Moving to Alaska from Boston, MA (Fairbanks, Kodiak: apartments, rentals, how much)

[danner21]

Hey guys!

I will be moving to Fairbanks, AK next month and I'm just looking for as much info/advice as possible

My boyfriend lives up there already; he's lived in Kodiak, AK for the past 4 years and I'm finally going to move up there with him and we're going to relocate to Fairbanks. I'm definately ready for the adventure (I know it's going to be one). I'm also driving up there from Boston, any advice on what routes to take/avoid? Any idea how much tolls across the country will cost?
-I drive a MINI Cooper S; will this car survive the landscape/winters up there?
-What is UAF like? I'm almost 20 and we both plan on going to school as well.
-How're gas prices/apartment rentals/cost of living?
-Are there any areas of the city we should AVOID?
-Who gets the best cell phone service? (I work for AT&T Wireless!)

Any info/advice is more than welcome, and if there's anything I should know before making the move, fill me in! I really appreciate it!

[FloridaKash]

Originally Posted by danner21

Hey guys!

I will be moving to Fairbanks, AK next month and I'm just looking for as much info/advice as possible

My boyfriend lives up there already; he's lived in Kodiak, AK for the past 4 years and I'm finally going to move up there with him and we're going to relocate to Fairbanks. I'm definately ready for the adventure (I know it's going to be one). I'm also driving up there from Boston, any advice on what routes to take/avoid? Any idea how much tolls across the country will cost?
-I drive a MINI Cooper S; will this car survive the landscape/winters up there? Just buy studs and get a block heater installed. You'll be fine most of the time. Hope your BF has something with 4 wheel drive incase you need it.
-What is UAF like? I'm almost 20 and we both plan on going to school as well. Check out their website. They are a great school for Geology and probably the best campus in the state. It is small.
-How're gas prices/apartment rentals/cost of living? Search Craigslist to get an idea on how much a place that you would like will cost. Cost of living is high. You can search google for cost of living comparison to get an idea. Food and Gas is expensive. Look at Gas Buddy to get an idea what gas prices are right now. You can go to Safeway.com to look at their current grocery ad.
-Are there any areas of the city we should AVOID? There are, but I am not familiar with Fairbanks enough to provide accurate information on this.
-Who gets the best cell phone service? (I work for AT&T Wireless!) ACS (Alaska Communications Systems. ACSalaska.com)

Any info/advice is more than welcome, and if there's anything I should know before making the move, fill me in! I really appreciate it!

Go for it, its a nice little town. Make sure you check out Chena Hotsprings which is close by and one of the world's best hotsprings. Try to find a place where heat is included. If it is oil heat and you have to pay for it, figure an additional $200/mo in the coldest months. Good Luck!

[RayinAK]

Your Mini will be fine, but you will have to winterize it (block heater, battery blanket, oil pan heater). This will cost you around $350.00 at some of the local shops in Fairbanks. You can buy studded tires for winter driving if you like, which shouldn't be too expensive at Sam's Club or Walmart (around $50.00 per tire size 13").

UAF is the largest campus in Alaska, and the one with the most engineering and space programs, too. It's very expensive living in Fairbanks, but both of you can live on campus and save some cash at least on fuel and such. A one-bedroom decent apartment will probably cost you around $900.00 per month, but most are furnished, although a security deposit will be asked of you (about a month worth of rent money). I would avoid living around South Cushman, although its relatively safe during the day.

Cell phone service: while you can have some of the ones from the lower-48 States, the local ones offer more coverage. But AT&T also offers good coverage for the iPhone and other telephones. The local companies are: ACS, and GCI, and GVEA. ACS charges around $48.00 per month for a cell phone and 300 air minutes. If you want more time, then the cost goes up. It sounds as if AT&T should be the best for you (?). AT&T bought one of the local companies (Cellular One), and has an office in North Pole, and probably in Fairbanks. A lot of students and friends of mine use iPhones.

Gasoline costs around $3.50 per gallon in Fairbanks, but some stores offer discounts (Sam's Club, Fred Mayer, and Safeway).

Advise? Don't eat the yellow snow

[heathen]

I live in Delta Junction, 100 miles SE of Fairbanks, but I'm up there all the time, so I'll pitch in.

Mini Cooper should be fine as long as you live on a road that sees regular plowing and sanding. It's too cold here in the interior for salt to be effective, so roads are snowcovered Nov. - Feb. at least, and part of the time Oct. - April. Many go without studs here but I think they're worthwhile, especially without 4-wheel drive.

I regret waiting until after college to come here. From what I can tell, UAF looks like a great campus, small but "complete." UAA folks will get grumpy, but it's the only legit university in the state.

If you're really up for an adventure, rent a dry cabin (no running water, usually wood heat). This way of life will knock roughly $150 off your rent, all else being equal (size, location, general niceness). You may be surprized how common it is, especially among college students. Public showers are available at the university.

Food and gas are expensive, but not ridiculous. I was ready for worse when I moved here.

