Occasionally, during tourist season, you can see some of the younger population showing through the gray hair. In recent years, more and more young people have been coming to Alaska, and Visit Anchorage has worked hard to maintain this trend.

Julie Saupe, president and CEO of Visit Anchorage, said, “I think there's been an increase in interest across the country in walking, biking and just being in public spaces. So, of course, we're perfectly positioned to meet that interest and demand.”

To continue to attract a younger audience, several projects are being planned, such as work on the Mushing District or the Alaska Long Trail.

Julie continued, “We just received funding from the state for Anchorage to continue building connections for what may one day be a long trail from Seward to Fairbanks.”

And what about the people who are visiting right now? What do they want to see? Michael McNamara is visiting from Colorado for a wedding, but they extended their stay to get out and do some outdoor activities. They didn't have too much trouble getting here. They feel that better accessibility could help others.

He continued: “I think if we streamlined this and made it more appealing, we would attract a lot more young people here.”

This is Anthony Jarinco's first trip to Alaska. He and his wife cycled around the city. He enjoyed the trails, but he thinks it could be a little more.

“If they had a scooter, that would be much better for some people who just want to explore and go straight there. An electric scooter. I think that would be a great thing and would attract young people,” he said.

Among other things, Visit Anchorage has observed a trend called “Buzz Bound,” in which people travel to destinations to use social media.