Stephen Avenue Walk forms a part of 8th Ave South, bounded by 4th St SW to the west & 1st Street SE…read moreat its east end. This walk is where we found Calgary's finest restaurants, pubs, bars & cafes. This pedestrian mall offers us walking access to downtown Calgary's main attractions, including Banker's Hall, the CORE Shopping Centre, the Telus Convention Centre, the Glenbow Museum, Arts Commons & Olympic Plaza. There are several Canadian curio stores here. During the Stampede the Avenue is filled with outdoor patios, magnificent hanging flower baskets, live music, performers, festivals, food trucks & vendors. We enjoyed our pancake breakfast here and also watching the Clydesdales fill the Avenue.

This is a trendy, vibrant, and popular restaurant and shopping district in downtown Calgary…read more Everything is here and it's definitely a place to check out as a visitor to Calgary and especially if you are near downtown. It's also very close to attractions like the Calgary Tower, and Calgary's Public Library and City Hall, both of which are interesting and welcoming of visitors.

It was my first time to attend Global Fest. I really don't know about it, not until one of my…read moreoffice mates asked if we are going. In GlobalFest, you'll see different food stalls representing various countries. Yes, I basically went there because I heard there's going to be a lot of food! For your convenience, tickets can also be purchased from CO-OP, First Calgary Financial, London Drugs, Chinook Financial, and Marlborough mall. There were several gates to enter the event. Security was really tight because police started blocking roads as early as 6pm. Parking fees will range from $10-$20 (depends on the distance of the parking area to the main ground). If you're planning to attend the event I suggest bringing a bug spray (not unless you're willing to be sprayed by natural bug repellant which cost $10) with you as well as folding chairs or outdoor blankets. Think of it as if you're going to a camp site but not to have bonfire but to watch fireworks Overall, it was a nice experience!

3.5* An annual…read morefireworks competition here in Calgary that takes place at Elliston park. where different countries put on a fireworks show choreographed to music. On the grounds there are cultural tents, and food tents showcasing each country. I was happy to find Guarana at the Brazil food tent and my new discovery is a bag of dingdong from the Philippines tent! haha. Away from the food tents there are snack stands that sell mini donuts, corn dogs, lemonade, popcorn, ice cream, etc... $15 for admission at the door but there are also intervals for pre-sale tickets starting from $7.50 and the close to the date, the closer to $15 it gets (check their website)! Bring your lawn chairs, bug spray, and blanket and set up a place for yourself on the grass. They allow you to bring your own water, food, & snacks. On the grounds, water is $3 / bottle, and the food ranges in price from $4+, avg being $10 / plate. I usually go with my friend and her family. We walk around the grounds, eat some dinner/snacks, and just chill and wait for the fireworks show. Basically we spend a whole evening from 6pm until maybe 1030/11 ish. The show is usually around 30-40 mins long and begins when it gets dark (between 9-10pm). Yeah it's in the sketchier side of town but there are cops everywhere who stop traffic for pedestrians, and close the roads after the show for people to walk back to their cars. We usually park in the surrounding neighborhood and walk. It started off small potatoes and it keeps growing! :)

The reason for 3/5 because majority of the food we tried were about 2/5 rating in taste and…read morequality. They were not very good for the price customers had to pay for. The portions were small and the food were not always fresh. The experience wise is 5/5. It was fun. The event was well organized. The tickets boots are easy to navigate. There were plenty of place to sit or stand while trying the food. There were outhouse washroom provided. Overall, it's a fun event to visit if you are Okay with compromising the quality and flavors of a lot of the food there.

