Destination:
Calgary

Calgary Stampede

For ten exciting days each July the Wild West wins the day in Calgary when the city comes alive with a celebration of true western hospitality and rousing fun. The Calgary Stampede is centred around a myriad of rodeo events that see top professional cowboys compete in bull riding, roping, bareback riding, and steer wrestling. Meanwhile the gathered crowds join in the festivities with pancake breakfasts, square dancing, and cheering on a two-hour parade, ground-shaking Chuckwagon races, and a spectacular evening Grandstand Show extravaganza. The celebration is enhanced by other attractions like an authentic Indian village, recreated frontier town, gambling hall and dazzling fireworks display.

Calgary Folk Music Festival

A well-respected music festival, the Calgary Folk Fest (as it's commonly known) attracts about 50,000 music fans to Prince's Island Park every year. Featuring over 60 local and international acts each year - spread across seven stages - the Calgary Folk Music Festival is considered to be a bit of a 'purist's festival', known for listening and appreciative audiences. The calibre of the acts - which span the genres of folk, blues, roots and even hip hop - is significant, with the 2011 edition of the 30-year-old festival featuring both legendary and up-and-coming artists such as Nancy Griffiths, kd lang, The Felice Brothers, Bonnie 'Prince' Billy, Yo La Tengo and Dark Dark Dark.

Glenbow Museum

Located in the heart of Calgary, opposite the tower, the Glenbow Museum is Canada's largest museum, with more than 93,000 square feet (8,640 sq metres) of exhibition space spread over three floors. It houses more than a million objects that fill up its 20 galleries and showcase the colourful history of Canada's West. Explore the exhibits to discover the people, stories and events that shaped the region from its First Nations to the arrival of the European settlers. There is a family-friendly Discovery Room, which is an open studio full of educational activities and crafts that bring the museum to life. A special feature is the Blackfoot Gallery, which tells the story of the Nitsitapi people through interactive displays, artefacts, a film and circular narrative path. There are also some 28,000 artworks dating from the 19th century to the present on display in the museum. Glenbow's library is a treasure trove of reference materials on western Canada and the Glenbow Archives are a major research centre for historians, writers, students and the media.

Calgary Zoo

Canada's second largest zoo is home to more than 1,000 animals from all over the world, as well as a variety of fish and insects in natural habitat enclosures. It also features a prehistoric park with 19 life-size animatronic dinosaurs on display. The botanic gardens include a 20,000 square foot (1,858 sq metre) conservatory and butterfly garden and a special Rocky Mountain exhibit featuring many indigenous Alberta animals, including the endangered Whooping Crane. The zoo is situated close to the downtown area, on St George's Island.

Fort Calgary

This historical site chronicles Calgary's history between 1875 and the 1940s and allows visitors to step back in time and explore the early days of the city through interactive exhibits, costumed interpreters, hands on activities, guided tours and an entertaining audio-visual presentation. Fort Calgary is situated on the site of an original North West Mounted Police Fort and is designed to preserve the history of the founding, development and growth of the city. The 40-acre riverside park includes the reconstructed 1875 fort, 1888 barracks, the interpretive centre and Deane House Historic Site and Restaurant.

Moraine Lake

Located within Banff National Park, close to the popular resort towns of Lake Louise and Banff, Moraine is an utterly spectacular glacially-fed lake. Due to 'rock flour' - tiny particles of suspended sediment - the lake is a vivid turquoise colour, and on a clear day, reflects the surrounding mountains in its mirror-smooth surface. There is plenty to see and do in the snow-capped, pine-strewn 'Valley of the Ten Peaks' - including an assortment of scenic hiking trails, and kayaks can be rented from The Lodge, an on-site cafe that also serves wonderful food and refreshments. If you are without a car, getting to Moraine can be difficult, though not impossible: take a Greyhound bus to Banff station, and from there, you can either walk the nine miles (about 14km) to the Lake; rent a bicycle from Wilson's Bikes (C$40 for the day); take a taxi (about C$35); or, make use of the new Park-run Vista shuttle service, which departs every 30 minutes from the Lake Louise camp site.

Heritage Park Historical Village

Heritage Park is a 'living history village', comprised of over 150 exhibitions that attempt to show what life was like in Alberta in the 19th and 20th centuries. Set on 127 beautiful acres of parkland, and located just 15 minutes from Calgary's CBD, Heritage Park makes for a worthwhile day trip, especially if you have kids in tow. Highlights include steam train rides, and an impressive collection of vintage automobiles.

Canada Olympic Park

Canada Olympic Park was a major venue during the 1988 Winter Olympic Games, and now hosts skiing and snowboarding programmes every winter; as well as housing the Canadian Olympic Hall of Fame and Museum. COP (as it's known to locals) remains a chief tourist attraction for casual visitors and winter sports enthusiasts alike.

Head-Smashed-In Buffalo Jump

A 'buffalo jump' is a ledge of rock traditionally used to lure stampeding buffalo to their deaths. This one not only has an awesome name, but is a UNESCO World Heritage Site - proudly displaying exhibitions detailing the life and history of the Blackfoot people, the original inhabitants of the Great Plains region of southern Alberta.