Arctic Summer Explorer: Road to the Arctic Sea

Duration: 7 Days | 6 Nights
Destination: Whitehorse - Dawson City - Eagle Plains - Inuvik - Tuktoyaktuk (Yukon and Northwest Territories, Canada)
Departure & Return Locations: Whitehorse Airport / Whitehorse Airport (includes the Inuvik - Whitehorse flight)
Skill level: Beginner | Group size: 4 - 16 participants
Activity: Sightseeing, history, wildlife viewing, First Nations and Inuvialuit culture, gold panning

Departure dates - Summer 2027:
07 Jun - 13 Jun 2027 (Whitehorse - Inuvik)
13 Jun - 19 Jun 2027 (Inuvik - Whitehorse)
28 Jun - 04 Jul 2027 (Whitehorse - Inuvik)
04 Jul - 10 Jul 2027 (Inuvik - Whitehorse)
19 Jul - 25 Jul 2027 (Whitehorse - Inuvik)
25 Jul - 31 Jul 2027 (Inuvik - Whitehorse)
16 Aug - 22 Aug 2027 (Whitehorse - Inuvik)
22 Aug - 28 Aug 2027 (Inuvik - Whitehorse)
The itinerary runs in reverse on every second departure, starting with the flight from Whitehorse to Inuvik and travelling south.

Drive the Dempster Highway - the only public road in North America to cross the Arctic Circle - from the Yukon capital to the Arctic Ocean under the midnight sun. The route follows ancient wildlife corridors and the trading routes of First Nations peoples, Klondike Gold Rush prospectors and North-West Mounted Police patrols, through some of the most varied country in Canada: the young, jagged Tombstone Mountains, the far older Ogilvie Mountains that escaped the last Ice Age, then open tundra beyond the Arctic Circle where the Richardson Mountains, the northern tip of the Rockies, come into view before the road drops into the vast Mackenzie River Delta.

Along the way you pan for gold in the Klondike, walk the boardwalks of Dawson City, toast the Arctic Circle with champagne, and finish in Inuvik, the "Place of Man", with a day trip on the all-weather road to the Inuvialuit village of Tuktoyaktuk on the Arctic coast - where you can dip your toes in the Arctic Ocean and share a traditional lunch in a local home.

Day 1: Arrive Whitehorse
Meet and greet at Whitehorse Airport and transfer to your downtown hotel. En route your guide offers a city highlights tour taking in the SS Klondike National Historic Site, the Old Log Church and the Log Cabin Skyscraper. Meet your fellow travellers at a group meeting this afternoon, where your guide reviews the itinerary and equipment. The rest of the afternoon and evening is free for last-minute shopping.
Overnight: Whitehorse

Day 2: Whitehorse - Dawson City
Before the late 1950s the only way to Dawson City was by paddlewheeler; today the 550 km is covered in a few hours along the Yukon River valley. Morning coffee stop at Braeburn Lodge, famous for its enormous cinnamon buns, then north on the Klondike Highway through Carmacks, Pelly Crossing and Stewart Crossing, with views of the Five Finger Rapids and a stop at the Tintina Trench lookout across the Yukon interior to the Ogilvie Mountains. After a relaxed dinner, an optional visit to Diamond Tooth Gerties Gambling Hall offers poker tables and can-can dancers.
Overnight: Dawson City

Day 3: Dawson City
A full day discovering the home of the world's greatest gold rush: the cabins of Jack London and Robert Service, the Dawson City Museum, then a drive into the Bonanza and Eldorado creeks to the historic Dredge No. 4 and a working gold mine, where you try your luck panning for gold in the Klondike. In the late afternoon drive up the Midnight Dome for sweeping views over Dawson City and the Yukon River. After a true northern dinner the evening is free to explore the boardwalks on foot.
Overnight: Dawson City

Day 4: Dawson City - Eagle Plains
An early start onto the Dempster Highway, completed in the late 1970s. Today's drive is the most scenic of the trip: the jagged peaks of Tombstone Territorial Park to the west, then the sweeping vistas of the Ogilvie Mountains. Watch the roadside for foxes, caribou and the occasional wolf, and stop for a picnic lunch at a creek-side campground where the grey jays - "camp robbers" to the locals - keep you company. Eagle Plains - a modest hotel, fuel station and highway maintenance base, the only settlement for roughly 300 km in either direction - feels like an oasis on arrival in the late afternoon.
Overnight: Eagle Plains

