Cornelius Amann
October 06, 2026
5/5
Alaska in Winter: Fairbanks, the Northern Lights and Dog Sledding
6 days from late November to March: four nights in Fairbanks with three aurora evenings, Chena Hot Springs, the Aurora Ice Museum and dog sledding, then the Aurora Winter Train to Anchorage.
6 days · Fairbanks to Anchorage · up to 12 guests
Anchorage and the Chugach Mountains, where the trip ends Photo: Quintin Soloviev, CC BY 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons (https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Anchorage,_Alaska.jpg)
The facts
At a glance
- Length
- 6 days, 5 nights
- Start and end
- Fairbanks to Anchorage
- Group size
- 7 to 12 guests
- Longest drive
- 3 h on day 3No drive day is longer than 4 hours.
- Activity level
Easy
Short walks of under 1 km at a time on packed snow and ice, a dog sled ride of a few kilometres sitting in the basket, and an optional soak in the hot springs. The effort is the cold, often -20 to -30 C, and three late aurora evenings spent stepping outside in turns, with a heated lodge or the vehicle a few steps away. You can sit any evening out.
- Meals included
- 5 breakfasts, 4 lunches, 1 dinner
- Room of your own
- + CAD 680 (estimated price)
- Season
- Late November to March
Highlights
Why this trip
- Three evenings set aside for the northern lights: two at a heated viewing lodge in the hills outside Fairbanks and one at Chena Hot Springs
- A soak in the outdoor rock lake at Chena Hot Springs, with steam rising into the frozen air
- The Aurora Ice Museum, kept below freezing all year, with an ice bar where drinks come in carved ice glasses
- A dog sled ride through the spruce forest outside Fairbanks, or a lesson and a short run driving a small team yourself
- The University of Alaska Museum of the North and the Trans-Alaska Pipeline in the low winter sun
- The Aurora Winter Train south past Denali and over Hurricane Gulch to Anchorage
- Turnagain Arm and the Alaska Wildlife Conservation Center on the way to your flight
What makes this trip different
Short drives, all published
Every drive is listed day by day, and none is longer than 4 hours.
Free time is part of the plan
Free time and choices are marked on the days they fall.
Solo without the penalty
A room of your own is + CAD 680 (estimated price).
Day by day
Itinerary
The longest drive is 3 h, on day 3.
Tap any stop on the map to open that dayClick any stop on the map to open that day
Arrive in Fairbanks
Fairbanks International Airport to your hotel in central Fairbanks
- Welcome dinner
- Stay in Fairbanks
- Drive about 12 min
Fly into Fairbanks International Airport (FAI), about 8 km from downtown, where a driver meets you for the short ride to your central hotel. Most flights connect through Anchorage or Seattle; plan to land by about 4 pm to meet the group, and the exact time is confirmed with your final itinerary. Fairbanks sits on the Chena River in the middle of Interior Alaska, and in winter it is a town of short blue days, ice fog drifting over the river and long, cold, often clear nights.
Evening
In the early evening your See Sight Tours guide meets the group, hands out the arctic parka, insulated boots and mittens we lend you for the week, and checks that everything fits. The briefing covers how the aurora evenings work, how to dress for thirty below and why most mornings start late. Then we sit down together to a welcome dinner in town. If the forecast is strong and the sky is clear tonight, your guide tells you where to look from near the hotel.
Included
- Pick-up at Fairbanks International Airport (FAI)
- Fitting of your loaned arctic parka, boots and mittens
- Welcome briefing with your guide
- Welcome dinner
Free time: Free until the early-evening briefing
Fairbanks by day, the first aurora night
Fairbanks: the Museum of the North, downtown and the pipeline, then a viewing lodge in the hills
- Breakfast and lunch
- Stay in Fairbanks
- Drive about 2 h
We start at the University of Alaska Museum of the North, on the campus ridge west of town, soon after it opens, while it is still dark outside in December. Its galleries cover the whole state, from Alaska Native clothing, tools and art to Blue Babe, a steppe bison found frozen in the permafrost near Fairbanks.
