DESTINATIONS CANADA | ALBERTA
top tip
top tip On October 1,
Canada removed all its Covid-19 restrictions for vaccinated and unvaccinated visitors
3 OF THE BEST
INDIGENOUS TRIPS
Hear all about First Nations culture and learn how their ancestors lived off the land on a Mahikan Trails Medicine Walk, part of Insight Vacations’ Spectacular Rockies and Glaciers of Alberta eight-day tour, led by a First Nations Cree Iroquois local expert. The itinerary costs from £3,055 for a May 31 departure.
insightvacations.com
CLOCKWISE FROM TOP: Pictures from Heritage Park: main street, Gasoline Alley and First Nations encampment PICTURES: Shutterstock/Anastasiia Valitova; Natalie Marsh
extravaganza every July – around 5% of whom are from outside Canada – who come for the rodeo, chuckwagon races, powwow and midway (or fairground, this side of the Atlantic). There’s also an Elbow River Camp to experience the cultures of First Nations, and many other attractions. The park is almost empty when we visit it six weeks ahead of the 2022 Calgary Stampede, but standing next to the chuckwagon race track, looking up at the stands, it’s not hard to imagine the electric atmosphere that will soon be arriving.
STEP BACK IN TIME Just 15 minutes from the downtown area is a window into the region’s past. Heritage Park is an immersive day out for the whole family, taking visitors through almost 100 years of history with reconstructed buildings, replicas and exhibits, from a fur trading fort in the 1860s all the way through to the pre-1950s-themed Gasoline Alley, where old petrol pumps, retro signs and vintage cars fill the room. This collection used to be owned privately, before being donated to the museum. Staff, dressed in period costumes and remaining in character, add to the experience. We hop on board the park’s steam train to get our bearings, passing some even more impressive views of the Rockies across the reservoir, before we disembark at The Settlement, where we’re invited into the First Nations
50 20 OCTOBER 2022
33Leaving the tipi, I realise the importance of connecting with Indigenous communities through tourist experiences
encampment to witness and partake in a ‘smudging’. This is a traditional practice and is done by burning sacred herbs and wafting the smoke towards yourself to be rid of bad energy. Walking out of the tipi, I realise for myself the
importance of being able to connect with Indigenous communities through tourist experiences – and how this should play a part in any visit to Canada. TW
The village of Wendake, Quebec, is full of First Nations culture. First Class Holidays’ Essential Quebec package includes three nights in Montreal, three nights at a First Nations-owned hotel and three tours. Prices from £1,899 from London and £2,039 from Manchester, travelling in May 2023, with four days’ car rental.
fcholidays.com
Guests at Indigenous-owned Painted Warriors Guest Ranch can embark on a horseback adventure and learn First Nations skills. A nine-night stay with Ranch Rider costs from £3,317 per person, based on two sharing, including most activities but not flights, from May to October 2023.
ranchrider.com
Painted Warriers Guest Ranch
BOOK IT
Premier Holidays offers a 10-night fly-drive to Alberta from £1,899 per person, based on two adults sharing, for travel in May 2023. The price includes return flights from Heathrow to Calgary, nine nights’ accommodation in Calgary, Banff, Dinosaur Provincial Park and Drumheller, and car hire.
premierholidays.co.uk
travelweekly.co.uk
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