Heartland International Travel and Tours - Winnipeg, Manitoba

Nik O. T. T. A.

This issa post for animal lovers. Completed the Big 5 of Africa so now starting the Arctic Big 5. Which is Polar Bear, Moose, Beluga Whale, Caribou and Arctic Fox.

I checked my Palm Pilot...looks like I wasn't doing shyt. So let's Nik it! Whoop Whoop!

For those that don't know the back story...this trip is 2 years in the making. After we went to the bottom of the world to Antarctica to see the penguins, we were going to go to the top of the world, the Arctic to see the Polar Bears. Welp, I was accepted to a business Cohort, which was at the same time as the Arctic trip. So I chose the Cohort. Very happy with that decision. The experience was amazing, but the sisterhood connection has been the best thing. And guess what? They didn't see any polar bears on that cruise.

So I had to find a different way to get my polar bear fix. After some research found out about Churchill Manitoba Canada, which has the largest concentration of polar bears in the world. Booom that's it! Every tour was 6 days though. I don't need 6 days of polar bears. Lol. I need an in and out. After more research found a vendor that did day trips from Winnipeg and was about a quarter of the price. Heartland Travel! Perfect. Let's Nik It.

Hold on gurlie...SOLD OUT for the 2023 season. See, the season is only 4 weeks. And the tour only runs 4 times in the season. So 160 people. What!?! It's like that for the Polar Bears? Ok Jayde, the Owner, as soon as you start accepting reservations I want in. She held to her word and contacted me. Done Deal. Been excited all year for this.

Flew into Winnipeg the night before. Stayed at the Fabulous Fairmont Winnipeg. Great service, gold lounge was nice with good food. Plush robes and beds are my thing when it comes to hotels. The bed...ouuuweee. The thread count was threading. Turned in early for the big day.

Had to be at the private airport by 0530. Realized I left my gloves. Dammit. My hands are fina fall off. Flight departed at 0615. 40 of us total. 2.5 hours we were in Churchill. That cold slapped you straight in the face saying "wake-up you made it".

We board the big Tundra Trucks. Very warm inside so gloves were not missed. No danger of my hands falling off. There were 84 eyes onboard looking for polar bears. When you see the first one...it's just magical. Our first was a mom and cub. The tour guide Markus gives you so much information you are just continously saying WOW!

The Hudson Bay has started to freeze over. It was -5 celsius. The bears need it to be -40 celsius. So they can start their hunting season.

- they eat ring seals which are very fatty. They catch them lying on the floating ice. They probably catch 1 out of 20. I'm fat, so I stayed out of direct eyesight in case they wanted an appetizer before the season officially started.

- We saw a total of 8 polar bears through out the the day. Sleeping, walking around, lounging and sparring. You aren't guaranteed to see any so was very happy with the 8.

We stopped for lunch and they can smell up to 20 miles away so a PB came very close to the truck it was amazing.

-No you can't get out of the truck
-No you can't pet them
- these are NOT domesticated/trained PBs they WILD animals that can/will KILL you. We couldn't even lean over the side in case one snatched you over. So let's not FAaFO.

Churchill is so secluded that you can't even drive there. You can only arrive by train or plane. You have to put your car on the train, travel for two hours to the first official road.

- A gallon of milk is $17.00 because everything has to be brought in.

We had dinner and were able to do some souvenir shopping. The town basically shuts down around 2000.

The return flight landed about 2330. I was back in my cozy bed by midnight.

Another item checked off of my life list.

Have to go back in the Spring/Summer for the Moose, Caribou, Arctic Fox and Beluga Whales and will be doing that with Heartland and Jayde as well!

L G.

