Wilderness may be Alaska’s most defining characteristic, yet the outdoor excitement that is the 49th state’s best feature comes with a contemporary and sophisticated portfolio of meeting facilities in several cities and towns.
Business productivity comes easily in destinations like Anchorage, Fairbanks and Juneau, and the natural phenomena that make Alaska America’s Last Frontier is just outside the nearest door. Group programs that combine urban-based business meetings with outdoor experiences are sure to boost attendance and create lifetime memories.
Anchorage
Alaska’s largest city blends city sophistication and modern meeting and cultural facilities with accessible big country experiences.
Located at the base of the stunning Chugach Mountains, Anchorage has accommodations in all price sectors. The city’s walkable convention district features the 200,000-square-foot Dena’ina Civic and Convention Center; the newly renovated William A. Egan Civic and Convention Center; and the Alaska Center for the Performing Arts. Over 3,000 hotel rooms, shopping and diverse dining options that include everything from micro breweries to fine dining are within the district.
"There is only one Alaska, and we have everything groups need right here—including our 2-year-old convention center—for both business and recreation," says Julie Dodd, director of convention sales for the Anchorage CVB. "We are equipped to handle citywides of 3,500 people."
Dodd says accessibility is a key selling point.
"What many don’t realize is we are the crossroads of the world," she says. "Both FedEx and UPS have bases here so we are the third-busiest cargo airport in the world behind Memphis and Hong Kong. What this means for groups is that people can get in and out of here in a one- to two-day time frame."
The wilderness is also easily accessible. A glacier cruise out of Whittier on Prince William Sound is an option for a day trip, as is a flightseeing excursion to North America’s tallest peak, Mount McKinley. Anchorage cultural attractions include the newly expanded Anchorage Museum, with exhibits of Alaska Native artifacts from the Smithsonian Institution.
Fairbanks
Once a frontier mining town, Fairbanks has grown into a booming city with a diversified economy that includes the oil, gas, gold and coal mining industries, the military, tourism and the University of Alaska as key components.
"Many of our meetings are scientific groups, and we also have lots of state and national associations who come here for their connections to the university," says Helen Renfrew, director of meetings and conventions for the Fairbanks CVB. "Groups find we are an economical place to gather once you get here. Yes, we know people worry about transportation costs, but the reality is by shopping around, people can get here for less than they think."
Fairbanks has 3,300 year-round guest rooms throughout several meetings-friendly hotels, including the recently opened Hampton Inn & Suites Fairbanks; The Hotel North Pole; and Best Western Chena River Lodge. Unique off-site venues include The Fountainhead Antique Auto Museum, which can accommodate over 400 people for receptions.
Year-round recreation in the surrounding wilderness means seasonal choices like hiking, mountain biking, white-water rafting, canoeing, kayaking, dog mushing and fishing. As a gateway to the Arctic, Fairbanks offers a lot of choices for everyone from thrill-seekers to scenery-seekers.
Juneau
As one of Alaska’s largest cities, the state capital of Juneau is an important center of government and business. It’s also a busy port. About 1 million cruise passengers per year call on Juneau, and the city’s visitors enjoy year-round performing arts and local brew houses, along with surrounding natural beauty.
Juneau has a dramatic coastal location on the Gastineau Channel in the Inside Passage, so options such as venues at the summit of nearby Mount Roberts can put some wow into the program for opening receptions, along with Native Tlingit entertainment.
"We are not a large metro area location like a Seattle or an Anchorage," says Ken Hill, group and convention sales manager for the Juneau CVB. "People who come here for meetings are looking for something different. There aren’t too many places where you can walk out of your hotel or conference center and in 10 minutes be on top of a mountain looking at an ice field. In Juneau, you can. There’s also an incredible network of trails out of Juneau that are accessible. Depending on what time of year you hike, you can discover snow-covered peaks or beautiful meadows with Alpine flowers."
The city’s prime meeting facility is Centennial Hall Convention Center in the downtown historical district. It hosts sit-down banquets of up to 500 people in its 20,000 square feet of space. The ballroom is divisible by three and has contemporary audiovisual systems. Two lobbies provide an additional 4,200 square feet of space for receptions, displays and networking.
Matanuska-Susitna
The mighty 23,000-square-mile Mat-Su Valley is 35 miles from Anchorage and has accommodations ranging from full-service resorts to B&Bs and remote wilderness lodges.
