Planning a Trip

Getting There

Flying is the only way to get to Nome. Alaska Airlines (tel. 800/252-7522; www.alaskaair.com) flies 90 minutes by jet direct from Anchorage or with a brief hop from Kotzebue. Prices are around $450 round-trip and up. Many visitors come on escorted tour packages sold by Alaska Airlines Vacations (tel. 866/500-5511; www.alaskaairalaska.com). As a day trip, a tour package costs around $500; staying overnight on the package costs around $570 per person, double occupancy.

All taxis operate according to a standard price schedule you can get from the visitor center. A ride to town from the airport is $5. There are three companies, including Louie's Cab (tel. 907/443-6000).

Visitor Information

The Nome Convention and Visitors Bureau, Front and Division streets (P.O. Box 240), Nome, AK 99762 (tel. 907/443-6624; www.nomealaska.org/vc), provides maps and detailed information for diverse interests. The office is open from late May to mid-September daily from 9am to 9pm, the balance of the year Monday through Friday from 9am to 6pm.

The Bering Land Bridge National Preserve Headquarters, 214 Front St. (P.O. Box 220), Nome, AK 99762 (tel. 907/443-2522; www.nps.gov/bela), is a good source of outdoors information from the rangers who staff a desk and are responsible for a rarely visited 2.7-million-acre national park unit, which covers much of the Seward Peninsula north of the Nome road system.

Also check the Nome Nugget website, at www.nomenugget.com, a real window into the community.

Getting Around

The town is a street grid along the ocean. Front Street follows the sea wall, 1st Avenue is a block back, and so on. A harbor is at the north end of town, and the gold-bearing beach is to the south. You can mostly walk to see this area. Three roads branch out from Nome. I've described them below, under "Venturing Beyond Town By Road." To get out on the roads, you need to take a tour or rent a car, or bring a bike with you.

Several local car rental agencies operate in town; the visitor center maintains a list, with rates. Stampede Rent-A-Car, 302 E. Front St. (tel. 800/354-4606 or 907/443-3838), charges $95 to $150 for SUVs and vans. The same people operate the Aurora Inn.

Fast Facts

Bank -- Wells Fargo, with an ATM, is at 250 Front St.

Hospital -- Norton Sound Regional is at 5th Avenue and Bering Street (tel. 907/443-3311).

Internet Access -- Nome Public Library is at 200 Front St. (tel. 907/443-6626).

Police -- At Bering Street and 4th Avenue (tel. 907/443-5262).

Post Office -- At Front Street and Federal Way.

Taxes -- The sales tax is 5%; the tax on rooms totals 8%.

Special Events

The biggest event of the year is the Iditarod Trail Sled Dog Race (tel. 907/376-5155; www.iditarod.com), a marathon of more than 1,000 miles that ends in Nome in mid-March. The sled dog racers, world media, and international visitors descend on the town for a few days of madness, with lots of community events planned. The activities last most of the month; contact the Nome visitor center, or download the calendar from www.nomealaska.org/vc.

One of the March Iditarod events, showcasing Nome's well-developed sense of humor, is the Bering Sea Ice Golf Classic (tel. 907/443-6624) -- six holes are set up on the sea ice. The pressure ridges constitute a bad lie. Various similar silly events take place all year (visit www.nomealaska.org/vc), including the Polar Bear Swim, which happens around June 21 as part of the Midnight Sun Festival (tel. 907/443-5535). The festival celebrates the summer solstice, when Nome gets more than 22 hours of direct sunlight. A parade, hand-made raft race, folk festival, bank holdup, and other events headline the festival. Winners of the raft race get possession for a year of the fur-lined honey bucket (known in some places as a chamber pot).