Edmonton Attractions
There's never a reason to be bored in Edmonton, there are just so many things to do. A first-class place to start your Edmonton exploration is the Royal Alberta Museum. Expertly laid out, this 200,000 square foot modern museum displays Alberta's natural and human history in three permanent galleries. Wild Alberta, the museum's new permanent exhibit, represents Alberta's diverse natural history with astonishingly lifelike dioramas and interactive displays utilizing computers, microscopes, and other hands-on tools. The Gallery of Aboriginal Culture tells the 11,000-year story of Alberta's First Nations inhabitants, incorporating artifacts, film, interactive media, and Native interpreters. The Natural History Gallery has fossils, minerals, and a live-bug room.
Visit the Ford Edmonton Park, the biggest historical park in Canada. Fort Edmonton Park literally reconstructs four distinct eras of Edmonton's history. Perhaps most interesting is the complete reconstruction of the old Fort Edmonton fur trading post from the turn of the 18th century. This vast wooden structure is a warren of rooms and activities -- blacksmiths, bakers, and other guides ply their trades. On 1885 Street you'll see Frontier Edmonton, complete with saloons, general store, and Jasper House Hotel, which serves hearty pioneer meals. On 1920 Street, sip an old-fashioned ice-cream soda at Bill's confectionery and see the changes wrought in the rural west by World War I.
A visit to Edmonton would not be complete without a visit to the West Edmonton Mall. This is the big one. It may not be the largest mall on earth anymore (the Mall of America took that title from it in the early '90s, and surely something in Dubai has surpassed it as well), but for a time, West Edmonton Mall defined the enclosed, indoor shopping experience. Whether that's something to aspire to is a matter of taste and preference, of course, but what can't be denied is the sheer imposing-ness of this massive retail city in Edmonton's west end. You could literally spend days in Edmonton and not see everything. This city in the Canadian prairie might just surprise you.
Visit the Ford Edmonton Park, the biggest historical park in Canada. Fort Edmonton Park literally reconstructs four distinct eras of Edmonton's history. Perhaps most interesting is the complete reconstruction of the old Fort Edmonton fur trading post from the turn of the 18th century. This vast wooden structure is a warren of rooms and activities -- blacksmiths, bakers, and other guides ply their trades. On 1885 Street you'll see Frontier Edmonton, complete with saloons, general store, and Jasper House Hotel, which serves hearty pioneer meals. On 1920 Street, sip an old-fashioned ice-cream soda at Bill's confectionery and see the changes wrought in the rural west by World War I.
A visit to Edmonton would not be complete without a visit to the West Edmonton Mall. This is the big one. It may not be the largest mall on earth anymore (the Mall of America took that title from it in the early '90s, and surely something in Dubai has surpassed it as well), but for a time, West Edmonton Mall defined the enclosed, indoor shopping experience. Whether that's something to aspire to is a matter of taste and preference, of course, but what can't be denied is the sheer imposing-ness of this massive retail city in Edmonton's west end. You could literally spend days in Edmonton and not see everything. This city in the Canadian prairie might just surprise you.
Fort Edmonton Park
Fort Edmonton Park Drive Northwest
On Whitemud Dr., at Fox Dr
Living Museum in Four Time Zones...
