Cornelius Amann
October 06, 2026
5/5
Churchill, Manitoba: Beluga Whales and the Summer Tundra
6 days from Winnipeg in July and August: fly north to Churchill for four nights, two mornings on the water with the belugas, Prince of Wales Fort, the summer tundra and the Hudson Bay shore.
6 days · Round trip from Winnipeg · up to 12 guests
Churchill and Hudson Bay in summer Photo: Travel Manitoba, CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons (https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Churchill,_Manitoba_(2010).jpg)
The facts
At a glance
- Length
- 6 days, 5 nights
- Start and end
- Round trip from Winnipeg
- Group size
- 7 to 12 guests
- Longest drive
- 2 h on day 4No drive day is longer than 4 hours.
- Activity level
Easy
Mostly easy: two boat outings of about 3 hours, a day by van along the coast road with short walks, and a shore walk of about 2 km over rock and gravel. The kayak option on day 5 means about 2 hours of gentle paddling in a stable kayak in calm estuary water; the zodiac is the seated alternative. Walking is never more than about 3 km a day, and every outing can be watched from the boat or van.
- Meals included
- 5 breakfasts, 4 lunches, 5 dinners
- Room of your own
- + CAD 1,395 (estimated price)
- Season
- Beluga season
Highlights
Why this trip
- A boat among the belugas in the Churchill River estuary, close enough to hear them through the hull
- A second morning on the water by zodiac or sea kayak, your choice
- Prince of Wales Fort, the stone Hudson's Bay Company fort across the river, reached by boat at high tide
- The summer tundra along the coast road, looking for a polar bear at a safe distance
- The rusting MV Ithaca on the tidal flats of Bird Cove
- A guided walk on the Hudson Bay shore with a bear guard
- Inuit carvings at the Itsanitaq Museum and a free afternoon in a town of under a thousand people
What makes this trip different
Short drives, all published
Every drive is listed day by day, and none is longer than 4 hours.
Free time is part of the plan
Free time and choices are marked on the days they fall.
Solo without the penalty
A room of your own is + CAD 1,395 (estimated price).
Day by day
Itinerary
The longest drive is 2 h, on day 4.
Tap any stop on the map to open that dayClick any stop on the map to open that day
Arrive in Winnipeg
Winnipeg James Armstrong Richardson International Airport to your hotel in central Winnipeg
- Dinner
- Stay in Winnipeg
- Drive about 18 min
Fly into Winnipeg (YWG) and plan to land by about 3 pm. A driver meets you in arrivals for the twenty-minute drive to a central hotel near The Forks, where the Red and Assiniboine rivers meet and where people have met to trade for thousands of years.
Afternoon
On a summer afternoon the riverwalk is busy with cyclists and families, and the market hall at The Forks is a good place for a coffee. At about 5:30 pm your See Sight Tours guide meets the group at the hotel for a briefing: how the boat days follow the tide, what to wear on the water, how Churchill's polar bear rules work even in summer, and what goes in your bag for the flight north.
Evening
Then we walk down to The Forks for a welcome dinner by the rivers. Summer evenings in Winnipeg are long and light, but the flight leaves early tomorrow, so most people turn in soon after dinner.
Included
- Pick-up at Winnipeg airport (YWG)
- Welcome briefing with your guide
- Welcome dinner at The Forks, Winnipeg
Optional experiences
- Canadian Museum for Human Rights or the Manitoba Museum on your own, if you land early (entry not included)
Free time: Free until the 5:30 pm briefing
Activity: If you land after the briefing, a driver still meets you and your guide briefs you at breakfast.
Fly north to Churchill
Winnipeg to Churchill by air, then around town and Cape Merry
- Breakfast, lunch and dinner
- Stay in Churchill
- Drive about 45 min
An early start for the flight north, about two and a half hours, sometimes with a stop in Thompson, over boreal forest, lakes and the first of the tundra, to Churchill on the west shore of Hudson Bay, a town of under a thousand people with no road to the rest of Canada.
