Unprofessional, Uncertfied (and hopefully, but not guaranteed to be accurate) Guide to the City of Edmonton

You know you already have faith in my abilities to navigate this city. I'm not as bad as the title would suggest though (I just don't want to be responsible for getting anyone lost!). I've never viewed the city/town I lived in as a child with any significance whatsoever, so I will attempt to create a tourist guide for a prospective tourist.

If you’re coming to the City of Champions, there’s certainly no shortage of opportunity or places to explore here. There are endless possibilities to see and do things in Edmonton, so much in fact that it’s highly unlikely you would not find something that appealed to you. Even if you're the exact opposite of the Dos Equis guy and happen to be the most uninteresting person in the world, there are things for you to do here. Whether you’re into art, music, sports, shopping, entertainment, festivals and community activities, you’ll find all of that and more. Edmonton is one of those major cities that generally appeals to everyone (weather excluded) just because of how much there is to offer here.

Sports: Where to begin? We have teams in this city in the NHL, CFL, NLL, NAL, CIS, AJHL, etc. We’ve got hockey, football, lacrosse, baseball, more hockey, and more hockey. If you can’t afford $100+ tickets per seat to an Oilers game, there are games you can go to of lesser leagues for a fraction of the cost, and it’s still great hockey. The same thing can be said of many other sports that currently exist in Edmonton. After living in a small town for several years, it was, at the time, simply unfathomable to have so much access to semi-pro and professional sports leagues.

Arts: Although I’m not too familiarized with the art scene in Edmonton, anyone could tell you that there’s plenty of opportunity here also (perhaps someone could contribute a few places that I’m unaware of in the comments on this post). It’s not exactly art, but we’ve got the Muttart Conservatory (it has art in its name; good enough), which is an exhibit that’s basically infamous to locals for its uniquely shaped, glass pyramid style buildings, and the vast collection of plant species they have on display here. There’s also the brand new Art Gallery of Alberta, which if you thought Muttart was unique in its design, this place blows it out of the water. I’ve never been to it before, but, I can imagine that the works of art on display and other creations are a spectacle to behold for any traveler. Check it out. There’s also a very nifty website that I stumbled across with a directory of all the art exhibits/galleries in the city – just click on this link HERE.

Shopping: Prepare to file for bankruptcy. There are A LOT of shopping malls here. West Edmonton Mall probably being the most notorious of them all, formerly the largest mall in the world (we've been outdone by The Dubai Mall now though unfortunately). There's basically a shopping mall in every sector of the city that it would be absolutely absurd if you could not find a place to shop here. Southgate, Northgate, Mayfield, Kingsway, Riverbend Square, Londonderry, Bonnie Dune, the list goes on. If you've come from the small town life as I have, you would know that there was a time where if you wanted something you saw on a commercial, you would instinctively go online to purchase it on eBay or somewhere else - not in Edmonton.

Festivals: I don't even know how many happen in this city year-round, but I'm sure you'll need to a calculator to find out. If you like going to festivals and such, there's plenty to go to here. Taste of Edmonton, Winter Light, Edmonton Poetry Festival, Kiwanis Music Festival, Vocal Arts Festival, International Children's Festival, Dreamspeakers Festival, Improvaganza Festival, Edmonton International Jazz Festival, Freewill Shakespeare Festival, Capital Ex. There is simply not enough time on the clock to list all of them. You get the picture. There are festivals here for essentially anything you're interested in. The City of Edmonton website also goes into more specific detail on locations and times if you're curious about that.

All-in-all, the only factor in my mind that would deter anyone from seeing any, if not all of that listed above, would be the weather. It could potentially make your experience miserable. Possible side-effects of touring the city during intense snowfalls and cold spells: crying in a corner somewhere, running out of gas keeping your vehicle warm, depletion of financial resources buying winter gear and/or Tim Horton's coffee, and desperation to move anywhere but here. Once you get used to it it's not too bad though. Talk to any long-time Edmontonian for sympathy and expertise on the matter. Otherwise, get out there and have fun!

Cheers,
Patrick