u/Altruistic_Hat_796

In August 2026, I came to Churchill, Manitoba, for the second time for Frontiers North Adventure’s Belugas, Bears, and Blooms itinerary, which did not disappoint! They're a locally-owned company that knows the area extremely well and exhibits deep respect for the First Nation people and conservation, as well as being much less expensive than the luxury lodge options.

Our week-long tour began in Winnipeg with a welcome dinner and a night at an airport hotel. The next morning, we took a charter flight to Churchill, where our driver found four polar bears about five minutes away from the airport. Down on the beach, a mother polar bear and her two young cubs were frolicking; behind us, another big bear snoozed on a rock. This immediate viewing was a delightful surprise, especially for the guests who'd worried we wouldn't see any bears.

Mama bear and two cubs on the beach

Next, we carried on to our six-hour Tundra Buggy outing. These are FNA's proprietary design, a sort of bus on giant wheels that can navigate the rough and uneven terrain in the Churchill Wildlife Management Area, where bears come to hang out as they wait for the ice to form in the fall. Only one other company is permitted to join FNA in this area. For me, this activity had been a highlight the year before, when we’d seen numerous bears. This year, we were unlucky in the bear department, but we did enjoy sightings of caribou, marmots, and bald eagles.

FNA's electric Tundra Buggy

After, we headed to the Tundra Inn, which is owned by FNA, as are its sister restaurants: the Tundra Pub and the newer and nicer Ptarmigan. We had most of our meals at those two restaurants, placing our orders the night before from the set menus. At the inn, our bags were waiting for us in our room, which was small but serviceable in the new, still-under-construction wing.

My friend and I had joined Discover Churchill’s Aurora Call List—where they’ll call and come get you if the Northern Lights come out—but the weather didn't cooperate that evening.

The next morning, we went to the Sea North Tours (FNA's water-based partner) dock area for a beluga whale boat outing and Prince of Wales Fort tour. As the boat took one group to the fort, I climbed up a watch tower and, with my camera’s zoom, spotted a bear walking along the opposite bank! The captain returned to get us, eager to hurry over for a great ten minutes of enjoying the bear as it enjoyed its morning stroll. Then it was time to head out in search of belugas.

Bear seen from the boat

A charming beluga comes up to investigate

The thing is, during this season one doesn’t need to look for belugas in the Hudson Bay—they’re everywhere, and they are playful and interested in humans. It’s difficult to adequately express the sheer joy of seeing their sleek white bodies (grey for the babies) darting agilely nearby, occasionally thrusting their faces out of the water to give you a mischievous grin.

At the fort, we were greeted by a young Parks Canada employee, who led us along a boardwalk and told us about the fort's history. She also told us there had been a mother bear with two cubs walking around just a few minutes ago, only to disappear from even the sight of the two bear guards stationed around the area.

That afternoon, we visited Wapusk Adventures, a dog mushing operation run by an Indigenous family. It was too warm to go for a dog cart ride, but Dave, the owner, kept us captive talking about Metis culture and his extensive mushing experience. The cherry on top was getting to visit the sled dogs and an adorable litter of six-week-old puppies.

Sled dog puppies!

From there, we went on a quick area tour on our bus, visiting Churchill’s famous polar bear jail and local-favorite Miss Piggy plane crash site. While at the latter, an eagle-eyed guest spotted a distant bear coming up from the shore. We hopped onto the bus and took to the road until we had a good angle to watch the bear approach. She took her time working her way around boulders until she was close enough for us to take pictures with our phones (very fortunate since somehow my companion and I both left our cameras back at the lodge).

iPhone photo of a bear

Later, the weather cleared and we got the exciting call from Discover Churchill: we were on tonight! They picked us up around 10 p.m. and took us out on a back road. Just as we were parking, the Northern Lights briefly burst across the sky. It faded quickly, but we'd had our moment.

A couple of spectacular minutes of the Aurora

The next morning, we took a field trip to the Itsanitaq Museum, which contains a remarkable collection of Indigenous artifacts. The curator gave us an informative and interesting talk about the history of the region and its Indigenous people.

That afternoon was kayaking with belugas, my most anticipated part of the trip, and it did not disappoint. Usually, when you go wildlife viewing you’re advised to be unobtrusive. That’s not the case with belugas; instead, we were encouraged to sing, splash the water, and paddle wildly to grab their attention. What happened next were a blissful few hours of paddling. I went backwards and got a group of them to follow me; I sang and they came to bump my kayak; I stuck my GoPro in the water and they gave it a curious nudge. Such fun!

Kayaking doesn't get better than this

Belugas smiling at the GoPro

The next morning found us at the dock again, this time to board zodiacs—inflatable, motorized rafts—for our last beluga experience. The belugas were even more intrigued by the engines, following us around in droves and putting on a show. We took a break from the whales to check out a solitary polar bear snoozing on a rock. It’s always a delight to see a bear, even one that’s asleep, but we quickly decided we’d rather play with the belugas some more.

Beluga showing off for one of the zodiacs

That afternoon, we went to the Parks Canada Visitor Centre, which is located inside the train station and contains some interesting exhibits. An enthusiastic and engaging Parks Canada representative talked to us about the history of the region. After, our driver Tim agreed to go looking for polar bears. We drove around the outskirts of town, searching, and ultimately were thrilled to come upon a bear chilling on some rocks. This was our last of the trip and we had a great time watching as she slept, got rained on, and finally leapt up and ran when startled by a loud crack of thunder.

Bear in the rain

That evening was a fascinating presentation from Stanley Spencer, an Indigenous man who spent most of his life making a living as a trapper. He talked about his experiences and provided great insight into that way of life.

Finally, it was our last morning. Our final activity was a visit to Polar Bears International, a conservation nonprofit founded by and working in partnership with FNA. There, we learned about the threats polar bears face, along with interesting facts about their lives and habits.

At last, it was time to go. We took another charter flight back to Winnipeg, where we had a farewell dinner and a last night at the airport hotel.

Overall, it was a fantastic trip and we saw everything we hoped and more. In total, there were about ten polar bears along with hundreds or thousands of belugas and five minutes of terrific Aurora Borealis. In addition to the nature aspect, the educational pieces were extremely well done; they were all interesting and just long enough to teach us something without letting our attention wander. Meals were delicious, but repetitive. We didn’t love our room, but we didn’t spend much time there.

FNA’s well-priced tours are an excellent alternative to Churchill Wild’s more immersive, but much more expensive, lodges (last time, I stayed at Seal River Heritage Lodge, which was amazing). For a more comparable experience to Churchill Wild, I would love to come back in the fall and stay at FNA's Tundra Buggy Lodge in the Churchill Wildlife Management Area, with bears walking around and the potential for the lights dancing overhead.

Hi all--I missed the sign-up for PR1 for the dates I'll be in Madeira since I was in transit. Looking for two slots on either May 8th or 9th if anyone has extras!