Afternoon
As the late sun comes up we drive downtown to the Morris Thompson Cultural and Visitors Center for an introduction to the Interior's Alaska Native peoples and to life through the winter, then sit down to lunch in town. Early in the afternoon, in the best of the low light, we stop at the Trans-Alaska Pipeline viewpoint north of town, where the pipe runs on raised supports across the snow.
Evening
Then it is back to the hotel to rest and eat dinner where you like, because tonight is a late one. At about 9:30 pm we drive up into the hills to a heated aurora viewing lodge, away from the city's light, and wait with hot drinks until about 2 am. Your guide watches the sky and the forecast and calls you out when the lights appear.
Included
- University of Alaska Museum of the North
- Morris Thompson Cultural and Visitors Center
- Sit-down lunch in Fairbanks
- Trans-Alaska Pipeline viewpoint
- First aurora evening at a heated viewing lodge in the hills outside Fairbanks, with hot drinks
Easier option: Stay inside the heated lodge all evening: your guide calls you out only if the lights appear, and you can doze in a chair until we drive back together.
Free time: Late afternoon and dinner free
Activity: Aurora evenings mean stepping in and out of the cold for several hours. Wear every layer, and bring a spare camera battery: batteries drain fast at -30 C.
Chena Hot Springs and the Aurora Ice Museum
Fairbanks to Chena Hot Springs on the Chena Hot Springs Road, and back late at night
- Breakfast, lunch and dinner
- Stay in Fairbanks
- Drive about 3 h
Evening
A slow breakfast after the late night, then we drive about 97 km east along the Chena Hot Springs Road, through spruce forest and the Chena River State Recreation Area, to the hot springs at the end of the road, about an hour and a half away. Lunch is at the resort. Afterwards we tour the Aurora Ice Museum, a building kept below freezing all year and filled with ice sculptures, ice chandeliers and an ice bar where drinks are served in glasses carved from ice (the drinks are extra). Then comes the soak: the outdoor rock lake is fed by the springs, and sitting in hot water at twenty below while your hair turns white with frost is the photo most people want. There is time to rest, walk the snowy grounds or stay in the water before dinner together at the resort. After dinner we stay on for the second aurora evening, about 95 km from the lights of Fairbanks, and drive back to town by about 1 am. Our driver rests during the day for the late run.
Included
- Chena Hot Springs day entry and a soak in the outdoor rock lake
- Guided tour of the Aurora Ice Museum
- Lunch and dinner at Chena Hot Springs
- Second aurora evening at Chena Hot Springs, away from city light
Optional experiences
- A drink from the ice bar at the Aurora Ice Museum
Easier option: Skip the soak and spend the afternoon by the fire in the resort's lodge.
More active option: A walk on the snowy trails around the resort with your guide before dinner.
Free time: Afternoon free at the hot springs after the museum tour
Activity: The outdoor rock lake is for adults 18 and over; younger guests use the indoor pool. Bring a swimsuit and keep a hat on in the water.
Dog sledding and a last aurora night
Fairbanks to a sled dog kennel outside town and back, then the viewing lodge
- Breakfast and lunch
- Stay in Fairbanks
- Drive about 2 h
Afternoon
Another late start, timed to the light: near the December solstice the sun is up from about 11 am until before 3 pm, so we reach a working kennel outside Fairbanks around midday. The mushers introduce the dogs, mostly lean Alaskan huskies bred to run, and show how a team is harnessed, steered and stopped. Then you ride, sitting in the sled basket under a blanket while the musher drives the team along a forest trail of a few kilometres. If you choose the active option, you stand on the runners and drive a small team of your own on a short loop after a lesson. Back at the kennel there is time with the dogs and a hot lunch. The afternoon is free: rest, look for Alaska Native crafts downtown or, on February and March departures, walk among the ice sculptures of the World Ice Art Championships if the park is open.
Evening
At about 8:30 pm we head out for the third aurora evening at the viewing lodge, coming back by about 11 pm, earlier than before, because the train leaves at about 8:30 the next morning.
