The Calgary Tower is the city’s third-tallest structure, with two elevators that hurtle to the top in 62 seconds, and two emergency staircases composed of 802 steps apiece. From street level to the top, Calgary Tower measures 191 m (627 ft). At the top there is a restaurant and an observation deck, both of which offer incredible views across to the Rockies and eastward over the vast plains of the Prairies.

A former bowling alley and pool hall at the corner of Centre Street and 7th Avenue, in downtown Calgary, underwent a complete overhaul in 2004 and reinvented itself as a visual art complex. Spread out over three levels, Art Central accommodates 57 individual spaces for studios, galleries, eclectic boutiques, and artist exhibitions and demonstrations. The complex also houses a restaurant and café.

Housed in a brightly colored warehouse, Eau Claire Market provides a welcome contrast to the surrounding office blocks downtown. Located on the Bow River, opposite Prince’s Island Park, the market offers specialty stores selling a fine variety of gourmet foods, contemporary arts, street entertainers, craft markets, cinemas, cafés, and restaurants with outdoor terraces. A network of walkways connects to a footbridge that leads to Prince’s Island Park.

The pretty Prince’s Island Park lies close to the city center on the banks of the Bow River. This tiny island is connected to the city via a pedestrian bridge at the end of 4th Street SW. During hot summers, visitors and locals picnic under the cool shade of the park’s many trees, as well as using its walking and biking trails.

Located in downtown Calgary, the Chinese Cultural Centre was completed in 1992. It is modeled on the 1420 Temple of Heaven in Beijing, which was used exclusively by emperors. The center was built by artisans from China using traditional skills.

The Dr. Henry Fok Cultural Hall is the highlight of the building with its 21-m-high (70-ft) ceiling and an impressive dome adorned with dragons and phoenixes. Each of the dome’s four supporting columns is decorated with lavish gold designs, which represent the four seasons.

Located in the heart of downtown Calgary, the Glenbow Museum is western Canada’s largest museum, hosting three major temporary exhibitions annually, in addition to having over 20 permanent galleries. The museum houses an excellent collection of Canadian and contemporary art, as well as a wide range of objects that chronicle the history of the Canadian West through First Nations and pioneer artifacts. An extensive military collection includes medieval armor and Samurai swords. Glenbow’s new gallery, Nitsitapiisinni, traces the story of the Blackfoot people through interactive displays and artifacts.

Opened in 1985, this large complex houses four theaters and a concert hall, as well as having five rental boardrooms. Located in the heart of the city on Olympic Plaza, the center has staged events as diverse as k.d. lang concerts and the High Performance Rodeo.

The Hunt House lies across the Elbow River from the Fort Calgary Interpretive Centre. This small log house is one of the few buildings left from the original settlement of Calgary in the early 1880s.

Nearby Deane House was built for the Superintendent of Fort Calgary, Captain Richard Burton Deane, in 1906. Today, the house is a restaurant where visitors can enjoy a meal in a delightful period setting.

Fort Calgary was built by the North West Mounted Police in 1875 at the confluence of the Bow and Elbow Rivers. The Grand Trunk Pacific Railway (later amalgamated with the CPR), arrived in 1883, and the tiny fort town grew to over 400 residents in a year. In 1887, a fire destroyed several of the settlement’s key buildings and a new town was built out of the more fire-resistant sandstone. In 1914 the land was bought by the Grand Trunk Pacific Railway and the fort was leveled. Pieces of the fort were discovered during an archeological dig in 1970, and the well-restored site was opened to the public in 1978.

Today, the reconstructed fort offers an interpretive center, which tells of Calgary’s colorful past through exhibits such as a re-created quartermaster’s store and carpenter’s workshop. There are also delightful walks along the river.

Saint George’s Island sits on the edge of the Bow River near downtown Calgary. The island houses the magnificent Calgary Zoo, the Botanical Gardens, and Prehistoric Park.

The zoo prides itself on the exciting presentation of its animals, which can be seen in their appropriate habitats. A series of environments called The Canadian Wilds has been created, highlighting the diversity of both the Canadian landscape and its wildlife. There are aspen woodlands where it is possible to see the endangered woodland caribou, and visitors can wander the pathways of the boreal forest environment, maybe spotting the rare whooping crane feeding in the shallow wetlands area.

The zoo is surrounded by the Botanical Gardens, which has a vast greenhouse displaying plants from different climate zones from around the world.

The Prehistoric Park offers a reconstructed Mesozoic landscape, where visitors can picnic among 22 life-size dinosaurs.

Famous as the site of the Calgary Stampede, the park offers year-round leisure and conference facilities. There is a permanent horse racetrack, as well as two ice-hockey stadiums, one of which is housed inside the striking Saddledome, named for its saddle-shaped roof. Trade shows, such as antiques and home improvements, are also held here.

Established in 1975, Fish Creek Provincial Park is one of the world’s largest urban parks, covering 1,348 ha (3,318 acres) of forest and wilderness along the Fish Creek valley. Park guides hold slide shows on both the ecology and history of the region, detailing the park’s many archeological sites, such as buffalo jumps dated between 750 BC and 1800 AD.

The park’s forest is a mix of white spruce, aspen, and balsam poplar. In winter, many of the hiking trails become cross-country ski trails, popular with locals and visitors alike. The Canada goose, the great blue heron, and the bald eagle are among a variety of birds that visit the park during both summer and winter.

Heritage Park Historical Village sits on the shore of Glenmore Reservoir, and contains over 150 historic buildings, from outhouses to a two-story hotel, which have been brought here from sites all over western Canada. The buildings have been organized into time periods, which range from an 1880s fur trading post to the shops and homes of a small town between 1900 and 1914. Most of the 45,000 artifacts that furnish and decorate the village have been donated by residents of Calgary and the surrounding towns, and vary from teacups to steam trains. Among the most thrilling of the exhibits, a working 19th-century amusement park has several rides, and three original operating steam locomotives. A replica of the SS Moyie , a charming sternwheeler paddle boat, takes visitors on 30-minute cruises around the Glenmore Reservoir. You can also ride one of two vintage electric streetcars to the park’s front gates and walk down a 1930s–40s urban streetscape. The sense of stepping back in time is enhanced by the all-pervasive clip-clopping of horsedrawn carriages, and by the smells and sounds of shops such as the working bakery and the blacksmith’s, all staffed by costumed guides.

Canada Olympic Park was the site of the 1988 XV Olympic Winter Games. Today, both locals and visitors can enjoy the facilities all year round, including riding on the bobsleds and luge tracks. The views toward the Rockies and over Calgary from the 90-m (295-ft) high Olympic Ski Jump Tower are truly stunning.

Visitors can experience the thrills of the downhill ski run and the bobsleds on the simulators housed in the Olympic Hall of Fame and Museum.

Calgary’s Telus World of Science is a popular interactive museum, with over 35 exhibits of scientific wonders such as the book of mirrors, the music area, and the human sundial. In the Discovery Dome, the latest multimedia technology brings all kinds of images to life on an enormous domed screen. Fascinating shows include detailed explorations of everything from an ordinary backyard to the solar system. On Friday evenings, visitors can observe the stars using the high-powered telescopes in the observatory.

The Military Museums include naval, air force, and army museums under one roof, all focusing on the history of the Canadian Forces.