Unfortunately Fairbanks isn't a particularly attractive town, but it's generally pretty safe. I can't think of any area dangerous enough that you'd really want to avoid it, but north/west (around the university) is generally more pleasant than south/east. South Cushman is a pretty bad neighborhood I guess. The bars are generally rougher than in most other towns as well, but the university area's pretty tame.

I have ACS, but AT&T have been greatly improving their service in recent years, at least around where I live. Definetely don't drop them until you get here and check it out.



Here's a whole bunch of pretty pictures:

Fairbanks: Professional Alaska Stock Photography and Alaska pictures. Search results for "fairbanks alaska photos". (http://www.alaskaphotographics.com/cgi-bin/script.pl?op=search&keywords=fairbanks+alaska+phot os - broken link)

Interior Alaska: Professional Alaska Stock Photography and Alaska pictures. Search results for "interior alaska photos". (http://www.alaskaphotographics.com/cgi-bin/script.pl?op=search&keywords=interior+alaska+photo s - broken link)

[RayinAK]

I drive a Civic Si 50 miles round trip each day, and most winters without studded tires, just all season. One of my neighbors drives her Mini Cooper to UAF each day, and there are a whole bunch of even smaller cars being driven around Fairbanks each day (what's the smallest Toyota model?). A lady who calls 970 AM each morning used to drive her minuscule Toyota from Harding Lake to Fairbanks each day. She retired a few weeks ago, however. All-wheel drive may be better, but most cars in the ditch during the winter months are all-wheel drive (a lot of pickups, and some SUV's).

I remember last summer as I stood in front of a red light, on a two-lane left turn, and there comes my neighbor on her Mini on the right lane. I knew that she (a cute teenager) wanted to leave everybody in the dust, and I thought, "there is not way that you are going to get away with that." The light changed, and I streaked ahead...(and so I thought). The kid passed me like I was standing still, and looked at me on her rearview mirror with a smile from ear to ear. I wasn't smiling, of course

[UAFBoundYankee]

Originally Posted by danner21

Hey guys!

I will be moving to Fairbanks, AK next month and I'm just looking for as much info/advice as possible

My boyfriend lives up there already; he's lived in Kodiak, AK for the past 4 years and I'm finally going to move up there with him and we're going to relocate to Fairbanks. I'm definately ready for the adventure (I know it's going to be one). I'm also driving up there from Boston, any advice on what routes to take/avoid? Any idea how much tolls across the country will cost?
-I drive a MINI Cooper S; will this car survive the landscape/winters up there?
-What is UAF like? I'm almost 20 and we both plan on going to school as well.
-How're gas prices/apartment rentals/cost of living?
-Are there any areas of the city we should AVOID?
-Who gets the best cell phone service? (I work for AT&T Wireless!)

Any info/advice is more than welcome, and if there's anything I should know before making the move, fill me in! I really appreciate it!

Hiya, Danner... I'm also moving to Fairbanks to attend UAF this Fall. The thing I like most about UAF (from reading the school's site and such) is that it appears to be an actual University setting, but with a small college atmosphere. There's an 11:1 Faculty/Student ratio. It also seems like they provide everything you need to be successful at school. From what I hear, the school is known for it's Science-based studies. Heard lots of good things about the Civil Engineering program, and the Fisheries program (which is what I plan to major in). From what I've been reading, seems the prices may be about the same as Boston (Boston is a high Cost of Living area, eh?), so you shouldn't be too much in shock. lol The school also has family apartments, so you can look into that as well. Seems everything's already been answered, so I'll sit back and watch how this thread goes. =) Good luck with your move, and hope to see you at UAF this Fall.

[AKStafford]

The MILEPOST: Alaska Travel Guide and Trip Planner Don't head up the highway without it.

[starlite9]

You will enjoy your time here as long as you keep an open mind and realize there is a lot of stuff that isn't like "Home". Winters the days are short, but summer is daylight all night too... Nice balance.

You will need to get a really nice camera and take lots of photos on the Al-Can, then post them so we can see how you enjoyed your adventure!

Good luck!

[danner21]

Thanks guys! I'm really excited about this trip. I love to take pictures, and I have a great DSLR to photograph the entire trip I'm working on winterizing my MINI too; look out! I know that I'm going to enjoy Alaska. It's going to be such an experience! I just worry about the living situations/cost of living (mainly). I've also been searching Craigslist for apartments and such; it's just hard moving without seeing them first!

Anything else I should know before I move? Anything else I SHOULD/SHOULDN'T do before moving?

Thanks sooooo much guys!

[starlite9]

If you are coming up this summer, I wouldn't worry about winterizing your Mini until you get here. There may be good mechanics there, but they aren't going to know what to install or how since it isn't something that they do there. You will have all summer to get it done.

One good think is to have your oil changed to Mobil one Synthetic oil. Not only will you get better mileage, your engine will start a lot easier in the colder temps and last a lot longer.