bears fattening up on salmon. 

Alaska offers almost limitless opportunities for outdoor activities, cultural experiences and thrilling wildlife encounters, but the adventures you'll have will depend greatly on when you choose to go.

In a state that practically invented social distancing, you’ll rarely encounter crowds, but costs can be high, and the weather can deliver an uncomfortable shiver even in spring and fall. Here are some pointers on what you can expect from the Last Frontier whatever season you visit.

Summer is the best all-around season to visit Alaska. You can hike late into the evening (the sun never sets in the far north), bask in surprisingly balmy temperatures, and enjoy the state’s greatest feature – its spellbinding wilderness – without having to worry about aggressive snowstorms, inaccessible backcountry, and shuttered facilities. Not surprisingly, the overwhelming majority of Alaska’s annual visitors arrive between May and September, a large portion of them on cruise ships whose sailings coincide with the warmer weather.  

This is the season when almost everything is open – from visitor centers in national parks to ice cream vendors – and the wildlife is at its most active. Big events like the Kodiak Crab Festival and the Little Norway Festival in Petersburg in May draw in cruise-ship crowds and herald the start of the summer.

Most trails are snow free by June, and Denali National Park opens its main road to buses. Road trippers rejoice as the Top of the World highway opens for traffic. Music lovers descend on Anchorage for the Spenard Jazz Fest, and magic unfolds at the Midnight Sun Festival in Fairbanks.

By July, most trails are accessible, migrating salmon attract humongous bears to riverbanks in Katmai National Park and Kodiak Island, and the fishing season is in full swing. The World Eskimo-Indian Olympics showcases the survival skills and athletic abilities of the Indigenous peoples and celebrates their culture.

The continued sunshine means the landscape is almost fully defrosted come August. Take advantage of this with long-distance hikes on high-elevation trails and kayaking excursions. Stay wary of hungry bears in search of ripe berries. The Alaska State Fair kicks off with a series of concerts and celebrations.

Cruise traffic starts to slow down in September and hikers get the chance to glimpse the northern lights while on the trail. Prices start to drop as the season slows down and fall rolls in early in the north. 

See more of Alaska on one of these classic road trips

The climate of Southeast Alaska’s panhandle, the