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Anchorage Holidays, Hotels & Travel Guide
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Anchorage Holidays Overview
Anchorage, Alaska, is a modern city surrounded by 6 mountain ranges. Its population of 227,000 people is more than half of this state’s population. It is by far the largest city in this state, which is bordered by northwestern Canada. All of the state is on US Standard Time. The city limits cover 782 hectares of territory. This population centre sits on the Cook Inlet in the south central part of Alaska. The tallest mountain in North America, Mount McKinley, is 208 km from here. In 1867, Russia sold Alaska to the US. Anchorage became a frontier town after the 1915 allotment of funds for an Alaska Railroad with construction operations based here. By 1920, Anchorage had incorporated. In 1959 Alaska became a state. By the 1990s, tourism began to grow, pushing the development of facilities with local oil revenue.
Luxury hotels, bed & breakfasts and wilderness camping are the range of lodging options for visitors. The Mat-Su Valley to the north is the site of several lakeside resort hotels and fishing lodges. While it does get cold in winter, the average summer temperature here is 18.3 degrees Celsius.
The population is 70% Anglo American and 10% Native American. Roughly 6% is of African American descent and 6% Latin American. The remainder is of other groups and mixed descent. The Dena'ina people are aboriginal to the area of Anchorage.
The city is nicknamed the City of Lights and Flowers. There are 223 parks and 402.34 km of trails and green spaces linking neighborhoods with the surrounding natural expanse. Several scenic roads depart from this city. It is also a jumping off point for exploration of the nearby wilderness over road or by train on the Alaska Railroad, which offers package tours as well as basic fares.
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Anchorage
holidays - Top Events
Since 1989, the Anchorage Folk Festival has brought 2 weeks of free music, dance and festivities to this city every January. Performing art workshops are also organised free of charge as part of this annual event. Paid dance parties during the week help to fund the festival activities. (http://www.anchoragefolkfestival.org/)
Since the year 2000, an International Film Festival has been held for 2 weeks of December in this city. At least 150 works are screened each year in venues around the city. Animated films, documentaries and creative work of feature, short and super short length are all admitted to this annual festival. (http://anchoragefilmfestival.org/2009/)
From mid-May through mid-September, the Anchorage Market & Festival is held every Saturday and Sunday with 300 outdoor vendors in the centre of the downtown. Fresh produce and local crafts and goods from around the world can be found here. There is a dining area as well as live performances throughout each festival weekend for 4 months of every year. (http://www.anchoragemarkets.com/main.html)
As with any major US city, Gay Pride Day in June is celebrated with the local PrideFest. Six hours of performances, food and shopping are organised on the street. This is a free activity, although donations are accepted. The festival follows the Annual Gay Pride Parade. (http://www.anchoragepride.com/festival.htm)
Late winter is the traditional time for the Alaska Fur Rendezvous. This annual event dates back to the 1940s. While its focus is dog sled competition, it has developed into an ongoing flurry of activities around town for 1 and a half weeks of February and March. (http://www.furrondy.net/)
Anchorage
holidays - How to Get There
American Airlines offers flights from Sydney (SYD) to this destination (ANC) with lengthy layovers. The travel time is estimated at 41 hours and 35 minutes. Northwest Airlines and Delta offer travel from Sydney to this location in 28 hours and 12 minutes for their shortest travel. US Airways also offers a 28 hours estimated travel time.
Australians in this location can receive the nearest US based consular assistance from the Consulate-General in San Francisco, California. (http://www.usa.embassy.gov.au/whwh/SanFranCG.html)
http://www.usa.embassy.gov.au/
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