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Suggest a Feature →Anchorage, Alaska
Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson. Alaska — the last frontier assignment.
Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson spans Anchorage's northern edge — merging Elmendorf AFB and Fort Richardson into the largest joint installation in Alaska. The base hosts F-22 Raptors, C-17s, and Army Airborne and Stryker units in one of the most operationally significant installations in the Pacific.
Anchorage is a city of 290,000 and Alaska's largest — a genuine urban hub with excellent restaurants, a vibrant arts scene, and direct access to some of the most spectacular outdoor environments on the planet. The Chugach Mountains rise directly behind the city. Moose walk through neighborhoods. Salmon spawn in local streams.
Alaska is transformative for most military families. The outdoor access — hiking, fishing, skiing, wildlife, and the simple scale of the landscape — changes how people see the world. Troops who lean in have their favorite assignment. Troops who resist the outdoors have a difficult time.
Must Eat
The spots worth eating at before you PCS out.
Simon & Seafort's
"Anchorage's finest seafood restaurant. Wild Alaska salmon."
Simon & Seafort's is the go-to for special occasions in Anchorage — wild Alaska salmon, halibut, and king crab prepared with respect for the ingredients. The views over Cook Inlet toward Denali on clear days are remarkable.
Snow City Café
"Anchorage institution. Best breakfast in the state."
Snow City Café is where Anchorage eats on weekend mornings — fresh-made everything, excellent coffee, and the kind of community gathering place that cold climates cultivate. Long lines on weekends. Worth every minute.
Double Shovel Cider Co.
"Alaska hard cider and local craft beer. The taproom scene is excellent."
Anchorage has a solid craft beverage scene — Double Shovel uses local Alaska ingredients. Midnight Sun Brewing and 49th State Brewing are also excellent. The taproom culture in Anchorage reflects the community-bonding that cold climates require.
Outdoor
Get outside. The land around military installations is usually the best reason to be there.
Salmon Fishing (Ship Creek)
"King salmon in downtown Anchorage. Not a metaphor."
Ship Creek flows through downtown Anchorage and gets runs of king, silver, and pink salmon that can be caught within sight of office buildings. The combat fishing scene (dozens of anglers shoulder to shoulder) is a uniquely Alaskan experience.
Buy an Alaska fishing license at Walmart or the Fred Meyer near base your first week. Ship Creek king salmon season (June-July) is the most accessible premier salmon fishing in the state.
Alyeska Resort (Girdwood)
"Alaska's premier ski resort. 40 miles south."
Alyeska in Girdwood is a legitimate destination ski resort — 2,500 feet of vertical, a tram to the 3,939-foot summit, and regular dump-cycle storms that give it powder conditions rivaling the best resorts in the West.
Culture & History
Places with stories. Most military towns sit on deep history — dig in.
Anchorage Museum
"Alaska's finest museum. History, art, and indigenous culture."
The Anchorage Museum is a world-class facility — the Smithsonian Arctic Studies Center, outstanding Alaska indigenous art and history galleries, and rotating contemporary exhibitions. Military discount.
Iditarod Trail Sled Dog Race Start (March)
◈ Rare"The Last Great Race. The ceremonial start is in downtown Anchorage."
The Iditarod begins with a ceremonial start in downtown Anchorage every first Saturday in March — over a thousand sled dogs surging through the streets, mushers from 20+ countries, and the most uniquely Alaskan event of the year.
Family
Stuff to do with the kids. Rated by people who have brought actual children.
Alaska Wildlife Conservation Center (Portage)
"Brown bears, moose, elk, and musk ox. Right off the highway."
AWCC on the Seward Highway houses injured and orphaned Alaska wildlife in large enclosures — brown bears come within feet of the road, musk ox and wood bison are remarkable to see up close. 45 minutes from JBER.
Day Trips
When you need to remember there's a world outside the gate.
"Tidewater glaciers, orcas, and humpbacks. 2 hours south."
Kenai Fjords is 2 hours south via the Seward Highway — one of Alaska's most accessible and spectacular national parks. Boat tours from Seward go to the Harding Icefield tidewater glaciers with guaranteed wildlife (orcas, humpbacks, Steller sea lions, puffins).
"The continent's highest peak. Grizzlies, wolves, and wilderness."
Denali is 4 hours north — the highest peak in North America and a national park where most of the 6-million-acre park is roadless and accessible only by one bus road. Grizzlies are common along the road. Wolves hunt in the open. This is wilderness at its most extreme.
"The Cosmic Hamlet at the end of the road. World-class halibut fishing."
Homer is 3.5 hours south — an arts community at the end of the Sterling Highway with halibut charters (Homer is the halibut capital of the world), excellent seafood restaurants on the Spit, and the most distinct small-town character in Alaska.
Buy an Alaska fishing license the week you arrive. King salmon season on Ship Creek (June-July) is one of the great freebies of an Alaska assignment.
The Iditarod ceremonial start (first Saturday of March) is free and extraordinary. Bring the kids.
Bear spray is not optional in Alaska backcountry. Know how to use it before you need to.
The Alaska Permanent Fund Dividend pays qualifying Alaska residents an annual dividend check (around $1,000-$2,000 historically). Establish residency if you qualify and plan to be here a full year.
The summer light is disorienting. Blackout curtains are not a luxury — they're required for sleep in June when it's light until midnight.
Alaska is expensive and isolated — the logistics of visiting the lower 48 or managing emergencies are costly and time-consuming. The darkness of winter (4-5 hours of daylight in December) is a serious mental health consideration. SAD (Seasonal Affective Disorder) is real and common. The troops and families who have the finest Alaska assignments are the ones who go all-in on outdoor recreation and community engagement from day one.
This guide is built by people who've been stationed here. If there's a spot we got wrong or a gem we missed, tell us.