We have set up a page with this version available year-round so you can have access to our full array of resources, even while you travel. Our website is also fully compatible with the iPhone, so you can always visit ExploreFairbanks.com as well. Let us know if we can do anything further to help you plan a successful Interior Alaska itinerary online.

The past seven days have been very active week on Twitter and Facebook. These are some of our most popular posts:

1. Santa’s sleigh lives at the Fountainhead Antique Auto Museum in Fairbanks: http://ow.ly/K31A
2. Great photo: ‘Fairbanks Fire Station at night’ – http://ow.ly/KJiT
3. Just posted our brand new 2010 Visitors Guide. Twitter and Facebook friends are the first to have a look: http://ow.ly/K509
4. What’s new around the Fairbanks CVB? We have an awesome new Facebook fan page: http://ow.ly/L3yK
5. Great sunrise photo taken near North Pole, Alaska earlier this month: http://ow.ly/KJfz
6. Be sure to check out Christmas in Ice, North Pole this year: http://ow.ly/L2Uf
7. Planning on coming to Fairbanks? Check our daily vacancy list for accommodations: http://ow.ly/L2nJ

If you come across a Fairbanks, Denali, Interior or Arctic Alaska link you think we should share, let us know. Links to great photos, videos and articles from our area are top on the list. We also send links to Fairbanks events and travel deals.

The report today focuses on our Holiday Open House being held tomorrow, but we also mention our new website and promote our Facebook page. And…we give you the explanation behind the photo you see above. Check out all of this by listening or downloading the update below.

Download the 12/11 Midday Report

If you are in full-screen mode you can view thumbnails of the pages or print by moving your cursor to the top, where a menu will automatically appear. Links within the guide can also be clicked to visit websites or send e-mails.

Thanks to Louder Design for producing the video. Be sure you check it out now on ExploreFairbanks.com.

We publish our Meeting Planner Guide, Visitors Guide and Winter Guide online with Issuu, with plans to do even more in the future. Check out the service if you do publishing of any sort – we’re certain you’ll be pleased. Also be sure to check out our guides for information on things to do, see and experience throughout Fairbanks and Interior Alaska.

Yesterday’s post regarding the Immersive Gallery feature on our new website prompted a comment from Jay Baldemor of Louder Design. He offered a few additional user tips:

1. While zoomed in to any photo or video, you can click on the center “visit this page” link to launch a new window where that photo or video is found, whether it’s a gallery page, article, business listing or event!
2. Change your wall background color or image with a single mouse click!
3. Don’t forget to check the other galleries by clicking the other checkboxes — The Immersive Gallery opens with only the Photos & Videos displayed by default.

The best way to get acquainted with our Immersive Gallery is to experience it for yourself. We will be doing some work on adding photos over the next few days, so we hope you’ll check back later too!

The Immersive Gallery with Full Screen Option

If you came to look at pictures or videos, we want you to see them without distraction. The Immersive Gallery gives you that opportunity. First, click the Immersive Gallery button (shown below) – then if you like, enlarge your view with the full-screen icon near the bottom right and see a wall of images from the category of your choosing. Click and drag to effortlessly cycle through the collection  – then select a specific photo or video for larger viewing.

Every photo added to our albums in the future will appear in this immersive gallery that will eventually number in the hundreds. Magnificent mountain and wildlife shots, panoramic landscapes, event and attraction images  and more. There are also some off-the-cuff video segments that were originally posted here on Inside Alaska and a few other surprises along the way.

As always, if there is anything else we can do to make this feature better, easier to use or even more impressive, let us know. We are very serious about making your experience the best it can be.

When Jay Baldemor asked me to write a short testimonial about our experience with Louder Design, I was eager to do so. We were more than happy with the results of our new website and ready to tell the world about the great experience we had building it with Jay and the guys at Louder. Here’s a look at what I wrote:

When we first began searching for a vendor to build the new ExploreFairbanks.com, I remember saying I wanted someone who knew innovation wasn’t just a new paint job on old ideas. They needed to believe that a travel site could be better than “industry standard” – that meant re-thinking some of the key elements, asking tough questions and building things that had an impact on the visitor. When we found Louder Design, we found that company.

They viewed the site from a potential visitor’s perspective, brainstorming ideas for making their experience better. From the initial point of inspiration to an eventual decision to book their trip, the technology makes sense and it works.

That being said, it’s not enough to say “these guys know their stuff.” They also listen, bring several options to every discussion, execute plans to perfection and are an absolute joy to work with.

I’ll be giving a hearty endorsement for a long time to come…but my words will not tell the whole story. For that you must have a look at their design, see how their sites work, tinker a little with their terrific management tools and hear their fresh ideas. Testimonials are great, but hands-on experience will speak much, much Louder.

Chris Harper
Internet Coordinator
Fairbanks Convention and Visitors Bureau

There are a variety of reasons we think our new site is a cut above. A quick look at our homepage and a few clicks should give you a preliminary idea, but be sure to sign up for a myFairbanks account and start using the Trip Planner to recognize the real difference. It’s smart software that is useful and easy to use. We really think you’ll like it.

With that being said, we want to be sure we make changes that could help the site become even better. If you have thoughts on what we can do to add a dimension of new intelligence or functionality, please let us know. Louder and I will then put our heads together and see what we can work out. Contact me at any time with comments, suggestions or other input!

The exhibits inside the Morris Thompson Cultural and Visitors Center are slated to open early next week. While some minor additions will occur in the upcoming months, you will certainly be impressed by what’s already in place. The photo above shows the exhibits while they were in process of being built.

Download the 08/21 Midday Update