Typically is held during the first week of August from around noon to well into the evening…read more They're pretty busy most of the time, but the lines REALLY start forming in the evening, and things did start running out on the day we went. Location seems to vary depending on what they can arrange during that year, so you'll see that they have their location on their website and Instagram as TBD. Watch that, not Yelp. Yelp has them down at 200 Barclay Parade SW Calgary. However, when we went, it was at Lot 6 - 311 8 St SW, Calgary. But as their location changes, so do the parking. We were INCREDIBLY lucky with a parking space right across the street from them. It really was a case of the earlier the better. Entry is free, you pay for food by buying "sampling tickets" which are $1 each and can be bought beforehand online. They also had special sales and contests for free tickets and other goodies held on their Instagram during the days leading up to the event. Each individual stall will have a board up listing how many tickets each item is, which is typically 2 to 7 and we saw most items being 3 to 5. The stalls range from restaurants, bars, bakeries, and food trucks, and they're getting more popular every year. As aforementioned, a lot of the popular dishes (and you'll be able to tell which those are) ran out. If you really want something, better get it sooner than later. Once you're there, you may want a table. Be sure to look further INTO the grounds themselves. There were a lot of people crowding and waiting on the tables at the front, closest to the most obvious entrance. They completely missed the picnic tables, chairs, and tables further inside. The stalls dedicated to alcoholic drinks have their own aisle with standing tables. They also have a dedicated pamphlet that has all the available stalls and their individual menus, which were SO convenient. Definitely 10/10 on foresight because that definitely cut down on the scrambling. They were really on top of keeping their trash cans from overflowing as well. Would also advise bringing Tupperware, wet wipes and napkins, and maybe a bag. Not so much solely for just the Taste of Calgary, but these tend to be useful in general for food festivals. I can confirm that there were dishes here where you needed a wet wipe afterward. Tupperware is great for taking home what you didn't finish. A plastic baggy is useful as a personal trash bag for throwing away things when you're walking and eating, while a normal bag dedicated to just your packed leftovers is good if you are a tourist traveling to more than one place that same day (like us). On a personal note, we're from California, so our/my perspective is a bit skewed. We have lots of food festivals and events in the Bay Area, all of which tend to be VERY EXPENSIVE. This may not be 626 or Foodieland, but it was a big enough festival that we were already in awe about not being charged an entrance fee or having to wait at least half an hour in line just to get in. You would not believe the amount of adulation we made about how cheap everything was, especially considering how the conversation rates at the time. It was the most PERFECT way to start our vacation, especially since we couldn't stay in Calgary very long. So if you're also only in Calgary for a day or two (having flown in) before you're driving out somewhere else (probably Banff), this is the one event you have to go to. XD

Spruce Meadows has an amazing amount of tree lights up around their entrance and parking areas and…read moreAl around - it's quite a festive sight to see! We were quite amazed by the sheer amount of lights and trees decorated it's an overwhelming display! The markets are of course a joy and fun to check out and of course check out the various food vendors and grab a warm drink! Happy Hollidays!

This Christmas Market is Rated Forth must see in the World!…read moreFirst time coming here since the pandemic started. We arrived at 9:45 am right when the gates open. The pavilions open at 10 am. Was busy from the time it opened and even more people coming through the gates! Five builds filled with vendors and animals for the kids!! Equi-Plex, Candy Cane Lane, Winter Wonderland, Riding Hall, Horizons Pavilion, with plenty outside food venues. Prepay tickets online is the best! The pay booth has a very long line. Plenty of parking and sites to see!

I've been a cuff attendee for some years now. I really enjoy the opportunity to see films that will…read moreprobably never be picked up for wide release and likely I'd never get to see otherwise. Sometimes there is good reason these films don't make a regular circuit and other times it's largely an issue of censorship or that they aren't "hollywood enough" or didn't have the right connections in the biz. Considering hollywood and censorship produce such swill as Crossroads and Glitter.. it's not exactly a recipe for fine movie making so there is room for this type of event. I get quite excited when I see movies from CUFF eventually make it a bit more mainstream (festival showings are important for indie films that do go wide release) I saw God Hates America on Netflix and Tucker & Dale vs Evil actually made a few "top of" lists on rotten tomatoes a few years ago. Reviewing the movies doesn't make a lot of sense because you're already out of luck there but I'll speak a but general to give you an idea of what CUFF is about even though it will never be exactly the same again. I saw 5 this year - 1 was visually stunning, it took a lot of risk but ultimately left me saying WTF?! I ended up on the internet looking for interpretation because I felt like I was missing something (I still think it is a bit of WTF though). Another was lower budget but like some very bloody effects which combined to hysterical and gross at the same time. Another was an anthology of shorts and many of them had me in stitches watching how different filmmakers interpreted death (I'm very macabre by the way). Another was a documentary about drugs and did actually affect some of my views on the subject positively as I never really FULLY understood the war on drugs and how harmful it's been. My favorite of the festival "sightseers" was like a rom com written for macabre old me... I really hope that out gets out into the world a bit more because it's well done! A good thing about the fest is that it's licensed - woot! The bad is we sat by a group of 7 who were just wasted and misbehaving all movie - ugh! (Sorry to the staff - I believe one of them peed in the corner - jerks) The bad was the venue (the globe).... my back and hips (not as young as they once were) took 3 days to recover after the 9 or so hours I was seated there. I suggest watching the website and twitter account around Feb/March when the listing for next year start to roll out. Most come with a trailer and a general run down. You may find reviews out there from other fests (rotten tomatoes or imdb) Not all movies are my thing but I usually find a couple gems right up my alley and I'm fairly confident there are some up yours if you don't consider yourself a 100% hollywood sellout that requires $45 mill budget movies.

