Free Family Activities in Calgary

Interpretive Trails, Pearce Estate Park

Free Family Activities in Calgary

For upcoming free events, see Free Events in Calgary

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Free Activities in January, February

Play ‘I Spy’ in the Inglewood Bird Sanctuary. The trails are open dawn to dusk, year round. Depending on the time of the year, the birds you can spot also varies.

In this active educational grain museum, one can gain an overall view of the grain handling system, storage and transportation industries. With the interactive displays, kids will enjoy threshing the grain, blowing the chaff and grinding the grain.

Many tournaments in this premiere show jumping facility are free. Tour the stables, visit the ground any day of the year and watch the trainers exercise the horses. There is a real Canadian superstore sponsored playground for the kids. Enjoy picnicking in the Meadows grounds, fish in the pond at the east entrance, watch the foals in addition to the outdoor tournaments. During the Saturdays of December and January from 9.00 am to 12 pm, have fun watching the horse jumping exercises, when the horse jumps with no rider.

Visit this unique educational and entertainment facility focusing on space and aeronautics, explore hands-on exhibits and displays, authentic and Canadian Space Agency artifacts, try fighter jet simulators, Morphis -a moving eight-person scenario simulator in a space-age capsule, and more at SpacePort.

Test your skating skills at North America’s largest outdoor skatepark. This skate park has something for every ability level of the skater, from beginner to expert.

a. Carburn Park biking loop is a 3km paved pathway around the pond, located south of Glenmore trail along the Bow river.

b. Pearce Estate to Inglewood Bird Sanctuary Loop (4km loop). There are washrooms at both ends and Pearce Estate where the Bow Habitat Station is located has picnic sites. Map

c. Bike along the your favourite section of the Riverwalk or from Fort Calgary to Prince’s Island Park and picnic at the park.

The interpretive wetland in the Pearce estate provides unique trails which showcase a variety of aquatic ecosystems and plant and wildlife species. You can fish for free at the Trout Pond in Bow Habitat Station.

Calgary city parks like Bowness Park, Edworthy Park, South Glenmore Park, and Prairie Winds Park are delightful city parks for a fun family day out. For picnic sites, see here. Bowness Park has plenty of activities on low budget and it is a park worth visiting

In Summer, have fun with your toddlers at the City wading pools and spray parks. See the list here.

In Winter, enjoy the season and get active by skiing, skating, sledding. See the winter activity list for all wonderful winter activities in Calgary.

Fish with your little ones in the Spruce Meadows pond or Carburn Park . Fish Creek Provincial Park provides the best option to fish in Bow River.

Join fellow nature enthusiasts and observe birds, critters and all aspects of nature.

Visit Devonian Gardens and enjoy the tranquility of this indoor garden.

The best free or activities on a low budget are offered by the City of Calgary Recreation.

1. Free public swim day on statutory holidays at select swimming pools. Check here for the free events happening at the swimming pools any time of the year.

2. Many events are offered by the City of Calgary any given month including Halloween parties, park tours, Inglewood bird sanctuary nature tours. See upcoming activities here.

3. Free public skating on select statutory holidays days. See here for more details

4. Free family Golf nights – Free golf is available to all juniors (6 – 17 years old), when accompanied by one paying adult (there must be at least one adult per foursome).- See for more details here.

5. For other low budget recreational activities, see here.

Stores like Home depot and Lowes offer classes/workshops for kids to build things using a hammer & glue like bookends, planters and more.

Activities are free. Contact your local store. All activities will not show up on the website and is store dependent.

Michaels also offers art workshops for kids for $2 – $3.

There are plenty of free fun family festivals that take place round the year in Calgary. See Festivals in Calgary for a comprehensive list of festivals.

1. Glenbow Museum: See the art works, sculptures and other artifacts originating from many corners of the world, providing insight into the life in Western Canada from the late 19th century to the present day.

Free Admission from 5pm – 9pm on the first Thursday of every month.

Free Admission on Community Day: Sunday, February 21, 2016

2. Historic Week: Join for 11 days of walks, talks and tours celebrating the history of Calgary and region. Most activities are free.

3. Doors Open Calgary: Many of Calgary’s most intriguing and beloved sites participate in Doors Open YYC. For this one weekend, buildings in all quadrants of the city open their doors – free of charge – to the public and providing special revealing tours and behind-the-scenes experiences. September 24 – 25, 2016

4. Culture Days Weekend: Through an annual three-day national celebration each September, hundreds of thousands of artists and cultural organizations in hundreds of cities and towns come together and invite Canadians to participate in free interactive and “behind the scenes” activities to discover their cultural spirit and passion. September 30 – October 2, 2016

5. See Family activities in Calgary article for few low budget/inexpensive family activities and attractions in and around Calgary.

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Cheaper Ways to Explore Calgary