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Get around Anchorage
Get around Anchorage
While not nearly comparable to the size of major world cities (the city itself is several thousand square miles, but much of it is uninhabited and mountainous), the developed part of the Municipality of Anchorage is fairly spread out and not very walkable--with the exception of the compact downtown area.
Most of Anchorage is built on a grid system originally laid out by the railroad: numbered streets run east-west, starting at First Avenue in the extreme north of the city (at the Port and train depot) and ending up in the mid-hundreds at the south edge of town. Lettered streets run north-south, starting at A Street in the middle of downtown and going up to the west; east of A Street, the street names begin with sequential letters and are named after Alaskan cities and towns (Barrow, Cordova, Denali, etc.). This makes finding yourself on a map fairly easy, although the system gets less coherent outside of the downtown area. Note that the Seward Highway becomes Gambell and Ingra streets, while the Glenn Highway becomes 5th and 6th Avenues.
You'll often hear Anchorageites use the following terms when describing areas of town. These areas were originally separate communities that merged as the city grew.
Downtown: the historic core of the city located at the northwestern tip next to the waterfront; home to most of the tourist activities, gift stores, hotels, and the railroad depot
Midtown: the largely commercial area immediately south of Downtown roughly between 15th Avenue and Tudor Road (becoming more industrial south towards Dimond Boulevard)
South Anchorage: Dimond Boulevard and south. Largely suburban and residential with some major commercial development west of the Seward Highway.
West Anchorage: the area along the water southwest of Downtown, encompassing the historic Bootlegger's Cove and Turnagain residential areas and the famous Earthquake Park
Spenard: smashed between Midtown and West Anchorage and spilling over and overlapping the boundaries a bit, it was formerly a separate city and catered to the racier aspects of Anchorage living. It's still a bit of a red-light district, especially along Spenard Road itself. Be careful at night. (The airport is at the extreme west end of the Anchorage peninsula and abuts the southwestern edge of Spenard.)
East Anchorage: everything east of the Seward Highway and north of Tudor Road. Mostly residential; little of interest to the tourist except for the universities, hospitals, and (at the extreme northeastern corner) the Alaska Native Heritage Center.
Hillside: part of South Anchorage, it's everything east of the Seward Highway and south of Abbott Road. Completely residential, and many homes there are on the ritzier side ($350k and up to over $1.5M, where the average home is about $220k). Anchorageites think of the Hillside like Angelenos do of Beverly Hills--if you own a home there, you must be doing well, even if the trees (or your snowmachine trailer) block your view of the lesser people below. Above the Hillside homes is the immense Chugach State Park, popular for easily accessible hiking. (The most-hiked mountain in Alaska, Flattop Mountain, is fairly easily accessed via the Glen Alps parking area at the top of Upper Huffman Road.)
Eagle River, Chugiak, Peters Creek: bedroom suburbs north of the city. Residential only, but they provide access to Chugach State Park, especially Crow Creek Pass and Eklutna Lake.
Bird, Indian, Girdwood: small communities south of the city along the Seward Highway. Very small, tourist-service oriented.
Anchorage's Ted Stevens International Airport is serviced by all of the major national rental car chains as well as a number of independents. A few companies have off-airport locations and may even offer courtesy shuttles (though these shuttles will not pick up from the airport). Renting from these locations avoids the 11-12% airport concession recovery fee and $4.81 per day airport facility fee. If you're renting for more than a few days, it might be worth the hassle to rent your vehicle at an off-airport location, which usually involves taxi rides or shuffling between hotel and rental car courtesy shuttles. Check with each agency or search off-airport rental cars using an online travel agency to see what cost savings may be available.
If you're arriving in the summer, plan ahead, as most rental companies are pretty much sold out from mid-June through the end of August. In the summer, cars are often not available without reservations, and even if they are, be prepared to pay top-dollar for them, especially four-wheel-drive vehicles. Renting a car in Alaska can be more expensive than pretty much anywhere else in the United States, ranging up to (and occasionally even over) $200 per day for a large vehicle sufficient to carry multiple passengers and outdoor gear during the peak season. In the dead of winter, however, you can sometimes grab a vehicle for under $10 per day.
Some of the major car rental companies serving the Anchorage area are:
Alamo (in-terminal): 907-243-3406
Avis (in-terminal and downtown): 907-243-2377
Budget (in-terminal and midtown): 907-243-0150
Dollar (in-terminal and midtown): 907-248-5338
Enterprise (in-terminal, downtown, and midtown): 907-248-5526, 907-277-1600, 907-563-5050
E-Z Rent-A-Car (midtown): 907-562-2292
Hertz (in-terminal and downtown): 907-243-3308, 907-243-4118, 907-562-4595
National (in-terminal): 907-243-3406
Thrifty (in-terminal and midtown): 907-276-2855
Most airport rental agencies are open from about 5:30 or 6:00AM to about 2:00AM (3:00AM at the latest) in the peak summer season. With the number of red-eye flights serving Anchorage, it's especially important to be sure your flight doesn't arrive after your rental agency closes. None of the major chains is open 24 hours, so the only option for after-hours arrivals is a cab or hotel shuttle to an area hotel or to sleep on a bench until the agencies open.
Two main taxi companies serve the Anchorage area: Alaska Yellow Cab (907-222-2222) and Checker Cab (907-276-1234). The airport maintains a taxi stand on the arrivals level. As of late 2007, the municipality-set rate for all taxis is $2 are the flag drop and $2.50 per mile;time based rate $.50 per minute. The average fare to downtown runs about $20 one way.
Many hotels offer also courtesy shuttle vans that stop at the airport near the taxi stand. Several courtesy phone banks are located inside the baggage claim areas.
If you're determined to save money, you can use the PeopleMover, Anchorage's bus system. As of late 2007, fares are $1.75 per trip or $4 for a day pass. Most bus routes have one bus in each direction per hour, but some routes increase it to two buses per hour during peak times. Buses are frequently late. Route 7A of the PeopleMover, Anchorage's bus system, has a stop located at the far south end of the airport taxi stand area. Every hour, there is one bus going downtown and one bus going to the Dimond Center mall in south Anchorage. If you're riding the bus to the airport, note that only Route 7A, not Route 7, stops at the airport. For more information, call the PeopleMover Ride Line at 907-343-6543 at .
Anchorage features an extremely well-developed bike trail system, with over 200 miles of developed trails (120 of which are paved) winding their way throughout the city's parks and three green belts. The popular Tony Knowles Coastal Trail parallels the waterfront from Downtown to Kincaid Park near the airport. Several companies offer bike rentals and trail tours. In the winter, many of the trails are groomed and used as ski trails.
Drivers tend to be aggressive in Anchorage year round, and many of the roads are heavily damaged by severe winter conditions and the use of studded tires. If you are visiting in winter and not used to driving in winter conditions, be very cautious, do not pass, keep excessive following distance, and allow plenty of time to stop. If it's snowing, no matter what time of the day, have your headlights on (the Seward Highway south of Anchorage requires headlights to be on at all times). Keep in mind that a roadway covered with black ice may look completely dry but provide no traction whatsoever.
The Most Frequently Asked Travel Questions about Anchorage
Where To Stay & Best Hotels in Anchorage - updated May 2024
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Anchorage Travel Guide from Wikitravel. Many thanks to all Wikitravel contributors. Text is available under Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0, images are available under various licenses, see each image for details.