Year-round recreation options include glacier hiking, fishing, river rafting, flightseeing and skiing. The valley is home to famous sporting events like the Iditarod Trail Sled Dog Race and the Tesoro Iron-Dog, the world’s longest snow machine race.
As the state’s agricultural heartland, the valley produces giant vegetables that are on display each year at the annual state fair in Palmer. Many valley farmers are descendants of Lower 48 farmers who went north in the 1930s as part of the Roosevelt New Deal initiatives. Gold rush history is here, too, and groups may tour the abandoned Independence Gold Mine.
Business groups can gather at facilities such as Talkeetna Alaska Lodge, McKinley Princess Wilderness Lodge and Matanuska Lodge Luxury Bed and Breakfast.
Attendees can get out of the meeting room and into the valley’s wilderness in a number of ways. An example is Lifetime Adventures’ team building for groups of various sizes and ability levels. Customized trips include snowshoeing in Hatcher Pass during spring and winter, mountain biking at Eklutna Lake and kayaking. Palmer’s Musk Ox Farm is an educational encounter focusing on prehistoric animals and their importance to Native Alaskans.
Valdez
Situated on a deepwater fjord in beautiful Prince William Sound, Valdez offers groups meeting spaces and a geological smorgasbord punctuated by Keystone Canyon, Thompson Pass, waterfalls and fascinating rock formations only 45 air minutes from Anchorage.
The Valdez Convention and Civic Center has 18,000 square feet of space, including a ballroom for up to 400 people, and other venues for smaller gatherings. The center’s new digital cinema with 3-D in the Performance Theatre allows for PowerPoint presentations on a large movie screen.
The hotel portfolio in Valdez has about 220 guest rooms.
In the surrounding outdoors, groups can opt for boating excursions to Columbia Glacier. For more active choices, there’s ice climbing, fishing and hiking.
Ketchikan
Spectacular wilderness and Native American heritage are the headliners in this popular Alaskan port, where a historic district, waterfront and an assortment of ethnic eateries attract visitors. From Thai and Chinese to Alaskan seafood, tables in the town often come with views of this vibrant commercial fishing harbor.
Ketchikan’s premier meeting site is the Ted Ferry Civic Center, a full-service meeting facility for small to large groups of up to 500. Accommodations include the three-story Cape Fox Lodge, with meeting facilities and catering capabilities for groups of up to 200. It sits above the harbor and town, and connects to the center and downtown Ketchikan via funicular.
Groups in residence can enjoy fishing and sightseeing with Experience One Charters, a company that includes Misty Fjords National Monument in its tours. Aleutian Ballad is a famous crab boat seen on Discovery Channel’s Deadliest Catch show. Cruisers set out in the calm-protected waters around Ketchikan and relax in the vessel’s sheltered outdoor amphitheater as a skilled fishing crew hauls up sea life from the depths. Stories of the men who have spent their lives working at sea come with the tour, as do wildlife like bald eagles, seals, sea lions and whales.
Sitka
Sitka has been called the "Paris of the Pacific," and its rich mix of Native culture, Russian history and surrounding
wilderness offers groups a unique culture to explore. Located in a forested island halfway between Seattle and Anchorage, Sitka enjoys Alaska Airlines access from both those cities as well as Juneau and Ketchikan.
In addition to its splendid natural surroundings, Sitka offers visitors 24 attractions that are listed on the National Register of Historic Places. Seven of them are National Historic Landmarks. The most popular is St. Michael’s Cathedral, which was originally built in the mid-19th century, then rebuilt in 1966 after a fire destroyed the structure. Icons and other religious objects were salvaged from the fire and are in the new structure.
Sitka meeting facilities include its Downtown Convention Center, a Traditional Tribal meeting house, hotel banquet rooms and remote wilderness lodges. Harrigan Centennial Hall is designed to handle groups up to 500, with its auditorium, breakout rooms, exhibit space and kitchen facilities. Situated on beautiful Sitka Sound, the auditorium’s glass-backed stage frames a panorama of mountains and harbor.
In the Sheet’ka Kwaan Naa Kahidi Community House, groups may experience the history and regalia of indigenous people in a site that is still used today as a native cultural and educational center.