Included
- Dog sled ride of a few kilometres at a working kennel outside Fairbanks, with an introduction from the mushers
- Hot lunch at the kennel
- Third aurora evening at the heated viewing lodge, with hot drinks
Optional experiences
- World Ice Art Championships ice park (February and March, when open; entry extra)
Easier option: Ride in the sled basket the whole way while the musher drives.
More active option: A lesson, then stand on the runners and drive a small team of your own on a short loop.
Free time: Afternoon free in Fairbanks
Activity: The sled is low and the trail is bumpy in places; tell the musher about any back or neck problems before you ride.
The Aurora Winter Train to Anchorage
Fairbanks to Anchorage on the Alaska Railroad Aurora Winter Train, past Denali Park and Talkeetna
- Breakfast and lunch
- Stay in Anchorage
- Drive about 18 min
Morning
This is the one early morning of the trip. In winter the Alaska Railroad's Aurora Winter Train runs south from Fairbanks to Anchorage only on Sundays, leaving at about 8:30 am, and our small-group dates are set so that day 5 is a Sunday.
Evening
We leave the hotel at about 7:30 am with suitcases packed the night before. They ride in the baggage car, so keep a day bag with a warm layer. Then come about 12 hours and some 575 km rolling south: across the Tanana River flats at Nenana, through the Alaska Range past the Denali Park station, over the high bridge at Hurricane Gulch and down the Susitna valley past Talkeetna and Wasilla. On a clear day Denali shows above the valley, and moose often stand in the snow beside the track. Lunch in the dining car is included, and the long ride is a chance to sleep off the late nights. We reach Anchorage at about 8 pm, a driver takes you to your hotel, and dinner is free. On private dates, or if the railroad cancels for weather or changes its timetable, we fly instead, about an hour, and gain a free afternoon in Anchorage.
Included
- The Alaska Railroad Aurora Winter Train from Fairbanks to Anchorage
- Lunch in the dining car
- Transfers to the Fairbanks depot and from the Anchorage depot to your hotel
Free time: Dinner free in Anchorage after arriving at about 8 pm
Activity: The train leaves at about 8:30 am. Pack the night before; your suitcase travels in the baggage car, so keep a day bag with a warm layer, a book and a charger.
Turnagain Arm and home
Anchorage along Turnagain Arm to the Alaska Wildlife Conservation Center at Portage, then Anchorage airport
- Breakfast
- Drive about 2.5 h
Morning
After breakfast we drive south out of Anchorage on the Seward Highway, squeezed between the Chugach Mountains and the tidal flats of Turnagain Arm, which in winter fill with grinding ice floes. We stop at Beluga Point for the view down the arm and keep watch on the cliffs above the road, where Dall sheep are sometimes seen. At Portage, at the head of the arm, we spend about an hour at the Alaska Wildlife Conservation Center, a sanctuary for orphaned and injured animals that cannot return to the wild: moose, musk oxen, wood bison, caribou and elk stand out in the snow, while the bears may be denned for the winter. Then we drive back along the arm to Ted Stevens Anchorage International Airport, arriving at about 1:30 pm. Driving is about 165 km in all, a little over two hours. Book a flight leaving after about 3:30 pm; if you are staying on, we drop you downtown instead. Your guide sees you to the airport and checks your flight before saying goodbye.
Included
- Beluga Point on Turnagain Arm
- Alaska Wildlife Conservation Center, Portage
- Drop-off at Ted Stevens Anchorage International Airport (ANC) or downtown Anchorage
Easier option: For a flight before about 3:30 pm, skip Portage: we take you straight from the hotel to the airport.
Activity: Book a flight leaving after about 3:30 pm.
- Fairbanks4 nights
- Anchorage1 night
- Overnight stop
- Day trip
- By boat or train
Wildlife and weather: December and January bring the deepest cold and the shortest days, with under four hours of daylight near the solstice. February is still cold with more light, and March is often clearer and milder, with about twelve hours of daylight by the end of the month. The northern lights can appear on any dark, clear night through the season; cloud, falling snow and a bright moon are what hide or fade them. Moose are often seen along the roads and the railway in winter.
