Calgary: Culture, History and Trails

Calgary offers several different points of interest for a trip: historical displays, stories about the city, live performances and an extensive trail network. The range stretches from Heritage Park Historical Village to the Calgary Tower observation deck, which offers a 360° view of the vibrant city and the Rocky Mountains. If you’re looking for a vacation rental in Calgary, you can start by considering whether culture and history, performances and tours, or trails will shape your stay.

Stories of Calgary and the West

Heritage Park Historical Village showcases ways of life from the 1860s to the 1930s. Costumed interpreters tell the story of the Canadian West. Guests can also take rides on a steam train. This place therefore brings together depictions of historical ways of life, stories told by interpreters and its own train rides.

The Confluence Cultural Centre focuses on different subjects. It presents stories about Indigenous culture and Treaty 7, as well as stories about the founding and early development of Calgary. Alongside the history of the Canadian West, visitors can choose to explore Indigenous culture, Treaty 7 and Calgary’s early development as distinct topics. When selecting cultural stops for your stay, these places differ above all in the stories they bring to the forefront.

Studio Bell: Performances and Tours

Studio Bell has five floors of event, exhibition and collection spaces. Visitors can watch live performances there. You can also book the Greatest Hits Tour or the Backstage Pass Tour. This gives you several concrete options to consider when planning: you can explore Studio Bell’s exhibition and collection spaces, or include performances and one of the named tours. The five floors describe the scope of the spaces; the two tours are listed as separate bookable options.

Multi-use Paths and Hiking Trails

Calgary has approximately 1,000 km of regional multi-use paths and 96 km of hiking trails. The multi-use paths are available to all Calgary residents for walking, running, inline skating and cycling. These different uses are explicitly part of the description of this trail network. If outdoor activity is part of your trip planning, these figures give you an idea of the different trail options without reducing them to a single route.

One specific trail is the Rotary/Mattamy Greenway: it is 138 km long and forms a loop around Calgary. Its length and loop shape make it a striking example of Calgary’s trails. If you also consider Calgary from the perspective of its trails, this long loop is distinctly different from a single viewpoint or cultural stop. The approximate figure of 1,000 km of regional multi-use paths remains separate from the Greenway’s stated length.

See Calgary from Above

The Calgary Tower observation deck offers a 360° view of the vibrant city and the Rocky Mountains. This panoramic view brings the city and the mountains into focus together, adding an urban perspective to the historical and cultural themes. Your preferred focus can help you decide what kind of destination Calgary is for you and find a vacation rental that suits your trip.

More Places

More places: Sundre, Beiseker, Water Valley, Redwood Meadows, Turner Valley, Cremona, Lyalta, Didsbury.

For the broader travel overview: Division No. 6.