Calgary Travel Guide
For details of what to do and see in Calgary check out our Calgary guide to car hire in Calgary
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Often compared to the Texan city of Dallas due to it being seen as being a brash, modern, hard drinkin', oil rich, cowboy town; the truth remains that Calgary, at the point where the wide open space of the prairies meet the mighty Rocky Mountains is a diverse and pleasant city, where the locals are as likely to be snow boarders as chuck wagon drivers, and listen to opera in the city's great theatres as they are to join in a country and western hoe down in a spit'n'sawdust bar in the city centre.
Calgary is a very modern city with little urban history before Fort Calgary was set up in 1875. Before that, Calgary had been the home of the Blackfoot Indians for around 10,000 years. The glass and steel skyscrapers and landmark buildings that dot the skyline, as well as the excellent museums, galleries and other attractions are even more recent additions to the city, paid for through the boom period of the 1960s, when Calgary became the centre of Canada's oil industry.
Visitors to Calgary are spoilt for choice when it comes to things to do, in the city centre, you can explore the world famous Glenbow museum, which has permanent collections of Native American Art, and also charts the history of the westward colonisation of Canada. The excellent Calgary Zoo houses more than 1200 animals, organises an important conservation programme, and also boasts a display of model dinosaurs that are guaranteed to excite children of all ages, and anyone else who can pronounce "Sinosauopteryx".
The best place to experience Calgary's beautiful surroundings is to visit the top observation deck at the Calgary Tower, a 190m tall behemoth that towers over the streets, and offers superb views of both the city, and not far to the west, the majestically rugged landscape of the Rocky Mountains.
People travel to Calgary throughout the year for a variety of reasons, whether their interests are in the nightlife, the beautiful scenery close by, or indeed winter sports such as skiing and snowboarding (Calgary hosted the Winter Olympics in 1988), and the city rarely disappoints. A friendly place, with plenty to see and do, no matter what your interests, Calgary is an superb destination from which to begin exploring western Canada on a lengthy fly drive itinerary taking in places like Banff and Vancouver; but has enough on offer locally to make it a great destination in its own right.
