If you think groceries are expensive where you live, don't shop in Bethel, Alaska

Over the past few days I've been in Bethel, Alaska for new teacher training. Bethel is a small town about 400 miles west of Anchorage and approximately 40 miles east of my destination: Tuntutuliak. There are no supermarkets in Tunt. You must get you food delivered by plane. This means you can order it online or bring some of it with you. I did my bulk shopping at Walmart in Anchorage and paid them to ship it to my village (this is one of the most convenient options).

While in Bethel a small group of new teachers and I decided to stock up on a few essentials just in case our groceries hadn't arrived yet in our village. People told me before that the prices are inflated, but I had no idea how inflated they would be. I'm still in sticker shock. Mind you, some of these items are on SALE!

The explanation for these insane prices is quite simple. Alaska is a big place and most of the state is not accessible by the road system. That means items from the lower 48 states need to be transported by air. This makes shipping expensive for stores and in order to make a profit they must charge these exorbitant prices. Heavy items like water and soda are especially impacted in price.