Calgary- 2 Days after a Week in the Rockies.
 

Hello.

I will be spending two days in Calgary after a week-long stay in the Rockies, including Banff, Lake Louise and Jasper. I will also be spending 5 days in Vancouver with a side-trip to Victoria beforehand on the same trip. Could you please provide me with some names of local restaurants, interesting stores/boutiques, neighborhoods, etc... I live in New York City so I am quite accustomed to city life.

Thanks very much.

Ross :-)

In downtown Calgary it's nice to walk along 8th Avenue / Stephen Avenue Walk. There are a couple of western gear stores along there. It's a cultural experience to go into them, even if you don't buy anything.

A pleasant area is the Eau Claire district, at the northern edge of the downtown core. The path along the Bow River is pleasant to walk on, and it's nice to cross the foot bridge onto Prince's Island, which is a park.

Seventeeth Avenue S.W. is the uptown area of Calgary, and it has boutiques and restaurants.

An area that is quite cute and funky is Kensington. It's across the Bow River from downtown. The easiest way to reach it from downtown is via the 10th Street Bridge.

Just to the east of downtown, along 9th Avenue S.E., is the Inglewood area. It used to be a very modest neighbourhood and to a large extent still is. However, the 9th Avenue strip is witness to some rejuvenation, and has some antique stores, quite a good secondhand bookstore, etc.

I suggest you spend one of your two Calgary days doing a day trip to Drumheller to see the awesome dinosaur skeletons in the Royal Tyrrell Museum of Paleontology.

As for restaurants, what cuisine and price range are you looking for?

Hope that helps.

Ross,

I'm sure others will post an answer, but here's a couple of quick suggestions. Neighbourhoods to visit are Kensington, 17th Ave (south of downtown) and Stephen Ave (8th ave close to the downtown core). All of these have some interesting stores/boutiques as well as restaurants.
I'd recommend the following restaurants based on their menu and/or an interesting atmosphere/setting - River Cafe(great location near Eau Claire), Murrieta's (lovely architecture and excellent grub), Catch(great seafood), Divino, Teatro, and Wildwood. Breakfast at Avenue Diner downtown is always good! These are just some of my favourite haunts. I'm not a fan of steak houses but my husband swears by Caesar's.
Have a great trip.

Hi there.

My trip is rapidly approaching!!! Anyone else have any tips to share, please?

Thanks.

Ross :-)

If you've got a car, you may want to have dinner in Okotoks (30 mins. south of Calgary on highway #2) at a little French restaurant called: La P'tite Table. We went for the first time last weekend, and were really impressed. Food was fantastic, people very friendly. If you're going I'd suggest a reservation ... the place is quite small. (Try googling it to get the number.)

Another great place for dinner is the Calgary Tower. The tower isn't as tall as more modern structures, but it's got a nice revolving restaurant -- which is a fun way to see the city.

If you're feeling adventurous, try taking a bobsled ride at Canada Olympic Park. I think it's about $50, but I'd check first.

Have a great trip.

Hi there.

Anyone else before I leave? Nightlife suggestions as well would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks again.

Ross :-)

Calgary has a population of 950,000. In my opinion it can keep a visitor occupied for a day. Beyond that, a person is better off doing a day trip to the Royal Tyrrell Museum in Drumheller, which is east of Calgary.

The next best museum to visit is Head-Smashed-In Buffalo Jump. It's between Fort Macleod and Pincher Creek, about 2 hours south of Calgary.

Alternatively, you could simply spend an extra day in the mountains.

If you live in NYC, I'm sure you're going to find Calgary's shopping and nightlife underwhelming.

It's difficult to make suggestions, since you have not told us what kind of cuisine you like, what your budget is, etc. However, I saw in one of your other posts that you would be travelling alone. That may mean that you're young or young-ish. It doesn't necessarily mean that, of course, but I'm just trying to guess, based on what little information is available. If you're young, you may enjoy a downtown nightclub called Cowboys. Its advertising jingle says that it offers the most fun you can have with your boots on. It seems to be popular amongst young people. I'm middle aged, and I've never been there. A middle aged acquaintance of mine went there, and she said never again. It was too loud for her taste.

When you get to Calgary, just ask local people, especially people who have the same demographic profile as you (age group, etc.). I'm sure they'll be happy to tell you their favourite haunts.

Hope you have a good trip.

Hi there.

I am not looking for a similar experience in Calgary as I would have in New York. Just enough to keep me occupied and interested. The reason why I've opted to spend two days in Calgary is because I thought that after spending a week by myself in the Rockies I would want to spend some time with people in a large city, especially over the weekend. I will be in Calgary Friday- Sunday. Many people have expressed their views that Calgary is boring. Is this true?

Thanks.

Ross :-)

>>>Many people have expressed their views that Calgary is boring. Is this true?<<<

For your purposes, yes, I believe it is. I repeat my opinion that Calgary can keep a person occupied for a day. I would not suggest spending any longer here, UNLESS you want to use Calgary as a base for a day trip to the Tyrrell Museum in Drumheller or something like that.

If you've ever been to Denver, Calgary is a smaller version of that, just to give you an idea of what the downtown core is like, roughly speaking.

I do not believe that Calgary will give you more opportunities for interacting with people than the mountains will. Actually I think the mountains will give you more opportunities for interaction. Although Banff, Lake Louise and Jasper are small towns, most of the people in those towns are on vacation. They're in a relaxed frame of mind, and many of them are willing and even eager to chat with strangers.

That is not to say that *I* find Calgary boring. If the weather is good, you'll find my husband and me canoeing on Glenmore Reservoir, riding our bikes on the path around Glenmore Reservoir, or walking in the Weaselhead Wetland or Fish Creek Provincial Park.

If it's raining, we might visit the secondhand bookstore in Inglewood, just to the east of downtown, and peek into a couple of antique stores there.

If we have nothing else to do on a Saturday night, we might take in a movie at one of Calgary's three art house cinemas, the Globe and the Uptown, which are on 8th Avenue SW in the downtown core, or the Plaza, which is in Kensington, a funky neighbourhood just across the Bow River from downtown.

However, I'm trying to visualize myself as a stranger who is on his own and is trying to find ways of passing time in Calgary. When I do that, I find myself returning to what I've already told you.

Anyway, I hope it turns out okay for you.