Aurora Hunting Tours

Amazing memorable experience

The guide and driver are nice. They are experience, they bring us to the area where can see the aurora clearly, even on a cloudly night. Thank you so much for bringing a great night to me.

Booked 3 nights to go aurora hunting with North Star Adventures, an indigenous owned company for 20 years. Got Cascis as our guide the first night- a bust as it was raining so no northern lights due to the rain/clouds, second night we got Joe- owner and a wonderful storyteller- he took Carrie Fisher and Jennifer Garner aurora hunting- we got 10 mins of the aurora at our first stop and nothing else due to the clouds and finally on our 3rd and last night we got a level 3 /10 aurora views. They didn't move but we got the green. And the clear and dark sky was so full of stars- like they were touching each other. That was stunning as we waited for the aurora to appear from the east and it was amazing to see it appear as a white outline and then get brighter. Joe told us if you are a good person, the aurora will show on your last and final day as it builds on the anticpation. So we know we are good and Joe is a star! Having Joe, the owner as our guide for two nights made the time fly by and he was a highlight of our experience! We truly "hunted" for the auroras each night from 10 pm to 1 am! Pick up was usually between 9:30 and 10 pm and back at 1 to 1:30 am. Tip-- on the first night we arrived, the weather was excellent and although we were booked the next 3 nights with northern star, we should have asked if we could have done the tour on the night of our arrival or if full, find another tour operator. That night, the aurora was magnificent- 6.5/10- see the greens/pinks and it danced. On our first night out the next dasy it rained and we should have cancelled. We saw nothing. You really have to watch the weather forecast and jump at the opportunity if its good weather with clear and dark skies. The auroro doesn't wait for anyone and comes out when it pleases! Thank you Joe for being our north star and sharing your passion for the aurora borealis! Highly recommend this company!

I figured we'd have to get lucky some night in northern Europe to see the aurora but of our four nights, two brought spectacular shows. The tour provided all the cold-weather gear (sub zero jackets, pants, boots) and a warm van to venture out into the surrounding areas. Staff was very nice and enthusiastic. Other activities were fun, especially the dog sledding. We also opted for a separate snow mobile tour, which we loved.

I think they did a great job. They really hunted for the Northern Lights. We were able to see many Lights that night. They guide was knowledgeable about the phenomenon and the history of Yellowknife.

We had booked the Aurora Tour directly with North Star Adventures. There is nothing on the entire website about service dogs or dogs in general. Since it is anchored in Canadian law, we were very much looking forward to the tour. Our 3kg small, non-shedding service dog sits in the shoulder bag and behaves absolutely calmly. Nevertheless, at the beginning of the tour, we were very rudely turned away by the bus guide Joe; he said we would get a refund for the tour and could just go with a larger bus from another company... so we were simply left standing there. Very disappointed, but thanks to having our own car, we were able to go on the hunt on our own after all, since we couldn't just get on any bus anyway. Multiple calls, emails, and even the attempt to reach the office, which turned out to be a private residential area accessible only with a code, led to no contact. Only a WhatsApp message was then answered; they said they didn't have a no-pet policy in their legal notice, so they would offer us 50% out of "goodwill" because we hadn't gone on the trip after all.... unbelievable!!! The tour operator North Star Adventures contradicts current Canadian law, cancels the tour, and then kindly offers a 50% refund of the not-exactly-cheap tour -420 CAD-. To this day, we have received 0.00 back. An office does not exist either, so stay away from this operator. There are much cheaper ones, and if things don't work out, you have a contact person. Here, only as long as it's about booking and payment.....really a shame.

Unbelievably-awesome experience! They took us outside of Yellowknife, far enough that there was no human-created light pollution to spoil the view. We were treated to spectacular aurora viewing. They even provided hot cocoa and maple syrup cookies! Plenty of time allotted for looking, and they even provided some great photos. Very much great value.

