About Yellowknife

Yellowknife is literally built on gold, with mines burrowing deep beneath the city streets
Yet, the name Yellowknife does not derive from gold but from copper. In 1770, when Samuel Hearne was exploring the Great Slave lake area, he encountered a tribe of Aboriginal people who used copper-bladed, yellow-coloured knives. Fur traders soon began to refer to these people as the Yellowknives, and the tribe's rendezvous place in the large bay on Great Slave Lake became known as Yellowknife.

It wasn't until 1896 that gold actually entered the picture. Miners, enroute to the Klondike, discovered gold in Yellowknife Bay but it was to lay dormant for many more years because of the inaccessibility of the land. However, with the arrival of northern aviation in the 1930s, the rush soon began and bush pilots, intrepid miners and a handful of adventurous men and women were drawn north by the promise of the future and the glory of riches much like those found in the Klondike. By 1936, Yellowknife became a boom town as the exploration for gold escalated dramatically.

The town began to grow rapidly and, by 1947, with two gold mines operating on the outskirts, the stage was set for our future.

Today we are a culturally rich capital thriving with diversity, and home to over 17,000 people.

General Information:
NWT Tourism
A comprehensive guide to the Northwest Territories, including information on tours, sports, wildlife, climate, adventure travel, and the culture and history of Northern Canada.

Government of the Northwest Territories
The official Northwest Territories Government site, offers information about the region as well as tourist information.

City of Yellowknife
The official site of the city of Yellowknife offers a visitors portal complete with events listings, photo gallery, history and things to see and do during your stay in Yellowknife.

Discover North: Northern Frontier Visitors Association
The Discover North association is the source for travel information for Yellowknife and the Tli Cho communities north of Great Slave Lake. Offering a comprehensive calendar of events and travel and tour information, Discover North has plenty of great ideas to make the most of your Northern holiday.

Canada Information
The official travel guide to Canada is a multi-lingual guide to travel across the different regions, providing information for travellers, media, business and those in the travel industry

Yellowknife Current Weather

Northern lights
When the nights are dark in autumn and winter, the northern lights come out in the Northwest Territories of Canada. The Aurora dances and swirls, slower and then faster, mingling with the stars in the night sky.

Aurora Village
Aurora Village is located 20 minutes east of Yellowknife directly under the Aurora Oval, considered one of the best places in the world to see the Aurora Borealis.

Aurora World
Aurora World specializes in aurora borealis adventures in both English and Japanese. In addition to viewing the aurora borealis, guests have the opportunity to to drive dogsleds and snowmobiles during the day, enjoy delicious Northern Stew or Chowder at Aurora World in the evening, attend seminars and even go shopping for a diamond under the northern lights at midnight.

Winter Adventure:
When the air's cool, the vacation action's hot in the Northwest Territories. Choose a dogsledding trip, or try out crosscountry skiing and snowshoeing. Our winter lodges and outfitters offer great snow season adventures including snowmobiling, and aurora watching in the Canadian North. Late winter and spring are the best time for snow season adventure, when the days are growing longer and the sun sparkles on our crisp clean snow.

True North Safaris
Providing outfitting services in the Central Barren Lands north of Yellowknife, True North Safaris offer hunting safaris for caribou, black bear, arctic wolf, led by experienced professionals. Plus, True North Safari now offer Aurora viewing tours, photo safaris, and their own unique brand of northern adventures!

Arctic Escapes Travel
This unique travel agency specializes in Arctic tours, Northern adventure tours and corporate travel. Artic Escapes Travel can help you get to and from the North and show you a great time while you're there!

Outfitters:
Bathurst Inlet Lodge
An Eco-Lodge located in Bathurst Inlet 30 miles North of the Arctic Circle and accessible only by aircraft, the Bathurst Inlet Lodge promises a unique and exciting experience of the natural beauty of Canada's north.

Enodah Wilderness Travel Ltd
Located in Yellowknife, Enodah Wilderness Travel Ltd specializes in Trophy Pike, waterfowl and winter adventures on Great Slave Lake.

Frontier Fishing
Known the world over for Canada lake trout fishing, arctic grayling, whitefish, and Canada northern pike fishing. Frontier Fishing Lodge is located in Canada's Northwest Territories on the east arm of the Great Slave Lake, 120 air miles east of Yellowknife.

Aylmer Lake Lodge
Aylmer Lake Lodge, located 227 air miles northeast of Yellowknife, is a destination of choice for trophy lake trout, and arctic grayling fishing and offers the visitor opportunities for nature photography, canoeing remote arctic rivers, eco-tourism, and wildlife viewing.

Nahanni Wilderness Adventures
Offering canoe and raft trips on Canada's renowned South Nahanni River, as well as providing a select offering of mountain and wildlife/tundra Rivers trips across the North.

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To inquire about rates or availability, reserve on-line or call us at 1-877-839-1236.