Alaska Native Heritage Center, Anchorage (must see)

The Alaska Native Heritage Center (ANHC) in Anchorage stands as a unique cultural and educational institution dedicated to preserving and promoting the heritage of Alaska's 11 major Native cultural groups: Athabascan, Eyak, Tlingit, Haida, Tsimshian, Unangax (Aleut), Alutiiq, Yup'ik, Cup'ik, Siberian Yupik, and Inupiaq. Since its opening in 1999, the Center has served as a hub for sharing traditions and fostering cultural observance among Alaska Natives of all ages.

Founded by the Alaska Federation of Natives in 1987 and established as a nonprofit in 1989, the Alaska Native Heritage Center spans 26 acres, just 10 miles from Anchorage. Visitors can experience Alaska Native cultures through traditional dancing, Native Games, and storytelling at The Gathering Place, rotating exhibits and crafts in the Hall of Cultures, and films on Native history, including the documentary Stories Given, Stories Shared.

A walk through the Center’s grounds reveals six life-sized Native dwellings encircling Lake Tiulana, each representing the traditional lifestyles of Alaska’s diverse Native communities, such as the Southeast Alaska Longhouse. Inside this large, wooden structure with its iconic smoke hole, four carved posts symbolize respect for family, culture, environment, and self. Youth interns often guide tours of these dwellings, offering insights into daily life and showcasing artifacts that demonstrate traditional skills.

For a hands-on experience, visitors are welcome to join dancers, meet Alaska Native artists, and view intricate crafts like birch bark baskets, seal hide tunics, and moose hide boots. The Center’s Ch'k'iqadi Gallery features works by Native artisans, and the D’eshchin Café provides a taste of Alaska Native flavors, rounding out a visit that immerses guests in Alaska’s living, vibrant Indigenous cultures.