Day 5: Eagle Plains - Inuvik
First stop is the Arctic Circle crossing, marked with a celebratory glass of champagne. Cross the Richardson Mountains and the Peel and Mackenzie rivers to the Gwich'in community of Fort McPherson, a former Hudson's Bay trading post and resting place of the RNWMP "Lost Patrol" for whose corporal, Dempster, the highway is named. Inuvik was built by the Canadian government in the 1950s when nearby Aklavik was found to be sinking into the delta; its name means "Place of Man" in Inuvialuktun. Short orientation tour on the way to the hotel, then time to explore the town on foot in the long evening light.
Overnight: Inuvik

Day 6: Inuvik - Tuktoyaktuk - Inuvik (L)
Travel the Inuvik - Tuktoyaktuk Highway along the expansive Mackenzie Delta to the Arctic coast. Where the river meets the ocean the road turns north-east and follows the shoreline to the village of "Tuk". Near town rise the first of several pingos - hills of solid ice heaved up by the annual freeze and thaw, the tallest over 100 m. Local guides lead a tour of the village: the historic Our Lady of Lourdes schooner, traditional sod houses and churches, the former DEW Line early-warning site, and the chance to dip your toes in the Arctic Ocean. You are then invited into a resident's home for a traditional lunch and Inuit cultural experience. Return to Inuvik in the late afternoon.
Overnight: Inuvik

Day 7: Inuvik - Whitehorse
Transfer to Inuvik Airport for the southbound flight. Tour services end on arrival at Whitehorse Airport; add an extra night in Whitehorse or connect to your onward flight.

Tour Price
• Price shown is per person, twin share (double room), for the Summer 2027 departures listed above.
• Single room is available as an option above.
• Canadian GST of 5% is additional and will be added to your invoice.
• Children 7 - 17 years receive 25% off the adult rate; minimum age 7 years.
• Rates are valid for departures to 28 August 2027.
• Ask us about pre- and post-tour accommodation in Whitehorse and add-on tours in the Yukon.
• All prices displayed are subject to availability and can be withdrawn or varied without notice.
• Prices are guaranteed once the booking is confirmed by us and paid in full by the due date.
• Depending on your needs and group size (individual, couple, family, group) we will provide the final pricing for your tour.
• Itinerary is subject to change.

Inclusions:
• 6 nights hotel accommodation: Whitehorse (1), Dawson City (2), Eagle Plains (1), Inuvik (2)
• Traditional lunch and Inuit cultural experience in Tuktoyaktuk
• Expert guiding and all overland transportation for the entire tour
• City sightseeing tours in Whitehorse and Dawson City
• Guided gold panning tour
• Historic First Nation community tour in Tuktoyaktuk
• Arctic Circle ceremony
• Flight Inuvik - Whitehorse
• Whitehorse and Inuvik airport shuttles (04:00 - 21:00)

Exclusions:
• International and domestic airfares to and from Whitehorse
• 5% Canadian GST
• Meals other than the lunch in Tuktoyaktuk
• Diamond Tooth Gerties admission and other optional activities
• Travel insurance (required)
• Airport taxes and charges
• Personal expenses such as telephone calls, room service and laundry
• Gratuities for guide and driver
• Anything not specifically mentioned in the itinerary

Please note:
• Due to the nature of this tour, last-minute changes to the itinerary are possible and are at the discretion of the guide.
• Group tour deposit of 10% is due 14 days after confirmation; final payment 30 days before departure.
• Supplier cancellation fees apply: 10% any time after invoicing, 25% from 60 - 30 days before departure, 60% from 29 - 7 days, 100% within 7 days.
• Departures require a minimum of 4 participants. Book early - each departure is capped at 16.
• Comprehensive travel insurance is strongly recommended.

Please refer to our Standard Booking Conditions for booking terms and conditions.