Calgary

Imagine the mighty Rocky Mountains to the west, and big skies prairies to the east. Imagine Canada’s sunniest city, where the average age of locals is 36 years. A city of great temperature extremes, where a warm wind called the Chinook can raise the temperature by as much as 15 degrees C in a few hours. Imagine a modern, vibrant, diverse city, where a quarter of the population is foreign born, with almost 120 languages spoken. Welcome to Calgary, Alberta, whose humble beginnings were a North West Mounted Police (NWMP) fort built at the confluence of the Bow and Elbow Rivers in 1875. Remember Cool Runnings, the movie about the Jamaican bobsleigh athletes who entered the Calgary 1988 Winter Olympics? These days the Olympic Park is open to the general public, with year-round activities such as mountain biking, zip line, skiing, bobsleigh, snowboarding and luge. If your Calgary tour guide plans to walk you around the city, make sure everyone has comfortable walking shoes. 100 buildings in Downtown Calgary are linked by 60 suspended bridges 15 feet above the ground, thus creating an 18km indoor walking route. For true Wild West nostalgia, the Calgary Stampede is a must-do during July with excitement including chuck wagon races, rodeo, extreme motocross and midway rides, as well as daily concerts.