Routes · North America

Jakarta to Canada's north: Yellowknife

Jakarta → Yellowknife

Northern lights over the tundra Best season (general guide): Dec–Mar, Aug–Sep

Yellowknife, on the shore of Great Slave Lake and the only city in the Northwest Territories, sits under the auroral oval, which makes it one of the best places in the world to see the northern lights. This route spends five nights in the city, giving you several chances of clear skies. From Jakarta you'll connect via Vancouver or Calgary to Yellowknife.

How to pace it: arrive and walk Old Town, with its houseboats and a hill overlooking the lake. Book aurora viewing for the second night and keep later nights free to try again, as the lights depend on clear weather; tour operators take visitors to cabins outside the city. Spend day three at the Prince of Wales Northern Heritage Centre, which tells the story of the Dene and other peoples of the north, day four on the Ingraham Trail, a road east of the city past lakes and forest, and day five on Great Slave Lake, the deepest lake in North America at more than 600 metres.

Some background helps: Yellowknife began as a gold-mining town in the 1930s, became the territorial capital in 1967 and is named after the copper knives carried by a local Dene group. The Yellowknives Dene First Nation live in the neighbouring communities of Ndilǫ and Dettah. Whitefish and bison are on local menus.

When to go: the aurora is visible on many clear nights from late August to April. Late summer is milder and good for hiking or paddling; winter brings the frozen lake and, in some years, an ice road and the Snowking Winter Festival's snow castle on the bay.

Cold-weather advice: the average January temperature is around −26 °C, and Health Canada notes that frostbite risk rises at wind chills below −27. Dress in layers with a wind-resistant outer layer, wear warm socks, gloves, a hat and a scarf over your nose, choose wool or synthetic fabrics rather than cotton, and change out of wet clothing quickly. Waiting outside for the aurora is the coldest part of the trip, so bring more layers than you think you need.

Safety: the US rates Canada Level 1 (5 Jun 2026); for Canadians this is a domestic trip.

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