Afternoon
We land in the morning, drop bags at the hotel and have lunch in town. In the afternoon your guide takes the group around by van: the grain elevator of the port, the Inuksuk on the shore, the Polar Bear Holding Facility from outside, and Cape Merry, where the restored remains of an 18th-century battery look across the river mouth to Prince of Wales Fort. From the rocks you may already see white backs rolling in the river. We end indoors at the Itsanitaq Museum, with its Inuit carvings and tools, and the Parks Canada visitor centre in the railway station.
Evening
There is free time before dinner, and your guide explains how to walk around town safely.
Included
- Flight from Winnipeg to Churchill
- Town and area tour with your guide: the port, the Inuksuk, the Polar Bear Holding Facility (from outside) and Cape Merry
- Itsanitaq Museum
- Parks Canada visitor centre
- Lunch and dinner in Churchill
Easier option: Stay in the van at Cape Merry, where the walk out to the battery is over uneven rock, and rest at the hotel before dinner.
Free time: An hour or two free in the centre of town before dinner
Activity: Plan for a hotel departure before 8 am for the flight; it is the only start before 8 am on the trip. Itsanitaq Museum is closed on Sundays and opens only at 1 pm on Mondays: on a Monday we visit after lunch, and if day 2 falls on a Sunday the museum moves to the free half of day 3 or day 5. We confirm opening hours for your dates.
Belugas and Prince of Wales Fort
Churchill by boat into the Churchill River estuary and across to Prince of Wales Fort, and back
- Breakfast, lunch and dinner
- Stay in Churchill
- Drive about 15 min
Today is the reason for the trip. In July and August thousands of beluga whales come into the warmer, shallower water of the Churchill River estuary to feed, calve and moult. We board a licensed operator's boat near town and head out among them. Belugas are curious and often swim right up to the boat, mothers with grey calves alongside; with the engine off you can hear them whistle and click through the hull, and some boats carry a hydrophone so everyone can listen. The boat then crosses to Prince of Wales Fort, the star-shaped stone fort the Hudson's Bay Company built at the river mouth from 1731 and surrendered to a French force in 1782 without a shot. A Parks Canada guide walks us round the walls, and a bear guard keeps watch.
Afternoon
The fort can only be reached near high tide, so the outing may run in the morning or the afternoon. Lunch is in town, and the rest of the day is free.
Included
- Beluga boat in the Churchill River estuary with a licensed operator, about 3 hours
- Prince of Wales Fort National Historic Site with a Parks Canada guide, by boat
- Lunch and dinner in Churchill
Optional experiences
- Helicopter flight over the coast, the river and the tundra from a local operator, priced when you book
Easier option: Stay on the boat at the fort if the landing or the walk over the rocks does not suit you.
Free time: Half the day free in Churchill, morning or afternoon depending on the tide
Activity: Times follow the tide and the wind. If wind stops the boat, it moves to the afternoon of day 5 (the shore walk swaps into the morning) or to the late afternoon of day 4, tide permitting. Dress warmly: it is cool on the water even in July.
The coast road and the summer tundra
Churchill east along the coast road to Bird Cove and the edge of the tree line, and back
- Breakfast, lunch and dinner
- Stay in Churchill
- Drive about 2 h
A slow day by van along the only road out of town, which runs east between Hudson Bay and the tundra, with your guide and a local naturalist who carries bear deterrents. In summer the tundra is green and wet, dotted with ponds, wildflowers and dwarf willow, and full of nesting birds. Polar bears that came ashore when the ice melted lie up along the coast, and the naturalist knows where to look; if we find one, we watch from the van at a safe distance. We stop at Bird Cove for the hull of the MV Ithaca, aground on the tidal flats since 1960, and at the edge of the boreal forest to see how the spruce thin out into open tundra.
