Beyond the Calgary Stampede
Top 10 Things to Do During the Greatest Outdoor Show on Earth
Every year nearly a million visitors drift into Calgary for the Greatest Outdoor Show on Earth, the Calgary Stampede. Those visitors consume nearly 2 million mini-donuts as they ride the Giant Wheel (the largest portable ferris wheel in North America) and visit the 27 tipis in the Indian Village along the Midway. The Calgary Stampede runs for nearly two weeks in July, beginning with a parade on the opening day and ending, each night, with a fabulous fireworks display. But if you don’t stray from the fairgrounds, you’ll miss a great many fabulous events that go on in conjunction (or regularly) outside the Stampede.
Here are 10 Tips for Making the Most of Your Stampede Visit:
1. Take in a Free Pancake Breakfast
That’s right – FREE. They’re everywhere and they happen everyday. Pancakes, sausages, bacon, juice and coffee are the standard items in a Stampede breakfast, but these breakfasts often come with live Western entertainment and petting zoos!
The Stampede Caravan puts on a number of community shopping mall pancake breakfasts throughout the week – these run from 9 a.m. – 11 a.m. For more times and locations, pick up one of the daily newspapers: the Calgary Herald, or the Calgary Sun.
For a listing of free breakfast locations, click here.
And try a (sometimes) Free BBQ Dinner
Like pancake breakfasts, BBQ dinners happen frequently throughout the Stampede. Enjoy BBQ beef on bun, baked beans and coffee while you watch square dancing and line dancing. While BBQ dinners aren’t quite as prevalent as pancake breakfasts, you can still find them by scanning the local newspapers for event listings.
2. Visit Downtown Calgary
The Downtown Attractions Committee of Calgary works hard to bring the Stampede fever to this city’s core. Each morning, from 9 a.m. - 12:30 p.m. Olympic Plaza (at the corner of 7th Avenue and Macleod Trail SE), downtown Calgary sports all manner of western-style festivities. Head to the Fluor Rope Square for fiddlers, gunfights, and the daily Lammle's World Champion Hat Stomp Competition. It's all just good, old-fashioned fun.
3. Tour Downtown Calgary in a Horse-Drawn Rig
Again, for free. Each morning during the Stampede, a limited number of free tickets for this unique tour of downtown Calgary are available. To get yours head to the NE corner of Olympic Plaza early; tickets are dished up first come, first served beginning at 8:30 a.m.
The ride starts at 10 a.m., departing from 9th Avenue and 1st Street and will take passengers to Stampede Park.
4. Burn off Energy at Fish Creek Park
Break for a picnic or to work off some energy at one of Calgary's many parks and green spaces. Group fire pits, shelters, and swimming at Sikome Lake are just some of the services available at Fish Creek. The park opens at 9 a.m. every morning (closure times vary) and is accessible from many points in the city.
5. Mosey Down to the Bar U Ranch
Now a National Historic Site of Canada, the Bar U Ranch, located an hour and a half southwest of Calgary, is the place to discover authentic history on Alberta's ranching past. At the Roadhouse Restaurant grab a buffalo burger or a hearty bowl of cow camp stew. The Bar U is open daily, 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., from June to October. For more information, call 1-800-568-4996.
Learn more about taking a western vacation here.
6. Visit the Rosebud Dinner Theatre
Rosebud Dinner Theatres might be one of Alberta’s best-kept secrets, changing rapidly as visitors discover this little prairie gem. Located one hour outside of Calgary in the hamlet of Rosebud, the Rosebud Dinner Theatre is a professional rural theatre that operates from March to December. Ticket prices include a dinner at the Mercantile Restaurant, where the musical entertainment kicks in before you head to the stage for the featured performance. For more information, call 1-800-267-7553.
7.Check out the Glenbow Museum
In March 2007, the Glenbow Museum opened a permanent exhibit, "Mavericks: An Incorrigible History of Alberta", which profiles 24 Albertans whose maverick spirit helped shaped this province. The exhibit is highly interactive and spans 24,000 square feet of the museum. For more information, call 1-403-268-4100.
8. Visit the Heritage Park Historical Village
Travel back in time to 1910. Walk through old neighbourhoods, take a ride on an antique ferris wheel or a horse-drawn carriage, pick up goodies from the bakery, ride the locmotive, or down a float at the soda shop. Heritage Park is open from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. daily from May 19 to September 3. For more information call 1-403-268-8500.
9. Visit a local Farmer's Market
Sample the very best in local grown and produced food and beverages by checking out a local farmer's market. Two great choices are the Millarville Farmer's Market (located off Highway 22, 20 minutes southwest of Calgary), and the Calgary Farmer's Market (located in the former Currie Barracks).
10. Find out What's Happening at Spruce Meadows
Located on the outskirts of the city of Calgary, Spruce Meadows is a world-class horse sport jumping venue that attracts more than 400,000 visitors annually to its tournament attractions.
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