A real YEG gem, hiding near the river banks off of Kinsmen Sports Centre. That means free parking…read moreand great views. I love this little museum, it's run by some of the most dedicated and enthusiastic interpreters in Edmonton. Esther, Jeff, Christina to name a few, all dressed in period attire and chock full of information about the history and the era. Ask them about anything! There are 3 houses to visit, from a log cabin to their last house, almost mansion-like by comparison. They bake in a wood stove, offer meeting venues, birthday parties and summer camps! Plan a short trip, bring a picnic if you plan to spend a bit of time there enjoying the grounds and pathways. The city website says they are open Saturday and Sunday during summer holidays from 1pm to 4pm. As far as I know, it is open on Sunday only and they continue right up to November. On their last opening day last fall, they had cinnamon buns and Apple cider. Spool yummy! His entire business was washed out in a flood in 1915, 5 years before he passed. He did a lot for the community through public action, carpentry, employment and philanthropy. Worth a trip, and did I mention that it's offered by the city... for FREE? Yes the baked goodies and hand-made lemonade is also pro-bono. Love, love, love this place. Thank you YEG for providing this to Edmontonians every year.

I'm going to start off by saying that this is a FREE Museum. And they say you can't get something…read morefor free anymore. But that's not the only reason that this place earns my five star rating! Very culturally and historically significant for Edmonton, it seems that without this little highly accessible gem, some people might not know about many of the conditions that Edmonton was founded on, or about the flood of 1915 that forever reshaped our city. If you find yourself in need of a crash course in these matters, take yourself on a self-guided tour using their graphic and detailed information panels. These panels are outside of the three buildings which comprise the museum, so they can be accessed any day of the week, any season of the year, at your leisure. If you have questions, would prefer a much more immersive experience, or would like to see inside the houses, drop by between 1 and 4 on a Sunday (March-December) and the staff and volunteers would be more than happy to share their vast banks of knowledge with you, and maybe even ask you to help them finish some of the mounds of cookies they've baked (again, *free*). They are occasionally open on other days and times, check their website or follow them on Facebook for upcoming programs and events. The houses themselves are a treat to visit as well, as with other well curated living history museums, these also offer the sense of time travel, with the sights, sounds, and smells of a bygone era. Some things they just don't make like they used to, like washing machines, and toilets. So, if you have a curious little one that you want to impress, this is a wondrous place to show them something old, but new to them. Located in scenic Kinsmen Park, a visit to this museum can easily be incorporated into a larger outing. Perhaps a walk through the river valley, a day at the Queen Elizabeth pool, or it can be a magical rest-stop on a long bike excursion. And did I mention it's free to visit.? Not even a guilt trip 'admission by donation' sign.

Great way to spend a rainy day, as you can still view nature while indoors (it was pouring rain…read morewhen we went!). The different plant varieties and climate environments (tropics, arid, etc) were wonderful to experience and shows this place is run by people who care about plants. The plants in each section were well taken care of, and the design with the pyramids separating the different ecosystems was pretty unique. There's also a koi pond here. It'll probably take about an hour or less to walk through all the plant exhibits. They also sell plants too in the gift shop area. They have a small cafe to rest, but the drink was okay.

I was stopping by in the area looking for a botanical garden. I saw three glass pyramids. It was…read morecozy place to be one with nature and at the same learn about biomes.

Located in the basement, down down down Edmonton's Paleontology Museum is filled with treasures…read moredating back to prehistoric periods. Fossils, bones, crystals and more, the Paleontology Museum's cases are full and exhibits are geared for enthusiasts of all ages. My 8 year old an avid collector of gems and stones was thrilled ! Parking in front. Wheel chair accessible! https://www.ualberta.ca/earth-sciences/facilities/collections-and-museums/paleontology-museum

Absolutely wonderful place to hang out all day with the kids. Can be a little crow, bring ear…read moreprotection or quiet time activities for sensitive people.