Our day tour to Churchill was wonderful! From the time we booked the tour over 8 months ago, Jayde, the owner, was always accessible and prompt to respond to questions. We had been wanting to go to see the polar bears in Churchill for a long time but could never find a company to use that we felt would work well for us. A friend of a friend told her about the Heartland tour to Churchill and recommended it. Our friend told us and we all booked together. This was the most organized tour we have ever done. Everything was on schedule and ran smoothly. The day tour included hotel pick up in Winnipeg, charter flight round trip from Winnipeg to Churchill with breakfast on the flight, transfer to tundra buggy with Frontiers North, a full day tour in the buggy with a delicious lunch served that included a huge turkey wrap, salad and the best homemade soup that was perfect for a cold day. They also had soft drinks, coffee, tea and hot chocolate during the tour. The Buggy also has a toilet inside. The only thing you have to bring is your own bottle/s of water if you want water during the tour. We had a great time viewing the polar bears and the buggy driver was experienced and we felt very comfortable with him. Jayde also accompanied us on the tour and was always pleasant and helpful. After the transfer from the buggy back to the bus, we went into the quaint little town of Churchill for an included dinner with a half dozen choices from a set menu and a little over an hour to buy souvenirs at a few stores near the restaurant. Bus transfer back to the airport for the charter flight back to Winnipeg with drinks and snacks served on the flight. A bus was waiting for us when we landed and a smooth and fast transfer back to our hotel. When you do tours that involve animals in the wild, there is no guarantee you will see anything and also no guarantee about the weather. We were lucky with both and had good weather and viewing of the bears. The buggy driver got as close to them as he could- but regardless of the weather and visibility of the bears, I would highly recommend this company because it was very organized and well run and we were well looked after. Would love to go back and do another one of their summer tours. Thanks to Jayde for a most memorable day!

Ken H.

Having just completed the quest for the bay snowmobile tour, I can only say that it was nothing short of amazing! Everything that was done by Jayde including communication was great and the execution of the trip by Remi and Claude was flawless. No disappointments at all and everything exceeded expectations. Totally worth every cent.

Len E.

We just spent four wonderful days in Churchill Manitoba. We set up our trip with Northstar Tours and Heartland International Tours. They looked after all the details from beginning to end. Remi and his staff at Northstar were the absolute best. Very knowledgeable about the polar bears and other animals around Churchill. Jade, from Heartland, set up all of our travel details and tours to perfection. We saw at least 20 polar bears in their natural habitat and so much more. I would recommend these two companies if you are planning a trip to Churchill. They made the adventure absolutely perfect. Thanks to you both and we look forward to returning this Summer to see the Beluga Whales.

John Y.

Jade, Marcus Remy and Mike were excellent host/guides.Their educational,ecological, enviromental and habitat FIRST approach was impressive! Our day was blessed many polar bear sightings and rare displays of multiple playful sparring. Would HIGHLY RECOMMEND Heartland Tours for their trip.jy

Yvonne J.

I just completed a polar bear tour with this company and was very disappointed. It started off with a two hour delay allegedly because the contracted flight attendant did not show up. This time was not made up to the tour group. There was also considerable time wasted on the tour and very poor communication. I had wanted to go see polar bears for years and feel that this company served our group very poorly. There were bears on the tour that the driver could have stopped and allowed the group to see but he made excuses as to why he couldn’t. In discussion with other tourists it is estimated that we spent approximately one and a half hours on the tundra viewing bears. It was our understanding based on the itinerary that we would have at least four hours viewing bears.

Bill R.

Jayde and Heartland Tours delivered the most amazing experience.

Lord S.

Właściwie to mogę tylko napisać, że wycieczka nie doszła do skutku, bo nie dogadaliśmy się. Opis i cena są bardzo zachęcające, ale obsługa domaga się podania danych karty za pomocą mejla lub telefonu (w tym danych wrażliwych jak kod CVV/CVC). Prośba o udostępnienie płatności Paypalem (lub tego typu płatnością online) została odrzucona, w zamian zaproponowano mi płatności czekami (w 2024). Patrząc na to, może i lepiej, że mi anulowali wycieczkę, bo nie wiem czy dane mojej karty (i osobowe) są tu należycie chronione.