Wedding Day Information

Hello! Here, we have information about our wedding (now confirmed!) to be on the 4th of August 2012 (Saturday). 

For some guests, eighteen months may look too far in the future to even think about, but we also realize many people from the UK and Lower 48 may need the time to make plans for such a faraway trip. At the top left of this page or on the right side, click the "follow" link to be updated with wedding/planning information via email.


I asked Deborah to marry me during the 2010 Christmas holiday and she said "You know I will" (later, I confirmed this really did mean "yes"). I proposed on a hillside near my uncle's cabin after an arduous hike in deep snow through the woods. After climbing the hill, we sledded down to the bottom, checked out the large oil pipeline, and returned to the cabin for hot cups of spicy chai. A short story of the ring can be read here - it was made by a local jeweler with Alaskan gold and a Canadian diamond.




We will be wed at Saint Raphael Catholic Church,  at 2.00 pm, and the reception will be held at the Dog Musher's Hall about five miles away (directly after the service for dinner guests, and from 7.00 for evening guests). We realize the difficulty this location may cause, but we hope that if you do intend to come, we will be able to help make it into a great holiday. Interior Alaska is a wonderful place, and there is a great variety of things to see and do, if you wish. 


Fairbanks is located in the Tanana Valley, in the heart of Alaska, with a rich, gold mining past (just ask me!). It was founded after a chance encounter between a merchant whose boat was stuck on a sandbar, and an Italian prospector who discovered gold, but was out of provisions. Although our history is barely over a hundred years old, Fairbanks is the second largest city in Alaska (90,000), home to the first (and best) university, and has a record low temperature of   -66 (-54C). Luckily, the average in August is about 56 (13C)!

Here are some links about Fairbanks:

• http://www.alaskatravel.com/fairbanks/ 
• http://wikitravel.org/en/Fairbanks
• http://explorefairbanks.com/
• http://ci.fairbanks.ak.us/
• http://www.newsminer.com/
• http://fairbanks-alaska.com/

Registry/ Gifts

As you know, our lifestyle is, and will remain a little complicated! Since we both travel so much and are not sure yet where we will settle down, we felt it made little sense to have an official registry. For those who would like to get us something that we can keep, use and remember you by, we do have a list with amazon - (http://www.amazon.com/gp/registry/wedding/4XVR9K1TL0JJ). However, what we would greatly appreciate is help in saving for the future, when (hopefully!) we have our own home, and will settle there. A cheque in either of our names, in $ or £ would go straight into our savings account, and be very gratefully received! You can email us at dylananddeborah@gmail.com if you have any questions about this.  If you are travelling from across the world to come to the wedding, please don’t even consider a gift, and believe that your presence alone is the best and only gift that we need.

Places to Eat in Fairbanks

For Breakfast, Brunch, and Lunch….

The Cookie Jar	Cute, good food, located in Fairbanks off College Rd.
Sourdough Sams	Near University; a Fairbanks’ favorite rebuilt after fire in 2009
The Chowder House	Fantastic little sandwich and quiche place with good milkshakes
Deb’s Café	Big, greasy American-style joint in Industrial area; lots of tough guys and locals
The Bakery	Another long-time popular diner located on College Rd.
Pike’s Landing	Along the river besides the Airport, an expensive but special Sunday brunch
Little Saigon	Bizarre, but cheap and wonderful Vietnamese living room/eatery along College Rd

Dinner Favorites….

The Turtle Club	The best, and BIGGEST prime rib steaks, etc; in beautiful downtown Fox; miners’ fav.
Silver Gulch Brewery	Also in Fox; good beer and good pub meals
Two Rivers	16 miles from Fairbanks, but very good Alaskan cuisine and hospitality
Gambardellas	Downtown Italian with good wine selection
The Pump House	Waterfront restaurant with great Alaskan food, but slow service
Pike’s Landing	Another riverside restaurant besides the Airport with good meals
Wolf Run	Hidden behind busy roads, a delicious upscale place for dinner or dessert
Taco Azteca	Along Airport Rd., decent and affordable Mexican

In addition, Fairbanks hosts a ridiculous 13 Thai restaurants located around town. Fairbanksan’s love Thai food, and I recommend: Thai House (downtown), Sweet Basil (S. Cushman), Bahn Thai (downtown), and Lemongrass. There’s also plenty of Chinese, Mexican, fast food and other places to fill your bellies.

Bars and Going Out…

Silver Gulch Brewery	Fairbanks’ only brewery with a nice atmosphere
The Howling Dog	Across the street, a traditional Fairbanks bar and McFarlane family favorite
Ivory Jack’s	Classic Fairbanks bar and dog mushers’ favorite along Goldstream Rd.
Lavelle’s	Downtown and upscale and large wine selection

Accomodation in Fairbanks

Here is a table of some of your options for accommodation.  Remember a lot of these places might do long stay rates so it is worth contacting them to ask if you will be in town for more than a couple of nights.  The rates indicate (generally) 2 people per room, unless otherwise stated. We have divided them into 'close to us' (i.e. close to our house, 15 minutes outside of town), 'Fox' (a small community close to us and outside of Fairbanks, with great food and a brewery!), 'Downtown', and 'Out of Town' (i.e. more than a 15 minute drive to Fairbanks).