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Before you book
Right for you?
Good for you if you want
- Travellers who want several real chances at the northern lights, not one night
- People curious about deep cold, with the right gear and a warm room to come back to
- A first winter trip to Alaska with dog sledding, hot springs and a long train ride
- Night owls happy to trade early mornings for late evenings under the sky
Not for you if you want
- Anyone who needs a guaranteed aurora: nobody can promise one
- Travellers who dislike late nights or extreme cold
- A ski or snowmobile holiday
- Seeing the Iditarod start, which is in Anchorage on the first weekend of March while this trip is in Fairbanks
Book flights after we confirm your seat.
5 nights
Where you'll stay
Your hotels are named in your trip confirmation.
- Fairbanks4 nights
- Anchorage1 night
One price
What's in the price
Included
Accommodation
- 5 nights: 4 in central Fairbanks and 1 in central Anchorage
- Central hotels of a 3-star-plus standard with private bathrooms; we name each hotel when we confirm your dates
- Rooms shared, or your own for a supplement
Transport
- Pick-up at Fairbanks International Airport (FAI) and drop-off at Ted Stevens Anchorage International Airport (ANC)
- Our own winter-equipped vehicle and driver for the group, with seat belts and spare seats, including the late runs to and from every aurora evening
- The Alaska Railroad Aurora Winter Train from Fairbanks to Anchorage, or a flight of about an hour on dates the train does not run
- A vehicle and driver in Anchorage for Turnagain Arm and the airport
Your guide
- A See Sight Tours guide with the group from day 1 to day 6, including on the train and on every aurora evening
- Local mushers at the kennel and museum guides at the Aurora Ice Museum
Activities
- An arctic parka, insulated boots and mittens lent to you for the trip
- University of Alaska Museum of the North, Fairbanks
- Morris Thompson Cultural and Visitors Center, Fairbanks
- Trans-Alaska Pipeline viewpoint, north of Fairbanks
- Three aurora evenings: two at a heated viewing lodge outside Fairbanks and one at Chena Hot Springs
- Chena Hot Springs day entry and a soak in the rock lake
- Aurora Ice Museum tour, Chena Hot Springs
- Dog sled ride at a working kennel outside Fairbanks
- Beluga Point on Turnagain Arm
- Alaska Wildlife Conservation Center, Portage
Meals
- 5 breakfasts
- 4 lunches: in Fairbanks, at Chena Hot Springs, at the kennel and in the train's dining car
- 2 dinners: the welcome dinner in Fairbanks and dinner at Chena Hot Springs
- Hot drinks on the aurora evenings
Not included
- International flights to Fairbanks and home from Anchorage
- US visa or ESTA where needed
- Travel insurance
- Meals not listed, including dinners on days 2, 4 and 5
- Drinks, including the ice bar at the Aurora Ice Museum
- Tips for your guide, driver and mushers
- Optional activities, such as the World Ice Art Championships, snowmobiling and Arctic Circle flights
- Thermal base layers, hats, liner gloves and swimwear
- Personal expenses
Extras
- Room of your own
- CAD 680 (estimated price)
When you can go
Dates and prices
Pick your start date when you request to book. We check that date and confirm it in your quote.
Prefer to travel without a group or guide? Ask us about arranging hotels, transport and city tours for you to travel independently.
Before you book
Booking terms
Nothing is charged now. Full terms and the cancellation schedule come with your quote, before you accept.
Business addresses
See Sight Tours Trips (USA): 3172 N Rainbow Blvd, Las Vegas, NV 89108, United StatesSee Sight Tours Trips (Canada): 5305 50 Avenue, #1091, Red Deer, AB T4N 4B6, Canada+1-888-961-6584Guest reviews
What guests say
Reviews from guests on our day tours.
Jane
October 06, 2026
5/5
Susan
October 06, 2026
5/5
Tom L
October 05, 2026
5/5
MandL83
October 05, 2026
5/5
Darren O
October 05, 2026
5/5
Good to know
Questions
What does the Alaska northern lights trip price include?
