I've been to a lot of different sports arenas, so it was a fun experience to check out a Canadian…read morehockey arena. One interesting part is that when you approach the building, you walk right past the structure of what will clearly be the team's next arena, which looks like a huge and impressive project. The current arena definitely feels older and a bit dated. The food options try to keep things modern, but the building itself has a classic "old barn" feel with simple seating and no cup holders. That said, you can really feel the history inside. The seating is built steeply upward rather than flat, so there really isn't a bad view in the place. It will be sad to see it go, but I'm glad I got to catch a game here before the new arena opens. If you're in the area before it's replaced, it's worth checking out.

This was my first experience for a concert! Before it was only for hockey games. The place is a…read morevery good venue for concert and in terms of sound and the rest of the experience, it was great! We had a great time there and enjoyed our experience. I have a feeling this building will be gone soon! :(

Volleydome is where you'll find lots of people playig a sport they love! whether its to stay fit,…read moreplay on a great team of friends or colleagues and just people who genuinely love the sport of volleyball like me. Back in the day, Volleydome use to be an indoor tennis court place! And although I was a religious tennis player in my teens, I'm glad they converted it - playing volleyball is more fun for me now! Thank you to everyone at Volleydome that makes it all possible!

Let's not get it twisted: I haven't jumped the gun on my New Year's Resolution of wanting to take…read morepart in more hobbies and activities and actually played volley ball at this volleydome. HOWEVER I did make a personal appearance a few days ago. Please, please, hold your applause. Can I just say that this Volleydome is FANTASTIC! First of all, it's the ONLY place in the city right now where you can dip your toes into the sand. Hell, it's the ONLY place in the city where you can run around barefoot and still feel like you're kinda outside. The day I went here, a couple of groups were volleying it up. They were great and everyone looked like they were having a super fun time! Also, just a tip for my fellow Yelpers. At the Volleydome, they sell Elevate Me bars! YES THEY DO! If you haven't tried them before, Elevate Me bars are the healthiest, tastiest and most nutritious protein bars out there! They are hard to find especially if you're looking to buy a box (or two). Lucky for me, a source told me that the Volleydome could be my potential dealer. And low and behold, they now are :) Let's recap: Sand between your toes, a smile on your face and an Elevate Me bar in your belly. Why haven't you left yet??!??!

McMahon Stadium is owned by the University of Calgary and is where I've attended various Canadian…read moreFootball League (CFL) games and cheered on the Stampeders. My most recent game featured a 44-3 blowout victory over the Winnipeg Blue Bombers. It was a fun crowd, but no where near the stated capacity of 35,650. The CFL Grey Cup game was held at McMahon Stadium in 1975, 1993, 2000, and 2009. In addition, McMahon Stadium served as the open-air venue (as an ice rink) for the 2011 National Hockey League Heritage Classic match between the Calgary Flames and the Montreal Canadiens. The Stadium was also the location used for the 1988 Winter Olympics for the opening and closing ceremonies. The Stadium is named after Calgary residents Frank McMahon and his brother, George, who gave $$$ to both the University and towards the construction of this stadium. My friend Jim has season tickets and their 2nd Row/20 Yard Line seats have been wonderful place to watch the Football, Outriders, and Fellow Fan action. I even snagged one of those small footballs that they throw into the stands the last time I was here. And he has a parking pass to the parking lot just outside the Stadium. That's just the ticket for some serious tailgating.

Ah the CFL....it's the NFL's smaller brother...it's farm system. They make it Canadian though:…read more only 3-downs, 110 yards endzone to endzone, 12 players on the field, etc. It's alright though. At this stadium, you could tell it was more of a family feel to it....well we were in the "family zone". They do all kinds of things to keep the crowd at bay: fireworks after scores, shooting mini-footballs into the crowd, 50/50 raffle, etc. Basically it felt like a high school game in the states, and that's not necessarily a bad thing. My only annoyance was the freakin' brat kids sitting behind us. I know this is the "family zone", but dang! Why don't these dang parents keep their kids under control. Man, I was about ready to start throwing kids after a few quarters of it!! But alas, the Stamps won, and everyone walked away happy.