Afternoon
Lunch is a packed lunch, eaten in the van or at a stop the naturalist judges safe, with the bay in view. We are back in town by mid-afternoon, and the late afternoon is free; it is also the spare slot if wind cancelled the day 3 boat.
Included
- Coast road and tundra day by van with your guide and a local naturalist with bear deterrents
- The MV Ithaca wreck at Bird Cove
- Packed lunch on the coast road
- Dinner in Churchill
Easier option: Stay in the van at each stop; the views and any bears are seen from the windows.
More active option: Short walks on the rock and tundra at the stops where the naturalist judges it safe.
Free time: Late afternoon and evening free, unless a wind-cancelled boat outing moves here
Activity: Summer bears are spread out and few; seeing one is a bonus, not a promise. Bring insect repellent and a head net for the stops.
Zodiac or kayak with the belugas
Churchill into the river estuary by zodiac or sea kayak, then the Hudson Bay shore
- Breakfast, lunch and dinner
- Stay in Churchill
- Drive about 18 min
Morning
A second morning on the water, this time lower and closer. You choose when you book: a zodiac, a small inflatable boat that sits just above the water and goes where the whales are thickest, or a sea kayak with a licensed operator, paddling in the sheltered estuary while belugas surface around you. Kayakers get a safety briefing and the operator's safety gear first, and the guides stay close.
Afternoon
Both groups are out for about two to three hours and meet again for lunch in town. In the afternoon we walk part of the Hudson Bay shore near town with a bear guard: the smooth, striped Precambrian rock, tide pools, Arctic terns overhead, and on clear days a long view north over the bay.
Evening
This is the last full day, so the evening dinner is our farewell to Churchill, with the light still bright well after ten.
Included
- Zodiac or sea kayak outing with the belugas in the Churchill River estuary with a licensed operator, about 2 to 3 hours
- Guided walk on the Hudson Bay shore with a bear guard, about 2 km
- Lunch and farewell dinner in Churchill
Optional experiences
- Snorkelling with belugas in a drysuit, if a licensed operator runs it on your dates, priced when you book
Easier option: Take the zodiac: you stay seated, and the operator brings you close to the whales.
More active option: Take the sea kayak, about 2 hours of gentle paddling in a stable boat in calm water.
Free time: Free time before the farewell dinner
Activity: Kayaking needs no experience, but you must be comfortable getting into a kayak from a dock or boat. Times follow the tide and wind; if wind stops the morning outing, it moves to the afternoon and the shore walk to the morning.
Fly south and depart Winnipeg
Churchill to Winnipeg by air, ending at Winnipeg airport
- Breakfast
- Drive about 12 min
Morning
A last breakfast in Churchill, and if the flight is late enough, a final walk in town or a look out over the river for belugas from Cape Merry with your guide. Then we drive the short way to Churchill airport and fly south together, about two and a half hours, sometimes with a stop in Thompson, back over the tundra and the forest, landing at Winnipeg airport (YWG), where the trip ends. Your guide sees you through arrivals and says goodbye there. If you would like to stay on, Winnipeg has more to give: The Forks and its market hall, the Canadian Museum for Human Rights, and the Manitoba Museum with its full-size replica of the Nonsuch, the ship whose 1668 voyage into Hudson Bay led to the founding of the Hudson's Bay Company, a neat end to a week on its old coast.
Evening
Flight times north and south are set by the air operator, so book a flight home leaving after about 4 pm, or add a night in Winnipeg.
Included
- Flight from Churchill to Winnipeg
- Transfer to Churchill airport; the trip ends at Winnipeg airport (YWG)
Optional experiences
- An extra night in Winnipeg, booked for you at cost
Free time: Morning in Churchill if the flight is in the afternoon
Activity: Book a flight home leaving Winnipeg after about 4 pm; we confirm the Churchill flight time when we confirm your dates.
