Churchill Wild co-founders and owners Mike and Jeanne Reimer with the Honourable Nellie Kennedy, Minister of Sport, Culture, Heritage and Tourism (right). George Williams photo.
Churchill Wild’s first-ever awareness event at the Little Brown Jug in Winnipeg on February 6, 2025, was a resounding success.
Dignitaries in attendance included the Honourable Nellie Kennedy, Minister of Sport, Culture, Heritage and Tourism and MLA for Assiniboia, and Senator Don Plett.
The event was designed to showcase Churchill Wild’s world-renowned polar bear walking safaris based out of our three remote ecolodges on Manitoba’s Hudson Bay coast. It also introduced the company’s newest property, the Blueberry Inn in Churchill, to leaders and professionals in Manitoba’s tourism, hospitality, and media sectors, and offered a chance to network with the best of the best while mingling over an exquisite selection of cured meats, fine cheeses, fresh fruits, and artisanal breads prepared by local favourite Sharecuterie.
An exquisite selection of cured meats, fine cheeses, fresh fruits, and artisanal breads were prepared by local favourite Sharecuterie.
Notable Tourism Professionals in Attendance
Notable Manitoba tourism professionals in attendance included Doug and Helen Webber, parents of Churchill Wild co-founder and owner Jeanne Reimer, and the builders of Manitoba’s first five-star fishing lodge in the 1980s, North Knife Lake Lodge; Gary Bell and Tara Elder-Young (Calm Air); Doren Roberts (Winnipeg Art Gallery), Scott Anderson, Trevor Hnatowich, and Katrina Zborowsky (Enjoy Creative); Joseph Moysiuk (Manitoba Museum); Kit Muir and Melanie Swenarchuk (Travel Manitoba); and Doreen Booth (Indigenous Tourism Manitoba).
Happy crowd enjoying Mike Reimer’s speech at Churchill Wild’s first-ever Winnipeg awareness event. George Williams photo.
Prominent tourism professionals at the event also included Keith and Linda Levit, Carla Foster and Brookelynn Blanco (Lakeview Hotels); Trevor Gill (Build Films); Chris Stefura (BFL Insurance); Ida Albo (Fort Garry Hotel); Stephanie Thorassie (Seal River Watershed); Senator Don Plett and wife Betty; Lilian Tankard (Travel Industry Association of Manitoba); Michelle Conan and Tracey Heminger (Royal Canadian Mint), and Camila Quintanilla (Sparrow Hotels).
Surrounded by Manitoba’s tourism leaders, the evening was an ideal moment to reflect on Churchill Wild’s extraordinary evolution from a single lodge to a world-class collection of Arctic destinations.
L to R: Helen Webber, Betty Plett, Senator Don Plett, Doug Webber. George Williams photo.
Walking with Polar Bears: A Pioneering Adventure
Churchill Wild pioneered the world’s first polar bear walking safaris in 1993 after purchasing a rundown former whaling station and turning it into what is now known as Seal River Heritage Lodge. In 2009 we added Nanuk Polar Bear Lodge to our collection of lodges, which also included Dymond Lake Ecolodge. Our newest property, the Blueberry Inn, had its official grand opening in Churchill on October 3, 2024, just in time for the northern lights viewing seasons!
Churchill Wild Sales Manager Sue Brown with Doug Webber, who built Manitoba’s first five-star fishing lodge, North Knife Lake Lodge, in the 1980s. George Williams photo.
“A lot of Winnipeggers and Manitobans weren’t aware that Churchill Wild offers luxury polar bear tours and safaris from July through November,” said Jackie Storry, Churchill Wild’s VP of Business Development. “Many of our tourism and hospitality leaders travel around the world promoting Manitoba as a tourism destination, so this was an opportunity to introduce Churchill Wild’s polar bear safaris and properties, including the new Blueberry Inn, to these professionals and their larger audience.”
L to R: Katrina Zborowsky (Enjoy Creative), Jackie Storry (VP of Business Development, Churchill Wild) Scott Anderson and Trevor Hnatowich (Enjoy Creative), and Maggie Cole (Marketing Manager, Churchill Wild). George Williams photo.
Churchill Wild co-founder and owner Mike Reimer kicked off the evening with a thank you speech and entertaining anecdotes from his journey as a pioneer that began with one guest in 1994 at Seal River. Today, Churchill Wild hosts more than 750 guests annually at four different properties that have set the Gold Standard worldwide for polar bear tourism.
Churchill Wild co-founder and owner Mike Reimer (left) with Calm Air CEO Gary Bell. George Williams photo.
Both Seal River Heritage Lodge and Nanuk Polar Bear Lodge were among the original members of the National Geographic Unique Lodges of the World collection, and Churchill Wild has now received 500 five-star Tripadvisor reviews, along with numerous national and international tourism awards.
The Honourable Nellie Kennedy followed Mike Reimer at the podium and talked about her new role as Minister of Sport, Culture, Heritage and Tourism, and how much she was looking forward to visiting Churchill, which she described as one of the leading tourism destinations in Canada and a huge contributor to the Manitoba economy. “The reports say that when people are thinking of visiting Canada, they search for three places first,” said Kennedy. “Toronto, Vancouver, and Churchill.”
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Churchill Wild marketing manager Maggie Cole continued the proceedings with an overview presentation about all four Churchill Wild properties and what each has to offer at different times throughout the year.
“First, I just want to say a huge thank you for coming out tonight!” said Cole. “It’s great to see so many familiar faces and just as many new ones. Our ‘Discovering Churchill Wild’ event tonight isn’t about selling you a trip, instead, it’s about sharing who we are in Manitoba, what we do, and how we operate.
