Whitehorse tours and things to do

Walk the 5 km Millennium Trail beside the Yukon River, see Miles Canyon, a few kilometres south of downtown, and visit the Yukon Wildlife Preserve, 30 minutes away. The S.S. Klondike grounds are open in 2026, but Parks Canada has closed the boat and buildings. Kluane National Park is 160 km west, and the aurora season runs from August to April. Voyzo lists 3 private tours here: a canyon boat ride, a Kluane day trip and an ice-fishing and aurora night.

Travel Yukon says Air North, the Yukon's airline, flies regularly to the Yukon from Vancouver, Calgary, Edmonton, Toronto, Ottawa, Kelowna, Victoria and Yellowknife, that Air Canada and other major airlines serve travellers from abroad, and that WestJet and Condor fly seasonally; its FAQ says air travellers fly into Erik Nielsen Whitehorse International Airport. By road, five main highways lead into the Yukon, three from Alaska and two from British Columbia, and Skagway, Alaska is a two-hour drive away. Check schedules with the airline (read 26 October 2026).

Parks Canada says Kluane National Park and Reserve is 160 km west of Whitehorse. Voyzo's private Kluane day trip collects you at your downtown hotel lobby and takes 9 to 10 hours, with a short hike at Sheep Mountain, Kathleen Lake if time allows and a lunch stop in Haines Junction (food not included). Parks Canada lists the Haines Junction Visitor Centre open daily from 15 May to 20 September (its page gives no year).

Yes, in season. Travel Yukon says the lights are visible in bigger communities such as Whitehorse, lists August to April as the season and 10 pm to 3 am as the best time, and advises clear skies and distance from light pollution; full-moon nights are brighter. No tour can promise a display, which depends on solar activity and cloud. Voyzo's ice-fishing and aurora night is a private 4-to-6-hour trip with pickup at your Whitehorse hotel.

It depends on the plan. Summer (June to August) has daily highs of about 18.5 to 20.5 °C, and Travel Yukon gives 18 to 22 hours of daylight across the Yukon. August to April is the aurora season, according to Travel Yukon. Winter is cold, with a January normal of −11.1 °C for the high and −18.9 °C for the low, and the Yukon Quest website lists a 6 February 2027 start for its Whitehorse-to-Dawson City race. Temperatures are 1991–2020 normals from Environment and Climate Change Canada.

January has a normal daily high of −11.1 °C and low of −18.9 °C, December −9.1 and −16.5 °C, and February −7.1 and −16.6 °C (Environment and Climate Change Canada, 1991–2020). Days with a maximum of −30 °C or colder average 2.3 a year, and the lowest temperature recorded in 1991–2020 was −46.6 °C in January 2005. Snowfall averages 147.6 cm a year, and Travel Yukon gives 5 to 11 hours of daylight across the Yukon from November to March.

Only its grounds. Parks Canada says the boat and buildings at S.S. Klondike National Historic Site are closed for the 2026 season during a long-term rehabilitation and the boat is not accessible to visitors; the grounds are open, and its Guided Tour App supports a self-guided visit. The page gave no reopening date when we checked on 26 October 2026. See the S.S. Klondike guide for the history.

The private Miles Canyon boat tour takes 2 to 3 hours and meets at the boat launch on Schwatka Lake. The boat, an 18-foot Canadian-made Alumarine, goes upstream through the basalt cliffs of Miles Canyon and past the Canyon City site. The tour page says some bookings are set for the evening around fishing charters, so the guide confirms the exact time. Bears, moose, loons and beavers are a possibility, not a promise.

Yes. The Yukon Wildlife Preserve says it is open year-round, daily 10 am to 6 pm, with winter hours of 11 am to 5 pm from 1 November, and that it does not open below −35 °C; its page also carries a Christmas Day closure dated 2024, so check holiday hours. Winter and spring bus tours run at noon and 3 pm from 1 November 2026 to 31 March 2027. On 26 October 2026 it listed adult general admission at CAD 20 and the bus tour at CAD 32 (youth aged 4 to 18: CAD 13 and CAD 25; infants 0 to 3 free with a parent or guardian; prices subject to change).

A passport matters if you arrive from outside Canada. The Canada Border Services Agency recommends that US citizens travel with a valid passport and also accepts other documents showing full name, date of birth and citizenship. Other international travellers must carry acceptable identification, with a passport the only reliable and universally accepted document, and may need a visa or an eTA. IRCC says visa-exempt travellers need an eTA to fly to or through a Canadian airport but not to arrive by car, bus, train or boat (IRCC page dated 23 April 2024; CBSA page modified 5 June 2026; both read 26 October 2026).

Yes. Whitehorse Transit lists all cash fares at CAD 3.50 and an adult monthly pass at CAD 87 (City of Whitehorse, read 26 October 2026; no effective date is stated). Miles Canyon, the Wildlife Preserve and Kluane are outside the downtown core. Voyzo's Kluane day trip and ice-fishing and aurora night pick you up at your hotel; the boat tour meets at the Schwatka Lake boat launch.

As read on 26 October 2026, the Yukon Quest website gives the 2027 race start as 6 February 2027 at 9:00 AM, listed as Whitehorse to Dawson City, with ceremonial-start details still to come and a new trail announced for 2027. The Yukon Sourdough Rendezvous society counts down to Rendezvous 2027 on 12 to 28 February. The Yukon River Quest paddle race (715 km, Whitehorse to Dawson City) is set for 23 to 26 June 2027, with registration opening on 1 November 2026. Organisers can change dates, so check their sites.