Join thousands of fans cheering on the Green and Gold at an Edmonton Eskimos CFL game, experience history in motion at the impressive Aviation Museum, take in an Oilers Game at one of the loudest NHL arenas in the world (pg 52), or enjoy the emerging community arts scene along Alberta Avenue.
Fantastic family festivals like Deep Freeze: A Byzantine Winter Festival, K-Days and the Kaleido Family Arts Festival are definitely worth checking out, as is The Carrot — a coffee shop that doubles as an art gallery and hosts regular local exhibitions and performances.
This part of the city also has an interesting and royal past: the current Kingsway Avenue running through the heart of the north side — built in 1914 as Portage Avenue — was renamed in 1939 when 60,000 people jammed its sidewalks to witness a visit by King George VI. It is also home to the Prince of Wales Armouries, an impressive historical building that houses the city’s extensive archives and regular exhibitions.
1) Rexall Place — Near the northern end of Wayne Gretzky Drive, this 17,000-seat arena sports a larger-than-life bronze statue of the hockey legend himself. It’s home to the NHL’s Edmonton Oilers, winners of five Stanley Cups during the 1980s, as well as the Western Hockey League’s Edmonton Oil Kings and the National Lacrosse League’s Edmonton Rush.
2) Commonwealth Stadium — Home of the CFL’s Edmonton Eskimos, winners of an impressive 13 Grey Cup Championships, you will also experience some of the largest outdoor concerts and world-class athletic events in Canada at this massive stadium.
3) Northlands — Don your best hat and enjoy a day at the races at the Spectrum, a horse racing and entertainment destination with live thoroughbred racing in the summer and live harness racing in the fall. This venue also simulcasts races from around the world throughout the year, and features a casino area — The Slots at Northlands Park — which boasts more than 625 slot machines, VLTs and Keno spread over more than 20,000 square feet of gaming area.
4) Alberta Aviation Museum — The city’s impressive aviation history as “The Gateway to the North” comes alive at this outstanding museum (pg 40) with more than 30 aircraft, 40-plus exhibits, an aircraft restoration area, personal artifacts of famous pilots, a gift shop and more!
5) The Northern Alberta Institute of Technology — NAIT is the leader in providing advanced technical training and applied education designed to meet the high demands of Alberta’s industries. It’s home to more than 84,000 students in more than 250 full-time programs.