My favourite film festival in Calgary. Can always count on CUFF to bring in films that break from…read moreconvention. The films feel more like full events than just screening films.

This is a great way to try ALL the new breweries in Alberta. Samples of beer range from $2-3…read moredollars. Tickets to get in are $20. I won my tickets via Yelp. My husband bought $30 worth of tokens and we sampled enough to make me tipsy. If I had to pay for my entry tickets, the night would have cost us $70. Not bad if you really like beer and you want to see what's new. The experience was cool. There were at least two large rooms of breweries and restaurants and it was crowded. Most notable of the food options include Cluck and Cleaver, Spolumbos, and Raw Bar. There were plenty of places to stand or sit and sip your beer and nibble on your food. My pick of breweries: Freehold Brewing Co, Caravel, Ol Beautiful, and Six Corners. We were quite impressed with Ol' Beautiful's Okami-Kasu beer. We'll have to make a point to stop by their brewery in Inglewood.

What a great event. I was amazed at how many Alberta based craft breweries I had not hear of that…read morewere there. Albeit this was an international beer festival there were plenty of local eateries and brewers on site. I had never been to one before, and was able to attend thanks to Yelp! There were some pretty cool tent/stations set up. The prices were a bit on the high side, considering it costs about $2-$4 bucks for a mouthful of beer (maybe I have a big mouth). The atmosphere was fun and it was packed. It's great that you can experience and indulge in so many options in one room. We had a blast!

This was a fun little festival over the Family Day long weekend. It was spread out around a few…read moredifferent plazas and parks downtown from Olympic Plaza to 5th St SW. Each stop was an art installation of various size and purpose all themed around light. The event was completely free too with a couple of the installations located indoors so you could warm up if needed. The fun part of this was that many of the installations were interactive. At Olympic Plaza there were giant shards that you could spin. At The Bow you put your face into a lit up ring and when you smiled a large happy face lit up on the wall. At another location there was a screen inside a door playing a video of a landscape. When you closed the door and opened it again, a different landscape was seen through the door.

A million dogs,a million strollers and 4 million people at this one day fest…read more... It was an overcast, drizzly day but that did not keep the people from coming out to seemingly Calgary's first Spring fest. This was great to see. The roads were closed appropriately and the main attractions (live performers) were still in the main stream but off on the side streets aways. Regardless, my first time at this festival grades a bit low as we absolutely had to walk on the sidewalks to get anywhere, not in the street. No flow on the street at all. This means there was no way I could see who all the vendors were there or take part in much by way of looking or purchasing as the lines were just too long. Tons of food trucks though if you have the patience! But, it is what it is in this great, big city and I am sure there were many out of towners here as well taking part. Great for Calgary's already booming economy! Wear comfy shoes as you will be walking a lot esp. if you drive downtown as parking is scarce close by. We walked 11 blocks back to our car. Not a day to try a new restaurant on 4th Street either as they are all packed! Free admission.

It was a fun event. Very rich in culture- colorful and very exciting to explore. Lots of food…read morestalls and food trucks. Lots of varieties of booths- from selling merchendise to meditation classes, to animal care, etc. I love the bands playing too in different sections with different song genres. I could walk around all day browsing. Though I hope it lasts more than a day.

We've been to a couple of these Marda Gras Festivals over the years and they are always super busy,…read morefun for the kids and an enjoyable outing for the entire family. We've been to and love New Orleans and so this festival holds a special place in our heart No issues with parking, even though it was a couple blocks away. Mayor Nenshi was on hand meeting and greeting the line up of people who wanted to see him. A handful of food trucks were on hand including Fiasco Gelato and we were excited to finally visit them. Fun Mardis Gras themed crafts for the kids. Face painting and bouncy houses are always a hit. A fun way to spend a couple of hours, chatting with people, trying new things, learning about the neighbourhood and supporting the Marda Loop Community.

Today I attended the marda gras festival. Nothing great to say about that. Lilac,sun and salsa and…read morelatin festivals were a way better than this. Not much crowd too. Even there were very less businesses. There was nothing much to pass time or enjoy either. There were two music band stages and were nt good too. It was just not worth going over a weekend after waiting for 20 mins for transit and walking to the marda loop. If there is no other work and idle then we could think of this festival :P .