Soldotna is located on the western edge of the vast Kenai National Wildlife Refuge, a protected area spanning nearly 2 million acres and home to bears, moose, caribou, sheep, and many fish and bird species.

Veterans of the United States armed services were given a 90-day preference over non-veterans in selecting land and filing for property.

The city experienced rapid population growth in the 1960s through the 1990s as a result of its location at the intersection of two major highways and due to development of the oil industry on the Kenai Peninsula.

There are multiple theories explaining the origin of the word "Soldotna"; these include the variant "Soldatna", which was the prevalent spelling of the community's name during the 1950s and 1960s.

The campus sits among 300 wooded acres on Soldotna's west side and includes a library, laboratories, computer labs, a residence hall, and an art gallery.

The Soldotna Visitor Center, located at the Kenai River Bridge, includes wildlife displays of brown and black bear, dall sheep, bison, wolverines, bald eagles, mountain goats, king crabs, various birds and the world record king salmon.

The Joyce K. Carver Memorial Library on Binkley Street was remodeled in 2013, providing media resources to the greater Soldotna community.

The library offers six desktop computers and two laptops for public access and free Wi-Fi for anyone with wireless enabled devices.

The Kenai Watershed Forum (KWF) is a non-profit organization located in the historic Ralph Soberg House inside Soldotna Creek Park.

Its programs include Stream Watch, which trains volunteers to protect the Russian and Kenai Rivers; a summer camp for 6-12 year olds; and environmental restoration projects ranging from invasive plant remediation to riverbed reconstruction to culvert reconfiguration/replacement.

The Kenai National Wildlife Refuge consists of 1.92 million acres in a variety of ecosystems including ice fields and glaciers, mountain tundra, northern boreal forests, and lakes, wetlands and rivers.

The Chickaloon River Flats remains the last pristine major saltwater estuary on the Kenai Peninsula and attracts thousands of migratory waterfowl and shorebirds annually.

Its intersection with the start of the Kenai Spur Highway, widely known as the "Soldotna Y" due to its previous Y-shaped configuration, is a local landmark.

At its northern end, it straddles the southernmost portions of city limits (including Kenai Peninsula College and the Soldotna Sports Center) and adjoining Kalifornsky.

Continuing past city limits, K-Beach provides an alternate access to Kenai along the south side of the Kenai River via the Warren Ames Memorial Bridge, the last road crossing downriver, then continues west and south, returning to the Sterling Highway at Kasilof.

Interior arterial and collector streets, such as Binkley and Kobuk streets and Marydale and Redoubt avenues, primarily provide access either to residential areas or to community facilities such as the borough building, the post office, Central Peninsula Hospital and Soldotna High School Soldotna Airport (FAA LID and IATA: SXQ, ICAO: PASX) is a city-owned, public use airport located in the southeastern corner of city limits, across the Kenai River from the city center.

[16] Primary access to the airport is from Funny River Road, a short distance east of its intersection with the Sterling Highway.

Les Anderson, at the time the owner of Soldotna's Ford dealership, holds the record for the largest king salmon, caught here on May 17, 1985, and weighing in at 97 lb 4 oz.

[23] The Central Peninsula Hospital is the largest medical facility on the peninsula[26] with 49 beds, an emergency care facility, and specialties including family medicine, ear-nose-throat, birthing center, general surgery, neurology, OB/GYN, oncology, ophthalmology, orthopedics, pathology, pediatrics, podiatry, psychiatry and radiology.

Many smaller healthcare providers and healthcare-related businesses have located in Soldotna to take advantage of proximity to the Central Peninsula hospital.

Tourism on the Kenai Peninsula revolves heavily around outdoor activities, including fishing, hunting, hiking, camping, and canoeing/rafting.