Frobisher Inn & Explorer Hotel www.nunastar.com 02 Experience the warmth of Canada’s arctic hotels COMPANY FOCUS CB THE FROBISHER INN AND EXPLORER HotEL Experience the warmth of Canada’s arctic hotels 4 HOSPITALITY The Frobisher Inn and Explorer Hotel A lot of times when people think about the Arctic, visions of polar bears, igloos and snow-covered barren land ensue. Those images aren’t necessarily inaccurate, but they don’t represent all that goes on in the Great White North. The Arctic is Canada’s last frontier and, truth be told, things are heating up. Just ask Rainer Launhardt, Vice President of Hotels for Nunastar Properties. “WHEN NunaVut BEcamE the newest Canadian territory in 1999, there was a lot of activity and construction in Iqaluit,” says Launhardt. “The government was establishing itself, the city needed infrastructure and a lot of people were visiting for different reasons. More than 10 years later, people are still coming and going, and the city of Iqaluit is expanding every year.” The influx of visitors in the last decade has created a need for more hospitality. And that’s where The Frobisher Inn comes into play, because visiting the north doesn’t mean roughing it. Located at the centre of Nunavut’s capital city, The Frobisher Inn is the largest hotel in the eastern Arctic—which was recently expanded to house 95 rooms. With unparalleled full-service, the Frobisher Inn is the hotel destination in one of Canada’s fastest growing cities. HOSPITALITY The Frobisher Inn and Explorer Hotel 6 HOSPITALITY The Frobisher Inn and Explorer Hotel Named after British explorer Sir Martin Fro- “This is a hotel with a flavour of the north,” says bisher, who landed on Baffin Island in search of Launhardt. “It has been designed to give you the the Northwest Passage, the hotel celebrates the Arctic experience. We have lots of Inuit art all region’s history. Located at the centre of Iqaluit, over the walls, for example, and serve local fare.” it is close to attractions such as St. Simon’s Church, the original Hudson’s Bay Company Open for business buildings, the Nunatta sunakkutaangit Museum Because business people are a large part of its and the masterful architecture of Nunavut’s demographic, The Frobisher Inn has several offer- legislative assembly. ings to accommodate guests’ needs. In addition to Unlike chain hotels whose design is replicat- services such as wireless Internet, photocopying, ed over and over again—where guests essentially large desks and interconnected rooms, the hotel stay at the same hotel regardless of the city—The also features meeting and conference facilities Frobisher Inn provides a much different experi- for groups up to 250 people. For catered events, ence, one that reflects the regional landscape. The Frobisher Inn prepares exquisite meals of HOSPITALITY The Frobisher Inn and Explorer Hotel AUGUST 2010 The Canadian Business Journal 7 local cuisine for groups of every size, from small Geithner) stayed at the hotel, while The Frobisher intimate gatherings to catering community events Inn hosted the G7 Conference Media Centre. with over 1000 people. Over the decade, the Frobisher Inn has Northern hospitality hosted numerous dignitaries from around the No matter how chilly it may be outside, The Fro- world, including Prime Minister Stephen Harper; bisher Inn provides the warmth of good hospi- Jacques Chirac, President of France; Helmut tality. Visitors can enjoy delicious meals at the Kohl, Chancellor of Germany; and Michaelle award-winning The Gallery hotel restaurant, grab Jean, Governor General of Canada. a latte at the gourmet coffee bar, the Caribrew Earlier this year, the Frobisher Inn hosted Cafe, or take in a movie at the Astro Theatre. the G7 Finance Ministers and Central Bank For those who enjoy an active nightlife, the Governors, which garnered due media attention Storehouse Bar & Grill offers a dance floor and around the world. Many of the Ministers and billiards. A quiet and relaxing night in a luxuri- Governors (including Ben Bernanke and Timothy ous hotel room is also an option—the renovated 8 HOSPITALITY The Frobisher Inn and Explorer Hotel accommodations include entertainment centres the dancing Northern Lights. Perhaps you’re in with 37-inch flat screen televisions and bedside town on business, or to check out the regions iPod docks. Corner suites feature king-sized diamonds. Whatever the reason for your stay in beds, fireplaces, jacuzzi tubs and spectacular Yellowknife, the gateway to Canada’s Arctic, there panoramic views overlooking Koojesse Inlet. are luxurious accommodations waiting to greet “Working in the north has been great fun,” you, all at The Explorer Hotel. concludes Launhardt. “It is very different from big Owned and operated by Nunastar Proper- hotels and we have done really well here.” What- ties, The Explorer Hotel opened its doors in ever the reason for a visit in Iqaluit, one needn’t 1974 and has been the business hotel destina- fret about where to stay. The Frobisher Inn is the tion in the Northwest Territories’ capital ever clear choice for its luxury, range of amenities and since. Due to recent activity in the north, the its distinctively northern experience. hotel has had to grow to make room for more visitors. Two years ago, the sixty-room expansion Treasure Yellowknife’s largest full-service project was completed. hotel Now offering 187 rooms, The Explorer Ho- Maybe you want front row seats to experience tel has all the modern conveniences you would HOSPITALITY The Frobisher Inn and Explorer Hotel AUGUST 2010 The Canadian Business Journal 9 expect and more. Hotel room comfort has always molecules of Earth’s upper atmosphere (at alti- been a key objective for the company, which is tudes above 80 km). why it continually updates its facilities. However, the flickering curtains of lights, apparently dancing across the dark sky are an The Northern Lights amazing celestial phenomenon that has amazed The Northern Lights (also called Aurora Borealis) people for centuries. Yellowknife is one of the are one of the most spectacular light shows in the best places in the world to watch the Northern world. It has been said that the Aurora was named Lights and The Explorer Hotel can be the base to after the Roman goddess of dawn while Borealis start your adventure. CB comes from the Greek word for wind, Boreas. Scientifically, the Auroras are produced by WWW.nunastaR.COM the collision of charged particles from Earth’s magnetosphere, mostly electrons but also protons and heavier particles, with atoms and AS SEEN IN THE AUGUST 2010 ISSUE OF THE CANADIAN BUSINESS JOURNAL.