Five nights in central hotels, 5 breakfasts, 4 lunches and 2 dinners, airport transfers, our own vehicle and driver, your See Sight Tours guide, a loaned parka, boots and mittens, three aurora evenings with transport and hot drinks, the dog sled ride, Chena Hot Springs entry and the Aurora Ice Museum, the Museum of the North, the Aurora Winter Train with lunch and the Alaska Wildlife Conservation Center.
Will we see the northern lights?
We cannot promise it, and nobody honestly can. Fairbanks lies under the band where the aurora is most often active, but you need a dark, clear sky, and cloud or falling snow can close in for days. We plan three evenings, two at a heated lodge in the hills and one at Chena Hot Springs, and your guide calls a hopeless night off early.
How cold is it, and what should I pack?
Expect -20 to -30 C from December to February, sometimes colder, and milder days in March. We lend you an arctic parka, insulated boots and mittens, fitted on day 1. Bring thermal base layers (wool is best), a fleece or similar mid layer, a hat that covers your ears, liner gloves, warm socks, a swimsuit and a spare camera battery.
How big is the group?
The small-group trip runs with 7 to 12 guests in one winter-equipped vehicle with seat belts and spare seats, so nobody is squeezed in on the late drives back from the aurora lodge, and everyone fits around one table at dinner.
Who leads the trip?
A See Sight Tours guide travels with the group from the airport on day 1 to the airport on day 6, including on the train and every aurora evening, watching the forecast and the sky for you. Local mushers lead the sled ride and museum guides lead the ice museum tour. We name your guide when we confirm your dates.
How fit do I need to be?
Not very: the trip is graded easy. Walks are short, the dog sled ride is spent sitting in the basket unless you choose to drive, and the soak is optional. The hard parts are the cold and the late nights, as aurora evenings run late. Most mornings start late to make up for it, except the 8:30 am train on day 5, and you can skip any evening.
I am travelling solo. Do I pay a single supplement?
A room of your own for all five nights costs from CAD 680 more, shown before you request to book, with nothing added later. If you would rather share, say so when you request to book and we will try to pair you with another solo traveller; we tell you before anything is confirmed whether a match is possible.
When is the best time to see the northern lights in Alaska?
This trip runs from late November to March. December and January give the longest nights and the deepest cold, with under four hours of daylight near the solstice. February and March are often clearer and milder, with long bright days for the sled ride and still plenty of dark hours for the aurora. The ice sculpture championships also run in late winter.
Why does the train only run on certain days?
In winter the Alaska Railroad runs its Aurora Winter Train on weekends only, north on Saturdays and south from Fairbanks on Sundays, leaving at about 8:30 am and reaching Anchorage at about 8 pm. Our small-group trips start on a Wednesday so day 5 is a Sunday, the trip's one early morning. Private dates, timetable changes or a weather cancellation mean a one-hour flight instead.
How does booking work, and can we choose our own dates?
Pick a small-group start date and request to book; we confirm within 24 hours and no payment is taken until then. Prices are per person sharing, with taxes: the small group starts from CAD 3,995 and the private trip, for your party only on a date you choose, from CAD 7,190. To travel independently, ask us for a quote.
Do I need a visa to visit Alaska?
Alaska is a US state, so US entry rules apply: Canadians need only a valid passport. Most other visitors need a US visa or, for Visa Waiver Program countries, an approved ESTA before they fly. Check the rules for your passport early, as visa appointments can take months in some countries.
Can I see the Iditarod on this trip?
Not on the small-group dates. The Iditarod's ceremonial start is in Anchorage on the first Saturday of March, with the restart in Willow the next day, while this trip is based in Fairbanks. A private departure can be timed to finish in Anchorage that weekend, and we can add hotel nights there on request.
See Sight Tours has been providing travel services across North America since 2006. Operating in 20 cities across Canada and the USA, the company specializes in small group tours that offer personalized, high-quality experiences for travelers.
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