- Winnipeg1 night
- Churchill4 nights
- Winnipegend
- Overnight stop
- Day trip
- By boat or train
Wildlife and weather: Belugas move into the Churchill River estuary from about late June and stay until about late August, so July and early August are the surest weeks. Polar bears are ashore in summer after the bay ice melts, but they are spread out and few come near the road; seeing one is a bonus. Wind can stop boat trips for a day, and boat times follow the tide.
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Before you book
Right for you?
Good for you if you want
- Travellers who want to be on the water among wild whales, twice
- Anyone curious about Churchill who does not want the cold of bear season
- First-time kayakers who want an easy paddle with a reason, and those who prefer to stay seated in a zodiac
- Solo travellers and couples who like a small group with dinners sorted
Not for you if you want
- Anyone set on seeing polar bears: in summer they are a bonus; the autumn trip is for bears
- Travellers who dislike small planes or small boats
- Those who mind mosquitoes and black flies on calm days
- Those looking for big hotels or fine dining: Churchill is a small frontier town
Book flights after we confirm your seat.
5 nights
Where you'll stay
Your hotels are named in your trip confirmation.
- Winnipeg1 night
- Churchill4 nights
One price
What's in the price
Included
Accommodation
- 5 nights: 1 in central Winnipeg and 4 in Churchill
- In Winnipeg a 3-star-plus hotel near The Forks; in Churchill the best of the town's small hotels, in walking distance of the centre, all with private bathrooms; we name each hotel when we confirm your dates
- Rooms shared, or your own for a supplement
Transport
- Pick-up at Winnipeg airport (YWG) on day 1
- Return flight between Winnipeg and Churchill, day 2 out and day 6 back, ending at Winnipeg airport
- Van transfers in Winnipeg and Churchill, including the coast road day
- Beluga boat to Prince of Wales Fort, and a zodiac or sea kayak outing, with licensed operators
Your guide
- A See Sight Tours guide with the group from the day 1 briefing to arrival at Winnipeg airport on day 6
- A Parks Canada guide at Prince of Wales Fort
- A local naturalist and bear guard on the coast road day and the shore walk
- Licensed boat, zodiac and kayak guides on the water
Activities
- Beluga boat in the Churchill River estuary, about 3 hours
- Prince of Wales Fort National Historic Site, by boat
- Zodiac or sea kayak outing with the belugas, your choice
- Coast road and summer tundra day, with Bird Cove and the MV Ithaca
- Guided Hudson Bay shore walk with a bear guard
- Churchill town tour: the port, the Inuksuk, the Polar Bear Holding Facility (from outside) and Cape Merry
- Itsanitaq Museum and the Parks Canada visitor centre, Churchill
Meals
- 5 breakfasts
- 4 lunches in Churchill, days 2 to 5 (day 4 a packed lunch on the coast road)
- 5 dinners: a welcome dinner at The Forks in Winnipeg and four dinners in Churchill
Not included
- International flights to and from Winnipeg
- Travel insurance, which should include medical evacuation from a remote area
- Canadian eTA or visa
- Lunch on days 1 and 6 and dinner on day 6
- Drinks
- Tips for your guide, the boat crews and the naturalist
- Optional activities, such as a helicopter flight or beluga snorkelling
- Excess baggage on the Churchill flight
- An extra night in Winnipeg after the trip
- Personal expenses
Extras
- Room of your own
- CAD 1,395 (estimated price)
When you can go
Dates and prices
Pick your start date when you request to book. We check that date and confirm it in your quote.
Prefer to travel without a group or guide? Ask us about arranging hotels, transport and city tours for you to travel independently.
Before you book
Booking terms
Nothing is charged now. Full terms and the cancellation schedule come with your quote, before you accept.
Business addresses
See Sight Tours Trips (USA): 3172 N Rainbow Blvd, Las Vegas, NV 89108, United StatesSee Sight Tours Trips (Canada): 5305 50 Avenue, #1091, Red Deer, AB T4N 4B6, Canada+1-888-961-6584Guest reviews
What guests say
Reviews from guests on our day tours.
