In a nutshell
- For many travelers, Calgary is the perfect starting point for a road trip through the Canadian Rockies — and a great place to soak up some city life before or after the national parks.
- The top Calgary attractions are clustered in and around Downtown, and many are easy to reach on foot or even for free by tram.
- From the skyline views at Scotsman’s Hill to the quirky shops of Inglewood and a stroll along the Bow River, there’s a surprisingly diverse mix of things to do in Calgary.
- We’ll tell you how much time to plan, where to stay, and which highlights are truly worth your while — and which you can skip.
Calgary: Getting There, Onward Travel & Public Transit
Calgary’s international airport has direct flights from two European cities. Air Canada flies the Frankfurt–Calgary route, and KLM offers a direct flight from Amsterdam to Calgary. Each flight takes about nine hours.
For the national parks, we strongly recommend traveling with your own rental car — and the best place to pick one up is right at the airport.
Our tip: You’ll find the best price when you compare rental car deals on Discovercars, where you can also book directly online.
We traveled by rental car ourselves. We drove from Edmonton to Calgary, which takes about three hours. From there, we continued on to Banff National Park — roughly another two hours down the road.
In Calgary itself, you can reach all the main sights on foot, or hop on the tram. Conveniently, the trains are free of charge in the city center.
The free zone runs between City Hall and 9th Street. At each stop, there’s a sign letting you know whether you’re currently in the free zone or not.
How much time should you plan for Calgary?
A full day is enough to see Calgary’s main highlights. Honestly, the city doesn’t have a whole lot more to offer — the real standouts of the region are the nearby mountains and national parks.
If you want to experience a bit more — like the Stampede or a visit to the Olympic Park — you should plan for extra time accordingly.
Our Hotel Recommendations: Where to Stay in Calgary?
The question every traveler heading to Calgary asks: where’s the best place to stay? We’ve got you covered with our top picks for accommodation in Calgary.
The Best Things to Do in Calgary
Here’s our rundown of the top things to do in Calgary. The list is fairly manageable, but there are some real highlights that are absolutely worth your time.
Most of Calgary’s attractions are located in Downtown or just a short distance from it.
Scotsman's Hill
One of our personal favorites in Calgary was the view of the skyline from Scotsman’s Hill. The small hill sits right behind the hockey arena and is especially popular with joggers and dog owners.
From the top, you get the best panorama of Calgary’s skyline — and it’s seriously spectacular around sunset.
You can see not only the high-rises of Downtown Calgary, but also the snow-capped peaks of the Rocky Mountains in the background. That proximity to the mountains is a big part of why Calgary consistently ranks so high for quality of life.
To get up to the hill, walk through the hockey arena’s parking lot and cross a small bridge. A wooden staircase then leads you up to the viewpoint.
Calgary Tower
If you can’t get enough of vantage points, we’d suggest a visit to the Calgary Tower. The view from the 191-meter-tall tower isn’t the most spectacular in the city, though.
The real thrill is the glass floor on one side of the observation deck, which gives you a direct look straight down to the street below.
National Music Centre
The National Music Centre is a Canadian foundation entirely dedicated to music. In 2016, it opened its impressive new home in Calgary: Studio Bell.
The building is striking even from the outside, and even more impressive once you’re in. The exhibition spaces feature a huge range of musical instruments from every era.
The most exciting parts, though, are the interactive exhibition rooms — where you can, for example, go completely wild on a drum kit.
Inglewood
The Inglewood neighborhood has existed since 1875, making it Calgary’s oldest district. This is where it all began, long before Calgary grew into a city of millions during the oil boom of the 20th century.
Today, Inglewood is — in our opinion — Calgary’s most exciting neighborhood. You’ll find the best restaurants and bars here, plus a seriously fun variety of unique and quirky shops, like a spice store and a knife workshop.
For music fans, Recordland is paradise. At Canada’s largest record store, you’ll find real vinyl records — and not tucked away in a small corner. The entire store is almost exclusively vinyl, with CDs banished to a tiny section in the back.
Most of the shops are along 9th Avenue and the nearby side streets. Worth knowing: most stores are closed on Mondays.
Prince's Island Park
Head north through Downtown Calgary and you’ll reach the Bow River. A walk through Prince’s Island Park is really worth it — it’s a small island sitting right in front of Downtown’s skyscrapers.
Even with the high-rises so close, you can stroll through greenery and spot squirrels — which in Calgary are actually black.
At the western tip of the island, you get a lovely view of the Peace Bridge, a futuristic pedestrian bridge inaugurated in 2012.
Calgary Flames Hockey
Hockey — you don’t say “ice hockey” in Canada — is the national sport, and the local team means as much to a Canadian city as a soccer club does back in Europe.
In Calgary, everyone rallies behind the Calgary Flames. They won the Stanley Cup back in 1989, and Calgarians have been hoping for a repeat ever since.
A hockey game isn’t quite as electric as a European soccer match, but it’s still a great experience. The arch rivals are the Edmonton Oilers, and games between the two cities — just 300 kilometers apart — are called the “Battle of Alberta.”
The Calgary Flames play at the iconic Saddledome. You can find ticket information on the Calgary Flames website.
Calgary Stampede
Every year in July, Calgary goes into full-on party mode for ten days. The Calgary Stampede is the world’s largest rodeo event and a massive festival — more than 1.5 million visitors show up each year.
You can find dates and ticket information on the Calgary Stampede website.
Canada Olympic Park
Calgary hosted the Winter Olympics in 1988, and the sports facilities from back then are still going strong today — located west of the city, right along the road toward Banff.
A wide variety of activities are on offer in both summer and winter: skiing, ziplining, and even bobsledding are all available to try.
You can find all the details on activities, prices, and hours on the Canada Olympic Park website.
Our Restaurant Recommendations in Calgary
We explored Calgary’s food scene thoroughly, and here are the spots we’d genuinely send you to.
The Ship & Anchor — This is a fantastic pub that’s super popular with locals but typically flies under the radar for tourists. There are about 40 beers on tap, including plenty of local craft beers, plus solid pub food.
We had burgers, which were honestly delicious. The Ship & Anchor is also the go-to spot in Calgary to watch soccer, with games running around the clock — mostly from Europe. It’s open daily from 11 AM to 2 AM and is located on 17th Avenue at the corner of 5th Street.
For excellent coffee, head to Phil & Sebastian, which has a total of three locations in Calgary.
