Some tourism lodges and guides based in the North are trying to stay afloat this summer, while they're reporting a big drop in business.

Operators say the current recession has made vacationing, especially to the relatively exotic North, less of a priority among tourists.

As a result, Neil Hartling, of Nahanni River Adventures, said he's spending more time trying to drum up business than he is paddling down the Nahanni River in the Northwest Territories.

"Probably the thing that I enjoy the least is sitting in front of a computer, which I'm doing right now. I can't wait for the minute that I'm away from it and I'm going to be back out there," Hartling told CBC News from his office in Whitehorse.

"There's no question about it: the trickle-down effect of the economy, we're feeling it."

In Yellowknife, Glen Warner, of Bathurst Inlet Lodge, said he's had to scale back his season, as business has gone down by 60 per cent.

The number of guests has dropped from around 90 guests last year to 30. Still, Warner said he was determined to stay open, even for a shorter season, and hope for more business next year.

"We operated for a shorter period and gave the full service to the people that came, and [we] employed the same people, but for a shorter period," said Warner, whose lodge is located in western Nunavut.

Hartling said the Northwest Territories government is doing a good job marketing the territory's tourism industry. But, he added, any extra effort and investment now could certainly help.

Parks Canada has yet to release its latest visitor numbers at Wood Buffalo National Park, part of which is in the Northwest Territories, but park supervisor Ed Coulthard told CBC News they are about the same as last year.

Parks Canada froze its fees, hoping to make parks like Wood Buffalo more attractive as tourist destinations.