Western Canada is a region of extraordinary beauty with majestic mountains, sprawling prairies and stunning coastal landscapes. Nestled within this breathtaking scenery are some of Canada's largest cities and the region's most exciting tourist destinations.
Calgary
Renowned for its famous, annual rodeo event, Calgary is the largest city in the Alberta Province, which is located in western Canada. Positioned between the Canadian Rockies and the Canadian Prairies, you will find many beautiful landscapes surrounding Calgary. Calgary is one of those ideal destinations where you can take the whole family and find something for everyone, from amusement parks and sports to shopping to arts and culture.
While Calgary is a sprawling metropolis composed of several neighborhoods that each offer their own appealing attractions, the heart of the city is its downtown core with all the major shopping and entertainment districts. Walking around downtown is easy, and two of the most popular pedestrian zones are Barclay Mall and Stephen Avenue Walk where you will find many shops, restaurants, galleries and entertainment venues.
While walking around downtown, you can't miss the city's spectacular skyscrapers such as the Calgary Tower and The Bow. Some of these high-rise buildings offer revolving restaurants and observation decks where you can dine and admire breathtaking mountain views.
Calaway Park and the Calgary Zoo are excellent places for family fun as well as TELUS Spark, a fabulous science center where you can engage in more than 100 exciting and educating hands-on activities. For lovers of arts and culture, the city offers a vibrant array of art galleries, theaters, and museums that include the Art Gallery of Calgary, the Canadian Olympic Hall of Fame, the Glenbow Museum, and the outstanding performing arts center, the Southern Alberta Jubilee Auditorium, which is more commonly known as the "Jube." Sports and outdoor fans will enjoy watching professional games of football, ice hockey or lacrosse at the Saddledome arena. With plenty of lakes, rivers and mountains, you can also enjoy fishing, swimming, hiking, and cycling in the summer orsnowboarding and downhill skiing in the winter.
If you visit in July, you can attend the city's famous rodeo, the Calgary Stampede, which involves ten days of parades, competitions, chuckwagon races, rodeos, crafts and lots of food.
Getting around Calgary is easy with its public transportation system that includes buses, trains, biking network, and taxis.
Whistler
Famous for being North America's largest and most popular alpine ski resort, Whistler is located in the magnificent Coast Mountains of the British Columbia Province. A scenic drive along the breathtaking Sea-to-Sky Highway will bring you to Whistler. While this resort is favored for its extraordinary beauty and world-class winter sports, Whistler also features a number of charming villages that offer year-round tourist attractions and activities.
If you want to join the other two million people who visit Whistler every winter for alpine skiing, the ski season runs between late November and April. You can also enjoy other winter activities like snowboarding, snowmobiling, and dog sledding.
There are three picturesque villages in Whistler where you will find hotels, villas, shops, restaurants, and bars as well as many tourist attractions that include museums, a children's fun zone, championship golf courses, and a luxurious spa center. Nearby rivers and stunning mountains provide summer activities like hiking, canoeing, camping, fly-fishing, swimming, whitewater rafting, and wildlife viewing.
You can get around Whistler by walking, buses, and taxis while there is also a gondola system that will transport you between the villages and the ski mountains.
Vancouver
Vancouver is one of the world's rare destinations where you can plunge in the ocean and snow ski on the mountain slopes all in one day. The city's majestic landscapes and prime location between the Pacific Ocean and British Columbia's Coast Mountains make it a natural playground.
As one of Canada's largest cities, Vancouver is a vibrant metropolis of diverse neighborhoods and buzzing districts brimming in shopping, dining, and nightlife options. The jewel of Vancouver is Stanley Park, a vast public park where you can walk in woodlands, stroll through landscaped gardens, rollerblade, splash in a water park, ride a miniature train, and view ocean life in an aquarium. Other gems you don't want to miss in Vancouver include colorful Chinatown, the outstanding food market at Granville Island, and the impressive waterfront complex, Canada Place, which is home to the Vancouver Convention Center. Beaches such as Jericho, Kitsilano, and Spanish Banks are great options for sunbathing and water activities while Grouse Mountain offers snowboarding and snow skiing.
You can easily walk around Vancouver's city center. For exploring other areas, you can use the public transit system that includes buses, ferries and light metro trains.
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