The biggest events in Alaska revolve around the sun and snow. A number of Alaskans, especially those who live in the Interior and the north, believe that the purpose of summer solstice is to compress all the partying encouraged by the light and heat of summer into a single 24-hour period. Fairbanks has at least three “Midnight Sun” activities on solstice.

The summer is also the time for town and citywide celebrations, such as Golden Days in Fairbanks, the Little Norway Festival in Petersburg, and Colony Days in Palmer. There are fishing derbies in the waters off the coastal towns, and athletic competitions, such as triathlons and mountain races, everywhere.

The most famous winter festivals are Anchorage’s Fur Rendezvous and the Iditarod. Every town has some sort of winter carnival that frequently includes dog mushing, a snow sports competition, and accompanying arts and crafts fairs.

Typically, the major public holidays are also a cause for celebration, including Memorial Day (last Mon. in May), July 4th (Independence Day), Labor Day (last Mon. in Sept.), Thanksgiving Day (last Thurs. in Nov.), Christmas, and New Year’s Eve. The happiest days of the year, though, are in mid-October when the big Permanent Fund dividend checks show up in the mailboxes of state residents.

January

• Kodiak — Russian Orthodox Starring Ceremony
• Bethel — Kuskokwim 300
• Seward — Polar Bear Jump Off
• Anchorage — Anchorage Folk Festival

February

• Anchorage — Fur Rendezvous
• Cordova — Iceworm Festival
• Fairbanks — Yukon Quest Sled Dog Race
• Wrangell — Tent City Festival

March

• Anchorage, Nome, and Wasilla — Iditarod Trail Sled Dog Race
• Dillingham — Beaver Roundup Festival
• Fairbanks — World Ice Art Championships
• Kodiak — Pillar Mountain Golf Classic
• Nome — Bering Sea Ice Golf Classic

April

• Bethel — Camai Dance Festival
• Girdwood — Alyeska Spring Carnival
• Juneau — Alaska Folk Festival

May

• Cordova — Copper River Delta Shorebird Festival
• Haines — Great Alaska Craftbeer & Homebrew Festival
• Homer — Kachemak Bay Shorebird Festival and K-Bay SeaFest
• Kodiak — Crab Festival
• Nome — Memorial Day Polar Bear Swim
• Petersburg — Little Norway Festival

June

• Anchorage — Mayor’s Midnight Sun Marathon, Elmendorf Open House and Air Show, Taste of Anchorage
• Fairbanks — Midnight Sun Baseball Game, Yukon 800 Boat Race
• Haines — Kluane to Chilkat International Bike Relay
• Palmer — Colony Days
• Sitka — Summer Music Festival

July

• Delta Junction — Deltana Fair
• Eagle River — Bear Paw Festival
• Fairbanks — Golden Days, World Eskimo-Indian Olympics
• Girdwood — Girdwood Forest Fair
• Homer — KBBI Concert on the Lawn
• Seward — Mt. Marathon Race
• Talkeetna — Moose Dropping Festival

August

• Fairbanks — Tanana Valley Fair
• Haines — Southeast Alaska State Fair
• Ketchikan — Blueberry Arts Festival
• Ninilchik — Kenai Peninsula State Fair
• Palmer — Alaska State Fair
• Seward — Silver Salmon Derby
• Talkeetna — Bluegrass Festival
• Valdez — Gold Rush Days

September

• Kodiak — State Fair and Rodeo
• Kenai, Valdez, Whittier, Wrangell — Silver Salmon Derby

October

• Anchorage — Alaska Federation of Natives Convention
• Sitka — Alaska Day Festival

November

• Anchorage — Great Alaska Shootout
• Haines — Alaska Bald Eagle Festival
• Sitka — Whalefest

December

• Kodiak — Harbor Stars Boat Parade
• Talkeetna — Winterfest