Sea North Tours
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Detailed Reviews: Reviews order informed by descriptiveness of user-identified themes such as cleanliness, atmosphere, general tips and location information.
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Eva L
Cupertino, CA139 contributions
Nov. 2021
We did the half day ( 4 hours) city tour of Churchill in November with North Star which I believe is the same as Sea North Tours since they have the same address.
The tour was amazing, our local guide Jeremy whose family has been there for several generations. The first stop is the house built by his great grand parents. We also visited the polar jail, Miss piggy, shipwreck Ithaca ( from a distance), Churchill northern study center and the rocket facility. Jeremy knows a lot about Churchill and polar bears in general, both he and his dad had close encounters with polar bears. To top that off, we saw three polar bears while we were driving around. We stopped the van, Jeremy let us out and took pictures. The bear was as close as 50 ft from us, but Jeremy had his rifle with him. In case of emergency he can fire warning shot to scare off the polar bear. Fortunately nothing happens, the bear was just moving away slowly. The tour exceeded all my expectations by far! If you have half day to spend, this tour is highly recommended!
The tour was amazing, our local guide Jeremy whose family has been there for several generations. The first stop is the house built by his great grand parents. We also visited the polar jail, Miss piggy, shipwreck Ithaca ( from a distance), Churchill northern study center and the rocket facility. Jeremy knows a lot about Churchill and polar bears in general, both he and his dad had close encounters with polar bears. To top that off, we saw three polar bears while we were driving around. We stopped the van, Jeremy let us out and took pictures. The bear was as close as 50 ft from us, but Jeremy had his rifle with him. In case of emergency he can fire warning shot to scare off the polar bear. Fortunately nothing happens, the bear was just moving away slowly. The tour exceeded all my expectations by far! If you have half day to spend, this tour is highly recommended!
Written November 16, 2021
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews.
Cory M
2 contributions
Jul. 2021 • Solo
The beluga kayak tour was my favorite. I would also try the standup paddle board as you have more of a birds eye view of what is under the water.
Written July 27, 2021
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews.
Susan C
2 contributions
Aug. 2020 • Family
What an amazing experience to go out on a zodiac and kayak to see the beautiful belugas! Our guide, Nokia (sorry if spelt incorrectly), took us right to the belugas! I can only describe our encounters as “out of this world”. These creatures want to play with us, and are so intelligent. I feel grateful to have had this experience. As a Manitoban, I would not have been able to afford this trip if it weren’t for this pandemic. Everyone should be able to experience this. Cannot say enough about beautiful Churchill and it’s people!
Written August 23, 2020
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews.
Heather M
2 contributions
Aug. 2020
If you are looking to get up close and personal with the amazing wildlife in Churchill this is the company you want to use!
Our family of 7 booked 3 seperate tours including: zodiak with belugas, whales and fort tour, and kayaking with whales. We definitely had a blast, and managed to spot whales, seals, and polar bears during our excursions.
Our guide Alex was knowledgeable, freindly and keen to get us the best views possible.
The company provides timely shuttles, and is centrally located in it's sister company The Polar Inn (highly reccommend that you stay here!).
Safety for humans and animals was very important and this company is the only one in operation in Churchill that uses prop guards to keep the whales safe from propellors.
Don't hestitate, these are the guys you want to use!
Our family of 7 booked 3 seperate tours including: zodiak with belugas, whales and fort tour, and kayaking with whales. We definitely had a blast, and managed to spot whales, seals, and polar bears during our excursions.
Our guide Alex was knowledgeable, freindly and keen to get us the best views possible.
The company provides timely shuttles, and is centrally located in it's sister company The Polar Inn (highly reccommend that you stay here!).
Safety for humans and animals was very important and this company is the only one in operation in Churchill that uses prop guards to keep the whales safe from propellors.
Don't hestitate, these are the guys you want to use!
Written August 20, 2020
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews.
Shayna Giesbrecht
4 contributions
Jul. 2020
My partner and I did the beluga zodiak tour and it was honestly one of the coolest things I have every experienced. The belugas would come right up to our boat to say hello and followed us around for a while. We were on the water for about an hour and the whales were right with us for a good 55 minutes of that at least. We definitely got our monies worth. If you're lucky, you may even see polar bears because you get a good view of the bedrock along the coast. They even shuttled us from our hotel to the boat launch!
Written August 7, 2020
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews.
KPS
Winnipeg, Canada7 contributions
Aug. 2019
Our family of 3 did TWO tours with Sea North. Kayaking with Belugas and Sloops Cove Hike. Kayaking was the highlight. I took my action cam and got lots of excellent video of belugas right beside me. My son said belugas were nudging his kayak and then followed him back to the beach when the time was over. Although I didn't have any nudges, belugas would bob up and down watching me like they were waiting for me to throw something so they could fetch it. They were amazing!
Sloops Cove was a fascinating tour of history. The hike was along the shoreline of the Churchill River and ended at the Fort. We even saw a caribou along the way. Our guide was an Indigenous woman who grew up in Churchill, so her stories and insights were second to none. The hike itself was a little too far for our 12yr old son, but he made it. Boating across the River to Sloops Cove also afforded us some beluga whale watching time, so really with this tour you get to do some whale watching and do a historic hike along the Churchill River.
