Fairbanks, Alaska (AK) - Survey says: Fairbanks supports tourism!

That was one of the main takeaways in a visitor industry resident sentiment survey Explore Fairbanks recently commissioned with Alaska-based research firm McKinley Research Group, LLC. The firm conducted the telephone survey in mid-January, speaking with 505 people throughout the Fairbanks North Star Borough. Respondents were asked a series of questions on how they felt about the visitor industry in Fairbanks as well as on the overall quality of life in the borough. Among the main findings:

  • Residents were asked how supportive or opposed they were to the visitor industry in the Fairbanks region. Nine out of 10 (89%) were either very supportive or supportive, with 4% opposed or very opposed, and 8% saying they don’t know.
  • Asked about overall visitor industry impacts on Fairbanks, 72% of the respondents said there was a positive impact, 2% said there was a negative impact, and 21% said there were both positive and negative impacts.
  • Those who said there were both positive and negative impacts were asked whether positive impacts outweighed negative, 69% said the positive impacts outweighed the negative.
  • When asked what the preference was for the number of future visitors to the Fairbanks area, 48% said slightly or much higher, 42% said to keep it the same, and 4% said slightly or much lower.

“Fairbanks residents expressed very strong support for the visitor industry, and low levels of impacts on a household level, particularly in comparison to other community surveys we've done regarding tourism,” said Heather Haugland, Vice President of McKinley Research.

“It’s encouraging to see that Fairbanks area residents understand the vital role tourism plays in our local economy and enhancing the quality of life for our community,” said Explore Fairbanks President and CEO Scott McCrea. “This positive sentiment reinforces the importance of continuing to invest in and promote our year-round destination.”

Other findings include:

  • When asked about short-term rentals such as those listed by Airbnb in Fairbanks, 50% said that short-term rentals are positive overall for the Fairbanks economy because they increase lodging capacity and generate revenues, while 35% said they were negative overall because they decrease housing availability for residents and drive up housing prices.
  • On the question of how they would rate the overall quality of life in the community on a scale of 1 to 10, with 1 meaning “very poor” and 10 meaning “very good”, 55% were in the 8-10 range, 42% in the 4-7 range, and 3% in the 1-3 range. Eight had the highest response at 32%.

McCrea said the survey also had open-ended questions that allowed respondents to comment on the industry's other positive and negative impacts and offer suggestions for improvement. Those suggestions included improving navigation and signage, expanding recreation opportunities, and improving infrastructure to better accommodate the needs of locals and visitors.

“We’re grateful for that type of feedback as well,” said McCrea. “Resident input is vital as we work together to ensure tourism continues to benefit both visitors and those who call Fairbanks their home.”