Yellowknife (Feb 14/03) - Randy Whitford, aboriginal guide at Aurora Village, jokes that the camp offers tourists a budget or deluxe view of the Northern Lights.

For the deluxe view you lay back under a cosy blanket on a propane-heated swivel seat for two at the top of a hill.

And the budget?

"Just stand on the lake and look up," he said.

The village, near Prelude Lake outside Yellowknife, opened three years ago and is already on track to bring 1,500 tourists to town each winter.

Camp manager Wes Pellissey said it's located at the best aurora viewing spot on the world.

"The tourists lay back and they're just spellbound, it's kind of fun to watch them watch (the aurora)," said Pellissey.

Owner Mike Morin said that 90 per cent of his customers are Japanese, but tourists from the U.S. and Europe are starting to trickle in.

"We're going to start targeting some of those markets," he said.

Morin said he's been pleasantly surprised by the success of the camp.

"People who travel are looking for something different, and that's what we offer."

He hosted 600 visitors his first year but only had 300 last year.

He blames Sept. 11 and said this year the village has been busy since the start of the season.

"We're on a pace to have 1,200 to 1,500 and it can only get better from here," he said.

As well as great views of the NWT's outdoor light show, the camp offers Caribou viewing by plane, snowmobile rentals and dogsled lessons.

Camp guests can take one of two dog teams out on a two kilometre track nearby.

The camp also offers what Whitford calls "the Great Aboriginal Experience."

Guests strap snowshoes on and follow Whitford into the woods for an interpretive hike. He points out rabbit tracks, brings guest to a fox den and tells stories about the traditional way of living on the land.

At the end of the walk, Whitford drills a hole in a nearby lake and offers guests a chance to ice fish.

"The things that I tell them are things I have taken for granted all my life," he said.

"But they are so interested in learning. I really have a good time with it."

Right now the camp is only open during the winter but Morin said he's working on a program to draw visitors over the summer.

"We're definitely looking to expand," he said.

"We've just been so busy getting our winter product together we haven't had a chance."

Morin has tried to include as much traditional aboriginal culture as possible in the camp -- right down to the proper harnesses on the dog teams.

Guests can warm up with tea and cookies after their hike or dogsled run in any of the several teepees in the village -- one of which is set up using traditional birch boughs on the floor and a fire in the middle.

"It's the extras we offer that catch people's attention," said Morin.

He said guests typically stay for three days, which gives them an opportunity to tour Yellowknife and some extra insurance that they'll encounter the aurora.

"We say with three days you have a 95 per cent chance of success," said Morin.