We have been trying for a couple of years to get up to Fairbanks area and visit Alaska’s most famous hot spring, Chena. We wanted to go at the right time of year too so we could check out the northern lights while soaking. Flights would always fill up, or something would come up, so this year in late September when we got a chance to go, we did. Northern lights peak Alaska season starts in mid-September. In the earlier summer months, the sun doesn’t set. Also, Fairbanks has a better chance of seeing aurora than Anchorage because it’s closer to the Arctic Circle and darker skies than the lights of the big city.
It’s About an hour drive outside of Fairbanks, which is the nearest airport and major city to Chena hot springs. In late September the fall colors are in full effect in Alaska with the hills painted bright gold and it’s a beautiful drive through the Chena river state recreation area. There are some great hikes here if you want to see some views on your way to the hot spring.
When you first drive up, you’ll see the restaurant/front desk building, the ice museum with its airplane on a pole next to it and several small fox buildings and the lodge. The pool house building is where you’ll check in for a soak, change and follow a short path to the hot spring lake.
The hot spring lake is gravel bottom and has some pipes pumping the water in and a small waterfall at one end. The water is 106 and is not chlorinated. A day pass is $20 but if you’re spending the night at the resort, the soak is included. Also inside the pool house is an indoor pool which Is salt water and a couple of hot tubs that are chlorinated.
If you are spending the night, reservations are usually required because Chena gets busy. The main lodge and the fox room buildings are your main overnight options. There are a few small buildings for massages and an activity center where you can book things like a tour of dog sledding teams or their famous ice museum.
The ice museum is constructed from over a thousand tons of ice and snow and is open year-round. Inside you wear parkas while you are given a quick tour before you’re allowed to explore on your own. There are amazing sculptures all around and even an ice bar where you can drink an appletini from an ice glass for an extra charge. To get more information and make reservations, visit https://chenahotsprings.com/
Another fun thing to do on your way back to Fairbanks is to go to the North pole. A few miles outside of Fairbanks is the town of North pole Alaska. It’s home to the Santa Claus house, a huge Christmas store with a giant Santa clause statue out front. Here you can send a letter to your child from Santa and find any kind of Christmas décor you could imagine. The whole town has Christmas decorations all year too, pretty fitting with that name.
Instead of flying home from Fairbanks, we decided to take the 6-hour drive through the beautiful Alaskan wilderness to go home through Anchorage. Another reason for the drive to anchorage, was to stop and see North Americas tallest mountain, Denali. Denali Is so high, that views of it are often hid by clouds. This was the case for us too. We looked at 3 different spots and could only see the base of it. Speaking of obscured views, it was cloudy each night on our Alaska trip, so we didn’t get to see the Northern lights. That gives us a reason to come back.