Here in BC our summer vacation is being VASTLY extended by strike action, there probably IS time to fit in one more road trip. However, if you are just can’t, what you can do is plan for next year. According to my kids, the road is calling to them. They want a road trip. I don’t know if my sanity can handle that BUT there quite a few places I would like to take them and one is Calgary. My mom has been there for the Stampede and my husband has been there to hang with our friends there, but haven’t made the trip yet. So hopefully next summer is MY turn.
There is a lot more to Calgary than the Stampede. Calgary boasts tons of fun family activities including spectacular attractions and places to see. The city hosts family fun, and educational experiences alike that will keep both parents and kids active and entertained. One thing I love to share with my kids is a bit of the history of our country and the places we visit. Anything that can make the cultural heritage of Canada and that places part in our history is magic as it basically turns education into entertainment. Therefore Calgary’s own Heritage Park is on my list of places to visit next summer.
Heritage Park Historical Village tells stories of early Western Canadian history in four distinct eras. In the summer season you may meet fur traders, First Nations people, railway workers and prairie town folk while exploring over 180 buildings and exhibits on 127 scenic acres. Complete with a steam train, an antique midway and paddlewheeler boat, Heritage Park is How the West was Once.
The Heritage Park takes a snap shot of life between the 1860’s and 1950 with four main areas to explore:
- Heritage Town Square: Located before the Park gates, enjoying this bustling square does not require Park admission. The square boasts four unique shops, an antique portrait studio, one café, a restaurant and a 2-acre nature park that can be enjoyed by all. You can also step inside to Gasoline Alley Museum, home to one of the world’s largest public collections of antique trucks, cars and petroliana from the 1930s, ’40s and ’50s.
- 1900s Living Historical Village: Open May to October, this bustling village is home to many of the exhibits including an antique midway, authentic steam train, working printing press and blacksmith shop, ice cream parlour, bakery and costumed interpreters.
- 1880s Pre-Railway Settlement: Open May to October, experience the homes, businesses and lifestyles of the first new settlers to Canada’s West.
- 1860s Fur Trading Fort and First Nations Encampment: Open May to October, this area represents a gathering place for diverse groups of people including First Nations, Métis, explorers, settlers and traders, as well as others who travelled through Western Canada.
The park is filled with costumed interpreters to help you and family immerse themselves in the history of Calgary and Alberta. The park has been a part Calgary’s attractions since 1964. The park IS part of Calgary’s history now. The Park’s historical collections are comprised of 50 000 artifact that represent aspects of a settler’s life in western Canada from the 1860s, 1880s, pre-1914 and then from the 1930s to 1950s. It is truly a living museum.
So it is on my list….what about you?
I would love to have something like this here in Vancouver… something with a little more oomph than Burnaby Village museum – I would love to see this.