Northwest Territories Tourist Map

Description:
This map shows cities, towns, villages, rivers, lakes, heritage rivers, Trans-Canada trail, paved surface, unpaved surface, dempster highways, canol hiking routes, ingraham trails, liard trails, frontier trails, great slave routes, waterfalls routes, wood buffalo routes, ferries, historical sites, day use parks, national parks, diamond mines, and visitor information centres in the Northwest Territories.

Tourism in Northwest Territories

The Northwest Territories (NWT) is a federal territory of Canada that attracts visitors with its vast wilderness, indigenous cultural heritage, and unique Arctic and sub-Arctic landscapes. Tourism in the territory focuses primarily on adventure travel, wildlife viewing, and natural phenomena such as the aurora borealis. The tourism industry contributes significantly to the territorial economy, with most activity concentrated during the summer months from June to August, though winter tourism has grown substantially due to aurora viewing opportunities.

Geography and Climate

The Northwest Territories covers approximately 1,346,106 square kilometers, making it the third-largest political subdivision in Canada. The territory extends from the 60th parallel north to the Arctic Ocean and includes portions of the Canadian Shield, Interior Plains, and Arctic Archipelago.

The climate varies significantly across the territory. Yellowknife, the capital and largest city, experiences a subarctic climate with long, cold winters and short, warm summers. January temperatures average -26°C, while July averages reach 17°C. The northern regions experience polar climate conditions with continuous permafrost. The extreme seasonal variation in daylight, including the midnight sun in summer and polar night in winter, shapes the tourism calendar and visitor experiences.

Major Tourist Destinations

Yellowknife

Yellowknife serves as the primary entry point for most visitors to the Northwest Territories and functions as the territory's tourism hub. The city offers urban amenities alongside wilderness access and is recognized internationally as one of the premier locations for viewing the aurora borealis. The Prince of Wales Northern Heritage Centre, the territory's primary museum, houses collections related to natural history and indigenous cultures. The Old Town district, situated on rocky outcrops of the Canadian Shield along Yellowknife Bay, preserves buildings from the gold mining era and provides heritage walking tours.

Nahanni National Park Reserve

Nahanni National Park Reserve, established in 1976, became one of the first UNESCO World Heritage Sites in 1978. The park protects 30,000 square kilometers of the Mackenzie Mountains natural region. Virginia Falls, with a drop of 96 meters—nearly twice the height of Niagara Falls—serves as the park's centerpiece. The South Nahanni River, flowing through deep canyons with limestone walls reaching heights of 1,200 meters, attracts experienced paddlers and rafting expeditions. The park is accessible only by floatplane, with no road access, limiting visitor numbers but preserving its wilderness character.

Wood Buffalo National Park

Wood Buffalo National Park straddles the border between the Northwest Territories and Alberta, with approximately one-third of its area in the NWT. Established in 1922, the park covers 44,807 square kilometers, making it Canada's largest national park. The park protects the last remaining natural nesting site of the endangered whooping crane and hosts one of the world's largest free-roaming bison herds. The Peace-Athabasca Delta, one of the world's largest inland freshwater deltas, provides critical habitat for migratory waterfowl. The park achieved UNESCO World Heritage status in 1983.

Tuktoyaktuk

Tuktoyaktuk, an Inuvialuit hamlet on the Arctic Ocean coast, became accessible by road in 2017 with the completion of the Inuvik-Tuktoyaktuk Highway. The community offers visitors the opportunity to reach the Arctic Ocean by road and experience coastal Arctic landscape features including pingos—ice-cored hills unique to permafrost regions. The Tuktoyaktuk area contains approximately 1,350 pingos, representing one-quarter of the world's total. Tourism infrastructure remains limited, reflecting the community's size of approximately 900 residents.

Tourism Activities

Aurora Viewing

The Northwest Territories markets itself under the brand "Spectacular Northwest Territories" with aurora viewing as a primary attraction. Yellowknife's location beneath the auroral oval makes aurora visibility possible approximately 240 nights per year. The peak season runs from mid-November through early April, when extended darkness hours maximize viewing opportunities. Specialized tourism operators provide heated viewing facilities, photography assistance, and cultural experiences combined with aurora viewing. The territory maintains an Aurora forecast system to help visitors optimize their viewing times.