Churchill Wild marketing manager Maggie Cole describes what makes Churchill Wild unique. George Williams photo.
“There are many great ways to see polar bears in Churchill, and we partner with Frontiers North Adventures to provide our guests with additional options for seeing polar bears, but we do things a little differently, and tonight, I want to give you an inside look at what makes Churchill Wild truly unique. The three key factors that make us different are that we are remote from Churchill, we have a longer operating season, and of course, we’re a walking safari.
“Our three remote ecolodges are located along the polar bear highway on the Hudson Bay coast. Bears follow this path when they come off the ice in July, all the way through to November. And to get to our lodges, guests fly from Winnipeg to Churchill and then take a second charter flight to the lodges.”
Churchill Wild’s Remote Ecolodges
Churchill Wild’s three remote ecolodges. L to R: Nanuk Polar Bear Lodge, Seal River Heritage Lodge, and Dymond Lake Ecolodge.
Seal River Heritage Lodge is located 60 km north of Churchill and about a 30-minute plane ride. It’s situated directly on the rocky Hudson Bay coastline. Here you will mostly see polar bears, beluga whales, Arctic fox, Arctic hare, and sometimes even caribou and wolves.
Nanuk Polar Bear Lodge is 250 km southeast of Churchill and about an hour’s flight. Our most remote lodge, it’s situated near the historic York Factory, at the convergence of three unique ecosystems (marine, boreal forest, tundra), and is the only place on earth where polar bears, black bears, wolves, moose, and wolverines share the same habitat.
Dymond Lake Ecolodge is our closest lodge to Churchill, located about 30 km north and a 15-minute flight. This lodge is bordered by Dymond Lake and the Hudson Bay coast. Here you can see polar bears, snowy owls, and sometimes moose, wolves, and even the elusive wolverine.
“No matter which lodge you decide to visit, you’ll be participating in an intimate experience with a small group of no more than 16 people,” said Cole. “And all our rooms have private ensuite bathrooms, so you come back from your hike to a warm shower, a toasty fireplace and glass of wine, chef-prepared meals, Wi-Fi, and wildlife right out your window.
Guests photographing a polar bear at ground level. Seal River Heritage Lodge.
“The other key factor that sets us apart is that we walk with polar bears. We offer an intimate ground-level experience, rather than viewing from traditional buggies. You are literally on the ground, face-to-face with polar bears and other Arctic wildlife. We take guests out on two hikes a day and spend up to six hours in the field.
Guests photographing a polar bear at Nanuk Polar Bear Lodge. George Williams photo.
“Safety is our top priority,” said Cole. “Our three-guide system ensures this. Our guides are highly trained to use a variety of deterrents to keep both guests and bears safe. And the guides are very conscious of the bears’ well-being. It’s not just about watching and photographing the polar bears, it’s about understanding them, respecting their space, and coexisting with them in a way that very few people in the world get to experience.
“And this leads me to the last key factor that sets Churchill Wild apart. Given the location of our lodges, we have a much longer polar bear viewing season than the typical operator in Churchill.
Polar bear cubs at Nanuk Polar Bear Lodge. Fabienne Jansen / ArcticWild.net photo.
“Most people assume that October and November are the best months to see polar bears, but that’s simply not true. Because of our remote locations along the coast, we see polar bears from July through November. In fact, there have been years where we’ve actually seen more polar bears in the summer than in the fall. So, if you’ve ever thought polar bear season was just a two-month window, we’re here to tell you, it’s a five-month adventure.”
Doreen Booth (left), Project Manager at Indigenous Tourism Manitoba, with Lilian Tankard, Tourism Industry Association of Manitoba. George Williams photo.
Visitors and Film Crews from Around the World
Churchill Wild has gained recognition on a global scale. We’ve hosted film crews for National Geographic, BBC, PBS, CNN, Netflix, and more. Some of the films you may have seen on TV include Predators and Our Living World on Netflix, The Big Freeze with Bertie Gregory for National Geographic, Dynamic Planet, and a new film slated to air later this year, Flyway of Life by Tomas Koeck.
“It’s not just media attention,” said Cole. “Most of our guests come from around the world. In fact, 55% of our guests are from the U.S., 10% from Australia, and 5% from the UK. We welcome guests from all over Europe, Asia, and Canada as well. People are flying in from across the globe to see Manitoba’s wild side and we’re very proud to be part of it.
“It’s also important to us that our guests experience all of what Winnipeg has to offer, and we encourage them to spend an extra night in the city to check out our amazing tourist attractions. We just completed a Christmas campaign that offered a complimentary day in Winnipeg and that promo was our most successful of the year.
A room at the Blueberry Inn.
“And while we enhance our guests’ experience in Winnipeg, we’ve also expanded our presence in Churchill. The Blueberry Inn brings our signature cozy Arctic luxury to the heart of town, welcoming both our lodge guests and independent travelers.”
Our gracious hostesses for the evening, Churchill Wild sales associates Chelsea Hagen (left) and Dana MacDonald. George Williams photo.
And to top off a stellar week for Churchill Wild, on Saturday, February 8, Churchill Wild co-owner and founder Mike Reimer was presented with the King Charles III Coronation Medal by Senator Don Plett. This prestigious medal is presented to individuals who have made a significant contribution to Canada, or to a particular province, territory, region of, or community in, Canada, or attained an outstanding achievement abroad that brings credit to Canada.
Congratulations Mike, and a heartfelt thank you to everyone who made Churchill Wild’s first-ever awareness event in Winnipeg a memorable occasion.
Churchill Wild Polar Bear Safaris 2025-2026.