Sloops Cove was a fascinating tour of history. The hike was along the shoreline of the Churchill River and ended at the Fort. We even saw a caribou along the way. Our guide was an Indigenous woman who grew up in Churchill, so her stories and insights were second to none. The hike itself was a little too far for our 12yr old son, but he made it. Boating across the River to Sloops Cove also afforded us some beluga whale watching time, so really with this tour you get to do some whale watching and do a historic hike along the Churchill River.
Written January 17, 2020
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews.
Robdiner
9 contributions
Aug. 2019
What a trip highlight! Sitting on an inflatable boat in the center of the Churchill river, surrounded by hundreds of Beluga whales and watching a Polar Bear with cub on the shoreline. The Sea North Whale Estuary tour lived up to all expectations. Their representative (boat captain) was very knowledgeable about the whales, which just ignored us and swam within pods around the river inlet; and the representatives went out of their way to put us in the best position on the river to see the polar bears. Would highly recommend this company and this tour. The best time to catch both whales and possibly polar bears is in August.
Written December 1, 2019
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews.
phenning2347
Mandalay, Myanmar121 contributions
Jul. 2019
I am a little disappointed with Sea North's service. We asked several times to either go kayaking with the beluga whales or to go out on a zodiac. All we were offered was a beluga/fort tour or a Sloop Cove/fort tour. Yet when I chatted with others in town, they said they had gone kayaking with the belugas, on zodiac and even paddle boarding with the belugas. Perhaps during the days when we were there, there were no available times? I am not sure what the reasons... But I am disappointed...
Nevertheless, since we came all that way to see the beluga whales, we settled for the beluga and fort tour... The tour times correspond with the tides, so it can vary a lot from day to day. Ours was in the evening, returning shortly before sunset. It had been cloudy all day but the sun came out towards evening and the whales became quite active. Unfortunately because of the dark skies, we were not able to view too deep into the water.
We saw hundreds of belugas - many mothers swam with their calves right at their sides. It was also interesting to hear the whales on hydrophone.
We would have preferred a more intimate experience in a kayak or on a zodiac rather than the Sea North II.
The fort is also well worth seeing, although it is difficult to compare with the wildlife.. but it really is quite a unique historical site in Canada.
Nevertheless, since we came all that way to see the beluga whales, we settled for the beluga and fort tour... The tour times correspond with the tides, so it can vary a lot from day to day. Ours was in the evening, returning shortly before sunset. It had been cloudy all day but the sun came out towards evening and the whales became quite active. Unfortunately because of the dark skies, we were not able to view too deep into the water.
We saw hundreds of belugas - many mothers swam with their calves right at their sides. It was also interesting to hear the whales on hydrophone.
We would have preferred a more intimate experience in a kayak or on a zodiac rather than the Sea North II.
The fort is also well worth seeing, although it is difficult to compare with the wildlife.. but it really is quite a unique historical site in Canada.
Written September 5, 2019
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews.
gulfcoastbreezes
St. Petersburg, FL142 contributions
Aug. 2019
We signed up for a zodiac tour and were blessed with a perfect weather day. Getting off and on the zodiac is quite easy because they use a very sturdy step stool. This is important for people like me with arthritic knees. So they can accommodate some degree of mobility issues. But talk to Louise at the counter where you book your tour to make sure you can get on and off the boat safely. You should talk to Louise just because she is Louise! Very nice person who makes sure you are going to get on the perfect tour. Now on to the magic of the experience - we saw hundreds of beluga whales. Beluga whales are guaranteed in August because they migrate into the Churchill river to have their babies. So while the whales were magical and lovely and exciting, our hearts stopped when a mother polar bear and her cub wandered down to the beach. Our guide maneuvered the zodiac as close as was legal and safe for the bear. It was an unbelievable moment. Could not have been more perfect. All the guides we met were really friendly and knowledgeable. I highly recommend this company.
Written August 31, 2019
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews.
Monique P
Winnipeg, Canada15 contributions
Aug. 2019
We took 2 excursions: Belugas and Fort tour and kayaking. Both were excellent. Great guides - Thanks to Lindsey, Remi and Mr. Jeremy for. Your knowledge and guidance. Absolutely incredible experience to kayak with beluga whales! We very much enjoyed the playfulness and curiosity of these gentle giants. We dressed in layers (tights, wind pants, sweats, and 4 layers on top plus a touque) and were very comfortable on the water for almost 3 hours in 11 degree weather.
Written August 28, 2019
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews.
Is May too early in the year to see belugas in Churchill? Thanks!
Hello, yes it is too early. The bay is still frozen at that time. Whales arrive in July when the ice breaks up
Jenna R
Winnipeg, Canada60 contributions
Does it make a big difference if you go in the middle of August vs. the last week of August? Or is the experience just as good in all of August?
Danielle K
Winnipeg, Canada81 contributions
Late august is the tail end of the season, so best to go in late July/ early august
Lisa_in_Maple_Ridge
Maple Ridge, Canada10 contributions
I'm wondering why you took two kayak trips. Are they different trips or did you just enjoy the first so much you repeated the same trip?
Thanks, Lisa
Likely she enjoyed it so much she went twice! Many people do! Different conditions can definitely make for a different experience!