North Star Adventures

Tour operator · Yellowknife ·

North Star Adventures

Tour operator · Yellowknife ·

Indigenous-owned aurora hunts chase clear skies, share Dene legends

Information

200 Beck Ct, Yellowknife, NT X1A 3Y6, Canada Get directions

@travelleisure

28,641 Postcards · 5,542 Cities

I'm an Astrophotographer and Expert Stargazer — Here Are My Nighttime Viewing Tips for Auroras, Meteor Showers, and More

"An Indigenous-owned aurora tour operator based in Yellowknife that runs guided northern-lights hunts combining safety, interpretation, and cultural context; guides share Dene perspectives on the lights—framed as messages from lost loved ones—while maximizing chances of seeing the aurora." - Stephanie Vermillion Stephanie Vermillion Stephanie Vermillion is a travel journalist and photographer covering culture and adventure for Travel + Leisure Outside, and more. Travel + Leisure Editorial Guidelines

https://www.travelandleisure.com/nighttime-stargazing-noctourism-expert-tips-8754499

North Star Adventures

@travelleisure

28,641 Postcards · 5,542 Cities

10 Indigenous-led Northern Lights Experiences in Canada

"Rather than staying at a base camp, I went aurora hunting with North Star Adventures, where guides move to chase clearer skies—'like storm chasing'—to increase the chance of seeing an aurora, and Indigenous guides share Dene legends while guests wait." - Debbie Olsen

https://www.travelandleisure.com/indigenous-northern-lights-experiences-in-canada-7971314

North Star Adventures

@travelleisure

28,641 Postcards · 5,542 Cities

Yellowknife Is the Northern Lights Capital of North America — How to Visit

"I took aurora excursions with Indigenous-owned North Star Adventures, run by our guide Joe, who drove guests around to viewpoints relying on expert knowledge and instinct to find the northern lights." - Elizabeth Rhodes Elizabeth Rhodes Elizabeth Rhodes is a senior editor at Travel + Leisure, covering everything from luxury hotels to theme parks to must-pack travel products. Originally from South Carolina, Elizabeth moved to New York City from London, where she started her career as a travel blogger and writer. Travel + Leisure Editorial Guidelines

https://www.travelandleisure.com/yellowknife-canada-northern-lights-7358599

North Star Adventures

@cntraveler

42,481 Postcards · 5,683 Cities

5 Unique Ways to Experience Indigenous Culture in Canada

"When Joe Bailey started North Star Adventures in 2007, he decided to offer aurora tours that transport guests to several different locations looking for the best views and the best photo-ops. He calls his tours “aurora hunting” to pay homage to his Indigenous Dene ancestors. “Aurora hunting is kind of like storm chasing,” says Bailey. “It's exciting.” While guests wait for the northern lights to appear, Indigenous guides share Dene legends and stories. Changing locations often improves the chances of seeing the northern lights; if it’s cloudy and the northern lights are obscured or viewing is poor in one location, they move to another site several miles away near a lake, a meadow or perhaps even on a hillside. Instead of waiting for the aurora to come to a stationary site, Bailey and his guides search out the best vantage points for viewing this ethereal marvel of nature."

https://www.cntraveler.com/story/indigenous-tourism-experiences-canada

North Star Adventures

Sammy M.

Google

We booked the city tour, the dog sled tour and 3 aurora hunting tours. We had an incredible time. The tour guides were friendly and knowledgeable. They had fun activities for us to do while hunting to pass the time until Aurora showed herself. Special mentions go to Joe, Olivia and Saige they answered all my questions about their culture and when Joe didnt know an answer he phoned his Aunty I could get an answer. If you like supporting local business and learning about culture this is the tour company to book. I cant recommend them enough.

Christine L.

Google

An unforgettable aurora experience! We had the most magical aurora hunting night with Lilly as our guide. She did an incredible job finding the perfect location, and the auroras that night were absolutely breathtaking. Lilly also took the most beautiful photos of the sky dancing above us, memories we’ll treasure forever. Beyond the lights, she made the entire experience so special by sharing beautiful stories, serving hot cocoa and maple cookies, and creating such a warm, cozy atmosphere under the bright aurora. To top it all off, she ended the night with a beautiful song that truly made the experience feel magical and complete. If that’s not going above and beyond, I don’t know what is. Thank you North Star Adventure and Lilly for such an amazing, once in a lifetime experience.

Shannon T

Google

We had a wonderful time out searching for the bison. Rose-Ann was our guide and she was fantastic. She was lovely to talk to and helped us find the beautiful bison! Photo was taken by the company for us. Highly recommend.

tomas V.

Google

Amazing Aurora viewing tours. The guides very knowledgeable and take great pictures! Joe, the owner is very kind and considerate to provide the best experience. Thank you for having us, and getting our backpack back to us, that we left in the van.

Jenny A.

Google

The night started out cloudy and we didn’t think we would see any northern lights, however Joe, our guide, kept watching the clouds and knew exactly where to go for the most amazing viewing!! Joe was patient, enthusiastic, personable and so knowledgeable sharing so many facts about Yellowknife and the aurora. He and his associate, Jaskabar, made this experience so much fun and extended the most gracious hospitality to us all! We will definitely come back to Yellowknife and book another aurora viewing trip with North Star Adventures and Joe!!!

Jose A Hugues C.

Google

Elizabeth was absolutely amazing! She was by far the best tour guide out of all the tours we did. Her knowledge, energy, and passion really made the experience special. It was just me and my wife on the tour, and Elizabeth made us feel so welcome and well taken care of. We truly enjoyed every moment and would 100% recommend this tour to anyone. Thank you, Elizabeth, for such an unforgettable experience!

Google

Joe and Jess are informative and gregarious tour guides! As a solo traveler, I immediately felt at ease with them. I booked two nights of aurora hunting, a few nights apart, and both nights, they worked extremely hard to find the aurora for us. They spoke honestly about how the weather may affect our chances. The first night, we all spent the whole night in laughter and great conversation about travel all over the world. The second night, we were treated to an amazing aurora display -- a brilliant and vivid show that significantly peaked for only a few minutes. I felt very lucky that Joe knew when we needed to leave the warmth of the bus to catch it! I was grateful and honored to learn about the aurora from the First Nations/Indigenous perspective. Thank you, Joe and Jess, for an awesome time!

Alison W.

Google

Booked three nights Aurora hunting tour and saw Aurora every night! Also booked the city tour with them as well. Joe is a wonderful guide - very friendly and very knowledgeable. He's a local so he has recommendations for food, souvenirs, sights, and things to do! Even for camera settings on how to best capture the northern lights, he's there to assist! He also takes professional photos for you with the Aurora so you don't have to worry about having a fancy camera (which we did not have). Highly recommend!