There are also places in town to camp or park an RV, and if you are really trying to save money get in touch with us and we can talk about a few options for staying with friends, or in dry cabins (no running water).

	B&B/ night	Cabin- Self Catered/ night	Website	Info
Close to Us
Lizzie’s Nest	$80	$85	www.lizziesnest.com	SC with kitchenette (not full kitchen)
3 Bears B&B	$75-85		907 457 2449	Individual cabins, but not SC
Fox
Fox Creek B&B	$68-148 (2-5 ppl)		www.foxcreekalaska.com
Pedro’s Hide-a-way	$225/ $1295/ week (up to 6 ppl)		www.pedroshideaway.com	Looks very nice- good for a small group traveling together
Downtown
A Moose in the Garden	$89 up		www.amooseinthegarden.com
7 Gables Inn	$50-130 (4ppl), $120-200 (suites)	$85-180	www.7gablesinn.com	Some of the apartments are not on the main location
Fairbanks Hostel	$25 (per ppn), $60-75 (private)		www.fairbankshostel.com	Some with kitchens.  Weekly rates on demand
Dale and Jo	$167	$297 (4ppl)	www.daleandjo.com
Alaska Heritage House	$89-159	$199 (4ppl)	www.alaskaheritagehouse.com	Apartment with kitchen.  Looks to have a lot of local character!
Glacier House Hostel	$21.60 (per ppn)		www.hostelfairbanksalaska.com	With shared hostel facilities incl. kitchen. Camping possible.
Fairbanks B&B	$70-90		907 452 4967
Front Street Hostel	$25-39		907 452 6523/ lankasteve@yahoo.com	Some private facilities available
All Seasons Inn	$179-215		www.allseasonsinn.com
5 Star Log Cabins		$160- 200 (up to 4)	www.5starlogcabins.com	7th night free; bedroom, bath, kitchen, loft studio
King’s Country B&B	$89-139		www.kingscountrybb.net
Sophie Station/ Bridgewater/ Wedgewood	$89-245	On request	www.fountainheadhotels.com	The large group of hotels in Fairbanks, self-catering apartments available.  More scenic than the other ‘big’ hotels in the town.
Out of Town
Riverbend B&B log cabins		$169-295 (2-6 ppl)	www.riverbendlogcabins.com	20-30 minute drive out of town (our side of town). Looks very nice!
Earthtone Huskies	?		www.earthtonehuskies.com	30 minutes outside Fairbanks. Private rustic cabins, no kitchen or private bathroom
Taste of Alaska Lodge	$185	$235 Log house (2-4 ppl), $205 Annex	www.atasteofalaska.com	20-30 minutes outside Fairbanks (our side of town) Looks beautiful
Gram’s Cabin B&B		$100-200 (up to 4 ppl)	www.gramscabin.com	25 minutes out of Fairbanks (not our side of town), with bathroom and kitchenette
Chandalar Ranch	$30 hostel, $60-140 private room (up to 4)	$60-105 (3ppl), $100 (remote cabin- access by horse)	www.chandalarranchalaska.com	30 minutes outside Fairbanks (our side of town), organize different tours and outdoor trips
Chena Lake Cabins		$108-135 (4 ppl)	www.chenalakecabins.com	30 minutes outside Fairbanks.  Dry Cabins. Outdoor activities.

Travelling to Fairbanks?

If you are thinking of coming to Alaska for a holiday (and our wedding!) we are going to try to do what we can to help you plan your trip.  We will update this section as we get more information, but right now we can tell you;

- If you are flying from Europe, make sure to check out Condor.  They fly direct from Frankfurt over the north pole, which will almost half your journey time.  They are also, often the cheapest. Other options fly through Seattle (although you may well have another layover first), which also seems like a nice place if you're thinking of a stop off along the way.

- By Jan 2012 we will be able to confirm a car rental deal for any of our guests to get a reduced price from a local company - we will put the details up when this is organized

- We have a couple of accommodation options for people who want to try to save some cash and stay in spare cabins owned by friends in Alaska whilst they are in Fairbanks.  Get in touch if you want us to try to fix you up, although some of these will be 'dry' cabins (i.e. no running water!).

- For anyone else thinking of staying in Fairbanks for a while, we will do some 'scouting' this summer and try to find some places to recommend for you.

In the meantime, if you want any help in finding information about your travel plans, or want holiday suggestions, just get in touch.  My personal favorite...is to charter a fishing trip in Homer or Valdez to go and catch fresh salmon and halibut in the sea (schedule this for the end of your trip and they will package it so that you can check all your fish in as extra luggage and take it home to feed you for the year!)