Alaska, United States


Mixing Heritage And Wildlife

Alaska United States

The Alaska Native Heritage Center was highly recommended when I researched Anchorage, Alaska. We arrived in the afternoon and there were other people at the center but it wasn’t too crowded. The tickets were $24.95 for adults and $16.95 for children under age 18. We were welcomed into the center with a live performance of a traditional dance. The dancers were from the local high school and their performance great. They were dedicated and you could tell they were all truly interested in learning more about their heritage. After the dance, they showed the audience how to play traditional games and sports. After watching for a while, we wandered through the rest of the center and ended up outside.

Gracious performance
Gracious performance

There is a pretty large outside area and it all surrounds a glistening lake. You will be able to walk through six replicas of how the natives used to live. They call them little villages and each one is unique. Some of them included traditional clothing like old boots and coats. At each village, there is an employee, who is knowledgeable about that village. They are available to answer any questions you may have. The most popular sight outside was the old whale bones laying in perfect condition. I also loved seeing the totem poles.

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Climbing inside one of the villages
Climbing inside one of the villages

The Alaska Wildlife Conservation Center is the best. I enjoyed my time so much there. It is a non-profit organization whose mission is to conserve Alaska’s beautiful wildlife. The center is located in Portage, Alaska. We arrived on a day where it was lightly raining but it didn’t matter much. Adult admission is $12.50 and children admission is $9.00. The animals are gorgeous and you can get pretty close to them. Their enclosures are large and the animals weren’t shy. The center itself is clean and spacious. I was happy to know the animals were being taken care of properly. Take your time here! The keepers will feed the animals at certain times (the times are posted near the exhibit). Come back at those times and watch the animals eat lunch. This center is a photographers dream. I had so much fun running around with my family.

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Contributed by Sigournee Grano
Sigournee is the co-creator of Roaming Love. She is a travel enthusiast, photographer, writer and wife.