Bethel is a city located near the west coast of the U.S. state of Alaska, approximately 400 miles west of Anchorage, in the Bethel Census Area. Accessible only by air and river, Bethel is the main port on the Kuskokwim River and is an administrative and transportation hub for the 56 villages in the Yukon-Kuskokwim Delta.Bethel is the largest community in western Alaska and in the Unorganized Borough, as well as the 9th largest in the state, with a population of 6,080 as of the 2010 Census. Bethel is home to the lone detention center in southwestern Alaska, the Yukon Kuskokwim Correction Center.Annual events in Bethel include a noted dogsled race, the Kuskokwim 300, Camai, a traditional Yup'ik dance festival held each spring, and the Bethel Fair held in August.