Wildlife Watching

Wildlife viewing opportunities in the Northwest Territories include observations of barren-ground caribou, muskoxen, grizzly bears, black bears, wolves, and numerous bird species. The Bathurst caribou herd, though significantly reduced from historical numbers, still undertakes migrations that can be observed from specific locations. Polar bears can be viewed in coastal areas, though viewership is less developed than in Churchill, Manitoba. Birdwatching attracts specialists seeking Arctic species, with the territory lying along multiple migratory flyways.

Paddling and River Expeditions

The territory's extensive river systems attract paddling enthusiasts seeking multi-day wilderness expeditions. Beyond the Nahanni, notable paddling destinations include the Thelon River, which flows through the Thelon Wildlife Sanctuary, one of the largest wildlife sanctuaries in North America. The Coppermine River, historically significant to indigenous peoples and Arctic exploration, offers challenging paddling through the barren lands to the Arctic Ocean. These expeditions typically require significant planning, wilderness skills, and often floatplane logistics due to remote starting points and takeout locations.

Fishing

Sport fishing in the Northwest Territories targets species including lake trout, Arctic grayling, northern pike, and inconnu. Great Slave Lake, covering 27,200 square kilometers and reaching depths exceeding 600 meters, produces trophy-class lake trout. Numerous fly-in fishing lodges operate on remote lakes, offering guided fishing experiences. The short but intensive sport fishing season runs primarily from June through September, with ice fishing available during winter months. All fishing requires licenses, and catch limits apply to protect fish populations.

Cultural and Indigenous Tourism

Indigenous peoples, including the Dene, Métis, and Inuvialuit, constitute approximately half of the Northwest Territories population and maintain cultural traditions that increasingly feature in tourism offerings. Several communities offer cultural tourism experiences including traditional skills demonstrations, guided land-based programs, and cultural festivals. The Great Northern Arts Festival, held annually in Inuvik, showcases indigenous and northern art across multiple media. The Folk on the Rocks music festival in Yellowknife, running since 1980, features northern and indigenous artists alongside national acts.

Indigenous tourism operators provide specialized experiences including dog sledding, snowshoe trips, traditional food preparation, and storytelling. These programs serve both tourism and cultural preservation objectives. The Northwest Territories Tourism association promotes indigenous tourism through specific marketing initiatives recognizing both economic development potential and authentic cultural exchange opportunities.

Infrastructure and Access

Yellowknife Airport serves as the primary aviation gateway with scheduled jet service from Edmonton, Calgary, Vancouver, and Ottawa. Regional airlines connect smaller communities, with many accessible only by air year-round. The Dempster Highway, extending from Yukon to Inuvik, provides the only public road access to the Arctic Ocean in North America following the completion of its extension to Tuktoyaktuk. The Mackenzie Highway connects Yellowknife to southern Canada through Alberta.

Accommodation options in Yellowknife include hotels, bed and breakfasts, and specialized aurora viewing lodges. Outside the capital, options include fishing lodges, Parks Canada facilities in national parks, and limited hotel accommodation in larger communities. Many wilderness tourism activities involve camping or remote lodge-based operations. The territorial government maintains campgrounds along highway corridors.

Economic Impact

Tourism expenditure in the Northwest Territories reached approximately $179 million in 2019, according to territorial government statistics, supporting about 2,100 jobs. The industry faces challenges including high operational costs, short peak seasons, and dependence on long-haul visitors given the territory's remote location. The territorial government provides tourism operator support through marketing assistance, product development programs, and infrastructure investments. The COVID-19 pandemic severely impacted tourism operations beginning in 2020, with recovery ongoing as of 2024.

Environmental Considerations

Tourism development in the Northwest Territories occurs within the context of environmental sensitivity and climate change impacts. Permafrost degradation, changing ice conditions, and wildlife population fluctuations affect tourism operations and experiences. The territorial government emphasizes sustainable tourism principles, and several operators maintain third-party sustainability certifications. Parks Canada manages visitor numbers in some locations to minimize environmental impact. The remoteness of many destinations naturally limits tourism volumes, though this also creates waste management and environmental protection challenges in areas lacking infrastructure.

Traditional indigenous land use and contemporary tourism sometimes intersect, requiring consultation and partnership approaches. Several indigenous governments have established protected areas that incorporate both conservation and cultural heritage protection objectives while permitting low-impact tourism activities.

Maps of Northwest Territories: | Large detailed map of the Northwest Territories with cities and towns | Northwest Territories Road Map | Northwest Territories National Parks Map | Northwest Territories Travel Map | Northwest Territories Official Languages Map | How to get to the Northwest Territories Map | Northwest Territories Campgrounds Map | Northwest Territories Explorers Map | Northwest Territories Physical Map