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ Joe knew exactly where to go — the best night of our Canada trip We travelled from South Korea to Yellowknife with one goal: see the aurora. We booked North Star Adventures for one of our nights and it turned out to be the single best decision of our whole trip. Our guide was Joe — the founder himself. This is a 100% Indigenous-owned local company, and you feel that difference the moment you're out there: he knows this land, and he knew exactly which spot would deliver that night. It did. Before long the sky was full of green curtains sweeping right over our heads. Our own photos don't come close to what it actually looked like. The small group size made a real difference — never crowded, plenty of room to set up. Joe put out camping chairs for us and brought hot chocolate and cookies, which sounds like a small thing until you're standing outside in the dark and someone hands you a warm cup. He's also genuinely fun to be around. Lots of laughing, great stories, never any pressure — and he was patient with us even though our English isn't perfect. And the photography is not a throw-in. Joe shot professional-quality portraits of us under the aurora at no extra cost and sent them afterward. They're honestly some of the best photos we own now. He even followed up after the tour to make sure we'd received everything. If you're comparing operators in Yellowknife, book this one. And bring warm layers even in August — it gets cold once you stop moving. Thank you, Joe. We'll be talking about that night for years. ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ 옐로나이프에서 업체 고민 중이라면 그냥 여기로 하세요 오로라 하나 보겠다고 한국에서 옐로나이프까지 갔습니다. 여러 밤 중 하루를 North Star Adventures로 잡았는데, 이번 캐나다 여행 통틀어 제일 잘한 선택이었어요. 가이드가 창업자인 Joe였습니다. 100% 원주민 소유 현지 업체인데, 밖에 나가보면 그 차이가 바로 느껴져요. 그날 어느 자리가 터질지를 이미 알고 있는 사람이었고, 실제로 그랬습니다. 얼마 안 가서 오로라가 그냥머리 바로 위로 흘러갔어요. Joe가 피아노 오로라, 커튼 오로라라고 알려줬어요ㅋㅋ 사진으로는 그날 하늘의 반도 못 담습니다. 인원이 적은 것도 생각보다 큰 차이였어요. 제가 갔을땐 5명이었어요. 밴도 신형밴인지 깨끗하고 좋았어요. 그리고 붐비지 않아서 삼각대 펼치고 편하게 있을 수 있었습니다. 캠핑 의자 펴주고 핫초코랑 쿠키도 준비해오셨는데, 별거 아닌 것 같아도 어두운 데 서 있다가 따뜻한 거 받으면 진짜 다릅니다. 무엇보다 같이 있으면 정말 재미있는 분이에요. 계속 웃었고, 들려주시는 이야기도 좋았고, 부담스러운 순간이 하나도 없었습니다. 영어가 서툰 저희 부부한테도 끝까지 천천히 맞춰주셨어요. 영어 걱정돼서 망설이시는 분이라면 그 점은 안 놓으셔도 됩니다. 사진 촬영도 그냥 서비스로 끼워주는 수준이 아니에요. 사진 추가 비용 없이 전문가급으로 찍어서 보내주셨는데, 지금 저희가 가진 사진 중 최고입니다. 투어 끝나고 나서도 먼저 연락해서 사진 잘 받았는지 확인해주셨어요. 팁: 8월이라도 밤에는 춥습니다. 경량 패딩 꼭 챙기세요. 가만히 서 있으면 체감 또 다릅니다. Joe, 정말 감사합니다. 곧 한국 놀러오신다는데 제가 캐나다에서 좋은 경험한 것처럼 즐거운 여행 되시길!!

+7

If you're considering other aurora tours in Yellowknife, forget them, and this is the one to book! It is well worth the price—the Indigenous guides (Joe, Meeka, and Cashis) are local to the area and know exactly where to take the small group for the best chance of seeing the aurora. The small group vibe is nice... you will see huge tour buses zipping around Yellowknife for large group tours. I did two tours as a solo traveller. I only planned to go one night, but the aurora didn't quite appear. I was fortunate that the next day North Star Adventures could book me to go again. Everyone at North Star Adventures are very friendly and professional (thank you Sowon, Erika, Preet, and Francis). The pros of this tour is first and foremost the knowledge shared with you. The guides are very open to talking and answering questions. Other benefits include: being comfortably driven around in remote areas with spotty cell-service areas (something I was worried about as an American driving on my own to see the lights), the provided lawn chairs to look up at the sky, the hot chocolate & maple cookies, and finally the photos. Northstar will take professional photos of you and send them after the tour (huge plus, the photos are Instagram worthy). Dress warm, it was significantly colder in the middle of the tour (12am-ish) versus when I was picked up from town (10pm-ish).

We spent 5 nights with North Star Adventures, and saw the aurora every night, even when it seemed like it would be too cloudy! Joe, Cashis, and Meeka were wonderful guides, sharing their stories with us and explaining the indigenous history and the aurora. The small group meant that we had plenty of time to sit peacefully and take in the lights. The whole North Star team were so friendly and the photos they captured for us are amazing.