Jane
October 06, 2026
5/5
Susan
October 06, 2026
5/5
Tom L
October 05, 2026
5/5
MandL83
October 05, 2026
5/5
Darren O
October 05, 2026
5/5
Good to know
Questions
What does the price include?
Five nights in hotels, the return flight between Winnipeg and Churchill, a beluga boat that lands at Prince of Wales Fort, a zodiac or kayak outing, the coast road day with a naturalist, a shore walk with a bear guard, the Itsanitaq Museum and town tour, transfers, 5 breakfasts, 4 lunches and 5 dinners, and your See Sight Tours guide throughout.
Will we see beluga whales in Churchill?
Almost certainly, in July and August. Thousands of belugas spend the summer in the Churchill River estuary, and on most days boats find them within minutes of leaving the dock. We go out twice on different days, and a wind-cancelled outing moves to a free afternoon on day 4 or 5. As with all wildlife, we cannot give a guarantee.
Will we see polar bears in summer?
Possibly, but we do not promise it. Bears come ashore when the bay ice melts and rest along the coast in summer, spread out and often far from the road. On day 4 a local naturalist looks for them with us, and any bear is watched from the van at a safe distance. For bears in numbers, take our October and November trip.
Do I need to have kayaked before?
No. The kayak outing is in the sheltered estuary in stable kayaks, with a safety briefing, the operator's safety gear and licensed guides close by. You need to be able to get in and out from a dock or boat and paddle gently for about two hours. If you prefer to stay seated, choose the zodiac instead; both go out among the whales.
How big is the group, and who leads it?
The small group runs with 7 to 12 guests. A See Sight Tours guide travels with you from the first evening in Winnipeg to the arrival back at Winnipeg airport. Licensed local operators run the boats, zodiacs and kayaks, a Parks Canada guide leads the fort visit, and a naturalist with bear deterrents joins us outside town.
How fit do I need to be?
Not very. The boat and zodiac are seated, the coast road day is by van with short stops, and the longest walk is about 2 km over rock and gravel on the shore. You need to manage steps into small boats and the aircraft. Each day lists an easier way to do it, and the kayak is optional.
I am travelling solo. What does a single room cost?
A room of your own is from CAD 1,395 more, about 17 percent of the price, shown before you book and never added later. Churchill has few hotel rooms in summer, so ask early. Solo travellers are welcome on every departure and get the same seats, meals and time on the water as everyone else.
When is the best time to see belugas in Churchill?
July and early August are the surest weeks. The whales arrive in the estuary from about late June and most leave by late August, so we run this trip only in July and August. Days are long, with light until late evening, and temperatures are mild, though cool on the water.
How much does it cost, and how do I book?
The small group starts from CAD 7,995 per person sharing a room, taxes included, and the private trip from CAD 14,390. Pick a start date and request to book; we confirm your trip within 24 hours, and no payment is taken until we have confirmed it with you.
Can we travel privately or on our own dates?
Yes. The private trip is for your party only, on a date you choose in July or August, with your own guide. If you would rather travel independently on your own dates, ask us from the dates section and we will quote the same flights, hotels and whale outings without a guide.
Can I take the train to Churchill instead of flying?
The train from Winnipeg to Churchill runs, but it takes about two days each way, so it does not fit a six-day trip. We fly both ways to give you four nights in Churchill. If you want the train, ask us about a private version with extra days, and we will quote it.
Do I need a visa for Canada?
Many visitors do not need a visa but need an Electronic Travel Authorization (eTA) to fly to Canada; US citizens need only a valid passport. Others need a visitor visa. Check the Government of Canada site for your passport, and bring government photo ID for the flight to Churchill.
See Sight Tours has been providing travel services across North America since 2006. Operating in 20 cities across Canada and the USA, the company specializes in small group tours that offer personalized, high-quality experiences for travelers.
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