Fun for kids and adults. Amazing imax theater. Good food at cheap prices in cafeteria. Nice clean…read morefacilities. Always entertaining. I have a annual pass to this place to watch movies and enter exhibits. It's totally worthwhile because If you go during the weekdays you almost have the place to yourself or just before closing too. I like the space exhibit which actually has a peice of the moon on display. But there are tons of interactive games and puzzles that most adults play too (some are still challenging for me for the first time). There is a cool body exhibits to explore which is cool if it's your first time there to see how your body works and how healthy you are. There's also a giant play are in 2 parts of the center. One one main floor and second floor. So the kids have plenty of place sto burn off their excess energy. I could stare at the ball thing thatis ancient for hours bc that's what I used to do as child mesmerized by the journey that little ball takes. I would highly recommend watching the imax movies here because usually the only last 2 rows are sold out so there's alot of space in between people. Staff are friendly and there's alot of areas to just eat if you pack your own lunch. Annual members get a 10% discount which is really nice too! I personally think the roving exhibits are a perfect date night since there's alot to do or talk about. And situated in west downtown there's alot of good places to eat nearby. I think edmontons telus center is better than the over busy and crowded ones in vancouver or calgary. With alot more to do. I think edmontonians take this place for granted.

The St. Albert Grain Elevator Park is sooooo much fun!…read more Whether you are there for a school field trip or one of the holiday celebrations like Canada Day, you will always find something fun to do here and neat things to explore. There are two historic grain elevator and a reconstructed railway station of the former 1909 St. Albert Canadian Northern Railway railway station. The two elevators are a 1906 Brackman-Ker Milling Company Elevator and a 1929 Alberta Wheat Pool Elevator, both which were designated as Provincial Historic Resources in January 2007. The museum is operated by the Arts & Heritage Foundation of St. Albert. Guided tours of the Grain Elevators and Railway Station are available from May to September. It's also available for special occasion rentals!

Amazing Christmas displays. Beautiful light displays. Holiday music setting up that cheerful mood…read more Fabulous food options. Glow is located in the Edmonton expo center. It's in hall a and b. Once inside you are transformed into a Christmas fairytale...or so the theme feels like that this year. It was a beautiful walk through which takes about 45 minutes to breeze through it. But definitely about an hour and a half is sufficient. You can get all your Christmas photos and get your glow on!!! Personally the horse carriage and the hanging lights you walk through are so fun. I loved it! The little lit up train was also very very cute!!! In hall a there is a fun area and lots of food options...I personally liked the grilled cheese food truck. They even have a Christmas market there to buy some goodies! Neat little concept for sure. There is s mandatory $10 parking fee...which is a ding but at least the parking is secure and safe with minimal walking to the expo center. Overall. It's worth the money spent. Get glammed up. Check your coat so you get beautiful photos. And definitely have a drink and enjoy the beautiful Christmas lights!!!!

Lights, lights, and more lights! Glow has some lovely and large displays which make for nice…read morebackgrounds for photos for families, friends, and couples. If it was busy, it might take time to get your photo in the perfect spot. On a weeknight, it was mostly families with little ones to enjoy the train ride and lights. Most of the time, we didn't have to wait too long for photos in certain spots. Glow is in two adjacent halls with one hall having a stage and vendors selling holiday themed items. There wasn't any entertainment on the stage when were were there. The other hall had food trucks, tables and chair, large displays, and Santa! The line up to see Santa wasn't long and there's a helper to take photos with Santa on your phone. I was expecting more light exhibits but it was a bright place and something fun to do during the holidays.

I took my mother to a Valentine's Date showing here the past weekend to see Valentine Train!…read more First of all, LOVED loved LOVED the theatre made to be a replica of the original. From the pictures on the walls to the vintage curtain to the the replica windows, it was like a movie set! I did find it a tad odd that we waited in the lobby for the doors to open until 810PM when the website had said show at 8PM but none the less it was great! The accoustics and visual inside was perfect and you were even allowed to bring in drinks or snacks purchased from the goody stand which included old fashioned favourites like flavoured candy sticks (think candy canes without the curve). The intermission was the perfect length of time. Seating was first come, first serve. The seats themselves were a little uncomfy - I'd like a modern update to the chairs perhaps :-) And let's not forget how cute it is driving into Fort Edmonton Park (my first time there if you can believe it!). Even though the park protion was closed, it was cute walking past the old fashioned shop fronts. There is a hotel there open year round called Hotel Selkirk which offers date night packages and dinner. It is a reconstruction of the 1920's hotel originally located on Jasper Avenue. Check them out at: http://www.fortedmontonpark.ca/hotel-selkirk/ I admittedly have not eaten there but the pictures look divine! Their website mentions weekly Sunday Brunch as well as dining events like Murder Mysteries! Yes Please! I can't wait to come back in the summer to take the whole experience in with the fam jam.