Soccer? Ultimate? Tennis? Whatever your sport of choice, you can probably play it here…read more The fields are beautifully maintained and expansive.You can have about 8 simultaneous games of soccer. It also offers a lovely view of Calgary's largest downtown buildings. Things to note: no dogs allowed, this is a city field, folks! Parking is limited to two small lots, but there is lots of street parking Don't let your kids kick balls against the tennis club building as it echoes into their VIP dining lounge and those guys get mad. The sun was out, I enjoyed sitting on the dilapidated bleachers watching the soccer and took photos. Girls from youth soccer teams roamed the field selling gatorade and pop to fundraise for their team. What a beautiful day, in a beautiful park!

I've been coming here since first moving to Altadore in 2004. This is the kind of community…read morefacility that just adds a ton value to living nearby. It is laid back, chill & a no glamour facility. Perfect! The staff are mature seasoned YYC city employees who are always happy & helpful. There are 3 pools; 25 metre, dive/exercise pool & a huge hot tub. There is a great drop- in conditioning swim on Monday & Wednesday evenings & Saturday mornings.

Late review, was meant to write and post on July 30/31…read more Max Bell offered their location for a 2 day spectacular outdoor music festival for the EDM community of Calgary (which also invites attendees from outside of Calgary from Edmonton, Vancouver, Toronto, and Seattle to name a few). Chasing Summer Music Festival hosted by INK Promotions and now joined Live Nations Alberta (previously Union Events/Union Electronic) was on its 4th year strong with first time being at Max Bell brought many people together to rave under the electric sky. Although the weekend did had a few hail storms, the event still went through and wasn't postponed! Comparing the previous venue, Fort Calgary, and the new venue, Max Bell, both locations were easy accessible by public transit and had some spaces to park around the venue - I think that this year's choice of location was better. The only downside was the 11pm curfew versus the 12am/1am curfew from the previous year. I would talk about Chasing Summer a lot more but you'll have to experience it yourself in order to get a better understanding. All in all Max Bell is a great venue (even though the insides were used for the event staff and medicinal station) and the event that took place in the location was pretty great!

The 1 star is 100% not for the Roughnecks it's sadly for the fans in section 110. they definitely…read moredo not make you feel welcomed which is a sad & a disheartening feeling for people looking at buying season tickets. Shame on them may have to rethink this.

Jim and Kathy recently took me to the Saddledome to see the Calgary Roughnecks play (and defeat)…read morethe Colorado Mammoth. I had never been to professional box lacrosse game and it was a wonderfully fun experience. It was also Redneck night which added to the festive atmosphere. The indoor game is hard to describe. There's a lot of fast lacrosse balls flying around, pinpoint passing from stick to stick, a lot of hitting and chipping of opposing players, musical chants when a goal was scored, and goalkeepers who look more like sumo wrestlers as on wonders how anything gets past them into the net. There were only 2 penalties during the game, one for delay of game and another for 2 many men. I was left wondering it is was possible to receive a roughing penalty. I had a great time and I certainly had not seen anything like this before. The National Lacrosse League is small (only 9 teams), so I may have to wait until I visit Calgary, Toronto, Saskatchewan, Colorado, Georgia, Vancouver, Rochester, Buffalo, or New England. But you can bet that I'll be back if my travel schedule allows.

Whole Lotta Rozsa!…read more This is top notch social event venue containing a 350 - 400 (or so) Seat theatre, with a social gathering space large enough for everyone. It's the perfect place for lectures or concerts with a party/mingle before or after. I love the look of this building. It's engineered brilliantly for sound, is super classy, yet still kind of looks like a barn! Go Calgary! A concert hall is all about the combination of sounds being able fill the air, taking over every inch of space, and yet remain crystal clear, with each instrument from low to high being able to shine through and occupy it's on space in the mix and in the room. *Takes a deep breath and pushes his glasses back up on his nose* Hey Rozsa... you NAILED it!!

