Big news out of the Interior: Fairbanks has officially signed on to host the 2028 Arctic Winter Games. Come March 2028, athletes, coaches, families, and fans from across the circumpolar north will land in Fairbanks, Alaska, for one of the biggest sport and culture events in the region. If you’re competing, cheering, volunteering, or just looking for a good reason to visit Alaska, here’s what to know, and how Borealis Basecamp fits into your trip.
What Are the Arctic Winter Games?
The Arctic Winter Games bring together athletes from northern regions to compete, connect, and celebrate. Events range from familiar winter sports like hockey and cross-country skiing to Arctic Sports and Dene Games rooted in Indigenous tradition. In the one-foot high kick, for example, a competitor leaps at a target hanging overhead, strikes it with one foot, and has to land on that same foot. These are contests of strength, balance, and timing that have been passed down for generations.
Alongside the competition runs a culture program, where participants share traditional games, art, and stories from their home communities. Part athletic showcase, part cultural exchange. The Games happen every two years, rotating among Arctic communities.
Fairbanks Has Done This Before
This isn’t Fairbanks’ first time at the starting line. The city hosted the Arctic Winter Games in 1982, 1988, and 2014, so there’s real experience behind the announcement.
Fairbanks knows how to welcome a crowd and run a smooth event. It also knows how to show visitors what the Interior does best: unfussy hospitality, wide-open winter country, and a sky that keeps performing long after the last event of the day.
What to Expect in March 2028
The event typically welcomes roughly 2,000 participants, athletes plus coaches and cultural performers, with thousands more family members, volunteers, and spectators along for the ride. Though not yet confirmed for 2028, past games in Fairbanks spread across the Carlson Center, the Big Dipper Ice Arena, Birch Hill Recreation Area, school gyms, and private facilities for curling and downhill skiing.
For a week in March 2028, Fairbanks will feel like the center of the northern sporting world. Hotels will fill up fast, restaurants will be busy, and the whole town will have a buzz to it, the kind that only shows up when the north lands on your doorstep. If you’re planning to be part of it, now is a good time to think about where you’ll stay, and what you’ll do once the closing ceremony wraps.
Your Basecamp Adventure Before or After the Big Event
That’s where we come in. Borealis Basecamp sits 25 miles north of Fairbanks, about a 45-minute drive. It is a great add-on to the games experience either before or after the event.
March also lands in a strong stretch of aurora season, which runs from late August through mid-April. Long dark hours, often-clear skies, and nights that aren’t quite as cold as midwinter. So a trip built around the Games doesn’t have to end when the competition does. Add a night or two on either side, and you can watch for the northern lights from bed, through the glass ceiling of an Igloo or the floor-to-ceiling windows of a Cube.
The lights are never guaranteed. They run on solar activity and clear skies, and nobody can promise either one. What we can promise is that you won’t sleep through them. Our staff makes an aurora wake-up call, so when the sky goes green at 1 a.m., someone lets you know.
We’re also built for groups. Traveling with a team, a family, or a whole crew of fans? Our Cube Suites sleep up to five, which works well for a family cheering on a young athlete, or a group splitting the cost of an Alaska trip. We also offer an option of adjoining Cubes which can sleep up to six people.
Come to compete, come to cheer, and end each day somewhere quiet with a wide view north.
Plan Ahead
March 2028 sounds far off. But Games this size fill host-city lodging quickly, especially anywhere within easy reach of the venues. If you already know you’ll be in Fairbanks for the 2028 Arctic Winter Games, it’s worth reserving your stay early. That goes double if you want extra nights on either side for the aurora, since our most popular dates tend to book out well ahead of any big Fairbanks event.
Fairbanks earning the 2028 Games is a big moment for the whole Interior, and we’re glad to help welcome the north back to our corner of Alaska. Come for the Games. Stay for the sky.
Ready to plan your stay? Explore our packages and reserve your basecamp for the 2028 Arctic Winter Games.