Tonight I went to the Capitol Theatre, which is theatre in Fort Edmonton Park. It was completed…read morelast year (I believe) and made to look like the original Capitol Theatre that was in Edmonton in the 1920's. While Fort Edmonton Park is only open during seasonal months (May to October) and for special occasions the Capitol Theatre is open at various times throughout the year when the Capitol Theatre is putting on a production. I should say this is a live theatre (as in plays and musicals) but apparently during regular Fort Edmonton Park dates/times they show a historic movie about Edmonton called "Northern Lights" that's free with park admission. During the off-season when a production isn't on the theatre can be rented out for group functions, which would be kinda neat. The outside of the theatre, from the parking lot at least, looks like just another grey cement building. I have to admit that kinda saddened me. I mean the Hotel Selkirk is right next door, and looks very lovely with its brickwork. I don't know maybe the hotel Selkirk isn't made of real brick, but it looks real. The Capitol Theatre has a lovely front facade that looks like a theatre from the 1920's. A bright marquee, a lovely wood panelled box office, vintage movie posters. It totally sells the part. Except for the fact you turn your head two inches and you can see the rest of the building is an ugly grey cement box. It's a bit disappointing that no one sprung the little bit extra to make the whole building look nice. So the disappointing part out of the way, like I said the front of the theatre is very nice, and the inside is nice as well. The theatre is done up in an Art Deco style. The lobby has framed posters of the original theatre, and other historic theatres in Edmonton. Plus there are posters from some of the plays and movies that were originally shown around Edmonton. If you're like me and you love vintage movie posters it was a pretty cool thing. The actual theatre where the stage of was lovely. It sort of reminded me of the Cannon Theatre in Toronto. Definitely not the same size, but there was that same Art Deco kind of style. The theatre looked like it could hold a couple hundred people, so it's not too big. The seats just look like any seat you might see in a theatre, but they're actually quite comfortable for a theatre seat. Trust me. I love theatre, but I've been to shows where I start fidgeting after 20 minutes because the seats are so uncomfortable. The Capitol Theatre seats were very nice. I saw "The Next Chapter", a Neil Simon play about a widowed man and a divorced woman. It was kinda funny, kinda cute, lots of snappy dialogue (Neil Simon seems to write snappy dialogue well), a little more dramatic than I expected. But I enjoyed it. The theatre was maybe half full, but to be honest I completely forgot that Fort Edmonton Park had a theatre until I was doing research for a school project. The price is very reasonable. Students (with ID) and seniors get tickets for $20, a regular adult admission is $28. The play I saw wasn't appropriate for the under 12 crowd so I don't know how much a regular kids ticket would cost. I do know that they will put on kids shows, because they're going to do The Velveteen Rabbit in December. The theatre is very nice (except the back part outside). The show was good (although live theatre can vary), and the ticket price was reasonable. Another bonus to seeing a show at the Capitol Theatre is getting to see part of Fort Edmonton Park in the evening, after a snow fall. It was quiet and quite pretty.

This museum is a great spot, especially for your airplane loving ones. I love how much effort they…read morehave put into making it more interactive with kid designed scavenger hunts and activity sheets available for your visit. As well as having a cockpit or 2 open for kids to climb into and explore. The restored planes are phenomenally done and set out as full display alongside fitting decor and learning material like flight suits, tools and equipment, and even a little tractor. I loved that we got a tour, it brought some of the Alberta and Canadian history of flight to life and more connection. And then we got an informative and very intimate back area tour of their restoration garage where so many volunteers were working on multiple plane restoration projects.

I can't say that I'm an aviation expert, but I am fascinated by planes. And visiting Edmonton I…read moreknew I had to see this. And it did not disappoint. The weather was nice out and the museum wasn't busy so we got to explore everywhere we wanted. I got to see some planes I've only seen on historical documentaries. This museum being Canadian had their own arsenals and equipment to assist in allied efforts during world conflicts. So it's nice to see what other countries had. All planes had a informational board to read about some well known pilots that used them and the impact they made with their equipment. We saw there was an attendant that was giving information as well. The one that I liked was the plane of the infamous Red Baron. Legendary for being an ace in dogfights during WW1. This place is a must see for aviation enthusiast! They have a small gift shop but they didn't have much compared to the one back home. But then again, we came to see planes!