When most people think of Alaska, there are probably a few things that spring to their minds: unbeatable natural beauty, frigid temperatures, bears—and did you know that you can see Russia from there?
Actually, no, you can’t. Clearly, these people aren’t actually from Alaska, because if they were, words like adventure, fun, and excitement would spring to mind (as well as beauty, of course.) Here at the
Movoto Real Estate Blog we are all about spreading the gospel of what states are actually like. So today, we’re taking a look at the most exciting places in The Last Frontier State, because, sparsely-populated though it is, there are places here that are actually quite thrilling.
The most exciting of those places? These 10, starting with our winner, Ketchikan:
1. City of Ketchikan
2. City of Fairbanks
3. City of Wasilla
4. City of Palmer
5. City of Kodiak
6. City of Homer
7. CDP of College
8. CDP of Badger
9. City of Bethel
10. City of Kenai
To find out how we came up with this list and what makes each of these places more exciting than the rest, just keep reading.
How We Created This Ranking
Just like our other
Big Deal Lists, we started this exciting journey with a visit to the U.S. Census website in order to make a list of all of the places in the state with populations of 5,000 people or more.
Then, we used the 2010 U.S. Census and business listings to research each place according to the following eight criteria:
- Nightlife per capita (bars, clubs, comedy, etc.)
- Live music venues per capita
- Active life options per capita (parks, outdoor activities, etc.)
- Arts and Entertainment per capita (movie theaters, festivals, galleries, theaters, etc.)
- Fast Food restaurants per capita (the fewer the better)
- Percentage of restaurants that are not fast food (the higher the better)
- Percentage of young residents ages 18 to 34 (the higher the better)
- Population density (the higher the better)
Next, we ranked each of our 22 places with a score from one to 22, according to the above criteria, where the lower the number, the more exciting the place. We averaged these rankings into an overall Big Deal Score, where, again, the lowest score was our most exciting place.
If you’d like to see more than just these top 10, you can head down to the bottom of the post for a look at all 22 places. Otherwise, grab your warmest wooly socks, because we’re heading to our winners to see just what make them so exciting.
Uh, your virtual wooly socks, that is.
1. Ketchikan
Ketchikan may not be the largest of cities in Alaska, but with 1,850 people per square mile, it was easily the most densely-populated in the state. This compact little city was not just filled with people, but young people to boot—24.11 percent of residents were between 18 and 34.
So what does a lot of young people mean? Well, here in Ketchikan it meant the second most nightlife options, the fourth most music venues, the third most active life, and best of all, the most arts listings per capita in the state.
2. Fairbanks
With over 31,000 residents, Fairbanks was not just the largest city in our top 10, but one of the largest in the state. What made Fairbanks more exciting than, say, Anchorage or Juneau? Well, for one, it had the highest percentage of residents between the ages of 18 and 34 in the state, mostly thanks to the University of Alaska—35.8 percent.
Interestingly, even though it had a much higher percentage of young people than our first city, it didn’t have quite the number of nightlife or music venues per capita (ranking seventh in both categories), but what it lacked in nightlife, it more than made up for in restaurants.
With places like The Cookie Jar, The Pump House, and Loose Moose Cafe dotting the streets, Fairbanks not only had quantity, but quality when it came to food.
3. Wasilla
Sure, sure, Wasilla may have gained international recognition in recent years as the city where Sarah Palin was mayor, but as residents know, there is much more to it than that (thank goodness).
Let’s start with active life. With plenty of gyms, yoga studios, and yes, even the Sleepy Hollow Golf Course, it had the second most active life options in the state (golf is totally active!)
It also ranked third overall in the categories of arts, music venues, and nightlife per capita. Sounds pretty good, right? You betcha.
4. Palmer
Palmer’s motto is “
Alaska at its Best,” and when it comes to exciting things to do, we couldn’t agree more.
With places like Vagabond Blues Cafe, Palmer had the second most music venues per capita in the state. It also earned cool points for its number of nightlife options, and even number of young people, ranking fourth in both of these categories.
But if music, bars, and people under 35 aren’t really your thing, feel free to just mill about outside. With 1,152 people per square mile, you’re bound to bump into somebody interesting. (Warning: layer up.)
5. Kodiak
Okay, if you thought Palmer was densely-populated, maybe you just haven’t been to Kodiak yet. This place was the second most packed in the state with 1,758 people per square mile, and we figure, the more people, the more chances for something exciting to happen! (Or for something to happen, period.)
What can all of these packed-in people actually do for fun in Kodiak? Well, by the looks of it, they had plenty of options, especially when it came to being active, checking out art, and, always a crowd-pleaser, going out to eat. It ranked fourth in all of these categories.
6. Homer
Homer may not exactly have had the young population of, say, Fairbanks (in fact, it ranked 20th in this category), but don’t let that fool you. Even with just 18.03 percent of its residents between 18 and 34, this city still managed to rank the very best for its number of nightlife, music venues, and active life listings per capita.
It also had the second most arts listings in the state. Plus, it was home to Two Sisters Bakery. The sticky buns there—pretty much all the reason you need to move to Homer.
7. College
It would have been really disappointing if a place called “College” wasn’t exciting, don’t you think? Luckily, this little area of Fairbanks lives up to its name. As you probably guessed, it ranked well in our analysis for its 34.76 percent of residents between the ages of 18 and 34 (seeing as practically the whole area is populated by University of Alaska Fairbanks students.)
It also had the fifth most dense population in the state, with 690 people per square mile. Sure, it’s no Ketchikan in this regard, but at least it was better than Sterling (72 people per square mile. Good luck meeting someone exciting…)
8. Badger
What’s great about Badger is that it’s close enough to Fairbanks to get in on the action there, but far enough away to be a nice community of its own.
It ranked particularly well for its relatively dense population (ninth in this category), and its high percentage of young people—25.73 percent.
To put this into perspective for you, just take a look at the capital city, Juneau, where just 16.6 percent of residents were between the ages of 18 and 34.
9. Bethel
Bethel may be best known for its annual events, like the Kuskokowim 300, Camai, the traditional Yupik dance festival, and the Bethel Fair, but residents know that this city is plenty exciting year-round. (Also, these events are awesome.)
Not only did Bethel have more restaurants per capita than nearly anywhere else in the state, with places like Dimitri’s and Chopstix, it actually had some delicious food to boot. Plus, the population here was made up of 26 percent people between 18 and 34, and as we all know, young people are just exciting. What? It’s science.
10. Kenai
The final spot on our list goes to none other than Kenai, “The Village with a Past - City with a Future.” And that future is looking pretty exciting, judging by these numbers.
First of all, Kenai had the fifth most active life options per capita out of anywhere in the state. That includes gyms, rec centers, outdoor activities, etc.
It also ranked well for its number of restaurants, arts, and with places like Rainbow Bar, Kenai Joe’s, and Back Door Sports Bar, the sixth most nightlife listings per capita. Not exactly your Miami-style clubs or anything, but, hey, who doesn’t love a dive bar?
More Exciting than A Bear Attack
People think a lot of different things about Alaska—it’s cold (true), beautiful (very true), and, sure, there may be some bears milling about; but dotted around this rugged and sparsely-populated state are cities and places that are actually quite exciting. Places filled with restaurants, nightlife, and young people. Places like the ones above.
If you could use a little more excitement in your life, feel free to get in touch. Aside from creating thrilling lists like this one, we sell houses. Besides, we hear Ketchikan is just lovely—and very exciting—this time of year.
