The only way to reach Kotzebue is by plane or boat. When we flew in, you could see just how small the town is. There is only one 3-story hotel. There are no elevators in the hotel. The rooms are small but adequate. The food in the hotel dining room was O.K. There are roads in and a short distance out of town.
Besides the cultural center, the tour outside the town is a must. Walking on the tundra is a not to be missed experience. It is soft and spongy. There are a lot of bushes and plants that grow there. I didn't expect to see so much plant growth. I was also surprised to see cranberry bushes.
The walk around the town was interesting. The houses are built on stilts because of the permafrost. There were a few abandonded houses that were sinking because they had been built right on the ground, and the heat from the homes caused the permafrost to melt and the houses to sink. The town is right on the Bering Sea, so you can walk along the beach. There is a National Park office in the town, because you are near the Bering Land Bridge National Preserve, and Kobuk Valley National Park.
When we were there, temperatures were in the high 40's.