Probably the best acoustic space in Calgary is to be found in this lovely centre. The 'crown jewel'…read moreof the Rozsa is without question the Eckhardt-Gramatté Concert Hall. Having both performed and been audience to events at the 'E-Gre', I can attest without doubt that it is one of the finest acoustic and performative spaces in North America, if not the planet. The on-site tech department is very 21st century as well. How do I know this? Because my personal experience of performing there was not acoustic -- rather, electroacoustic. Very demanding electronics requirements are needed with such a performance. Our computer, midi, microphones, Disklavier, theremin and A/DSP's were QUICKLY connected and placed accordingly. At the end of our sound check, The sound-E informed us that he had us set up for DAT recording (surprise surprise!) if we felt so inclined. Formidable technicians, let me tell you. The 'E-Gre' also includes (for your pre and post performance pleasure) a couple of dressing rooms, a green room, guest room for a conducter/VIP, and a full rehearsal space, so you can get your sound check done right. The E-Gre is just short of 400 seats, but whoever fills them is lucky. The overall ADSR 'envelope' created by the standing waveform complex inherent to the space will make you drool. Sweeping glissandos, clipped yet soft-edge pizzicatos, bass that threatens to inundate yet keeps just enough away... piano, solo woodwind and strings are the sweet instruments for E-Gre. Do go. You will thank me. The Rosza may also show up on your 'radar' due to its ability to hold conferences. I have not experienced this yet, although I have attended a number of lectures and events -- the most recent being Wade Davis' invocation of the spirit of his Massey Lecture. Stunning ambiance, with an intermission space which is comfortable yet large enough to accommodate catering and book sales. I encourage anyone interested to may a point of experiencing the RC. Either booking it, or catching a concerto. You will want to go to there.

Spruce Meadows is known for their awesome Christmas Lighting show at around Christmas time... I…read moreknow, generic. Went on a 45 minute drive to Spruce Meadows on Christmas Day to see the lights as a family. Our hopes were shattered when we found they WEREN'T OPEN, now I know I know, "But Alex they need to see their families on Christmas". Yes they do but they can keep the gates on and turn on the lights so other families can enjoy Christmas with a colourful light show. This was incredibly disappointing and I expected better of Spruce Meadows.

Big, picturesque space to hold events! However the location is not very accessible, parking is…read moreconfusing, and there is a lack of adequate signage.

At 10 o'clock it was still light out, but the park began to light up. The crowd was primarily in…read moretheir 20s and the music got louder. The young adults moved quickly in packs around the park. Everyone was nicely dressed & behaved. The fireworks begin around 11ish. The carnival rides, games and food vendors were busy.

Ok so we caved and went to stampede this year "post-pandemic" and you know what? It was actually…read morepretty good!! Maybe it was the fact that not as many people went as in years past or maybe it was all the extra sanitizers and cleaners around, but it felt pretty safe, clean, and fun! We didn't do rides this time since we had gone to Calaway Park the day before but we did eat some of the carnival food including cotton candy, mini donuts, corn on the cob and lemonade. The food selection was pretty standard carnival food, nothing too out of the ordinary. The animals area was fun for kids, they got to pet some animals there too. The indoor market was majorly lacking. There weren't many vendors as in years past. I did run into Ashley Callingbull and took a selfie with her! :) the food court area indoors where they had the kitchen stadium had fun coloured seating and these giant seesaws for the kid's to enjoy. I also wanted to check out the new Indigenous village they have which was really cool. They had a bunch of vendors and so many big teepees. Unfortunately when I got to this part of the park the teepees were already closed and there were no people to interact with or learn from so that was a bit disappointing. The Northern tent had the vaccinated only party going on in there. To get in you needed to put your name on the wait list, show proof of your full vaccinations, and take a rapid test. We didn't go to this area since we were with the kids but I like the idea of them testing this methodology out. They reported later that only 18 people out of the 20,000 per day tested positive for the virus and were told to leave the ground and go isolate immediately. Overall Stampede 2021 was a decent comeback to this timeless event. I'm sure we will return again next year or in future years. Great event!