Holman (Apr 17/06) - There's nothing like a new hotel to spark interest in the community.

For Inns North's Arctic Char Inn, manager Doug Heisler says visitors have enjoyed their stay enough to spread the word.

Emma Alikamik cooks up a hefty plate of breakfast at the Arctic Char Inn. Ulukhaktok's premiere place to stay was rebuilt a year ago and has been doing great business since. Its dining room serves as a community cafe, too. - Chris Woodall/NNSL photo

"Yes, the newness has had an effect. When they look at the place and then go back home they tell others, so that's a great advertisement," he said.

The hotel was a year old in March, replacing the 30-plus-years-old hotel.

Right now, it's the wave of hunters coming to Ulukhaktok's ice-bound shores looking for muskox and polar bear who are camping in the hotel beds.

There are eight rooms, which might make for tricky booking.

"We're usually pretty lucky there," Heisler said. "Except when we get government agencies coming in and they book all the rooms for a certain amount of time. It hasn't been too often when overbooking is the case."

The hotel's new bedrooms and larger open-concept dining room have maintained a homey atmosphere for the guests, Heisler said. The dining room especially is a focal point for the community to come for a meal, a coffee and some gossip.

"Everybody can see everybody," he said.

There's even some thought to make use of the cafeteria space for evening events.

"We're looking at that right now, but we have to look at the staffing requirements," said Heisler.

The eight staff are partly hold-overs from the old hotel, with some new additions.

The Arctic Char Inn's success depends on everyone, notes Heisler.

"We work here as a team. No one person is going to take the credit, myself included," he said.

Inns North has 17 hotels across Nunavut and three in the Northwest Territories.

For the hamlet as a whole, having a new hotel opens many possibilities to make Ulukhaktok attractive to visitors.

If you haven't been there, the Victoria Island community lives around a horseshoe-shaped bay, the two arms of that shoe reaching into the Amundsen Gulf.

A massive crown of a promontory dominates the tip of the right arm as you look out to the gulf. It is Ulukhaktok point, the hamlet's namesake - or "the place where ulu materials are found."

That majestic scenery could be exploited for walking tours, or maybe a game of golf at Ulukhaktok's course between the hamlet and the airstrip.

"If little perks are offered to tourists, they're a great seller," Heisler said. "We get a cruise ship here in August. These people haven't been here before, so let's show them a good time."