As recommended by health officials, if you choose to participate in events outside of your home, please adhere to COVID-19 health and safety measures, including proper physical distancing, mask-wearing, and frequent handwashing. If you are sick, please stay home.
There’s lots to do in Calgary right now, whether you want to check out a market, attend a virtual event from the comfort of your own couch, or try something entirely new.
The weather is looking like it might be a little cool and rainy, so we’ve rounded up a variety of things to do in the city this week no matter what the forecast is.
- See also:
Grab a family member or cohort buddy, mask up, and have some fun this week, YYC.
Watch a movie at the Grey Eagle Drive-In
Grey Eagle Drive In (Courtesy of The Event Group)
What: Join the Grey Eagle Resort & Casino for the first weekend of operations at southern Alberta’s largest drive-in venue. With two showtimes for each of the two movies playing, there’s sure to be something for the whole family. Guests can even purchase food and beverage packages to add to their experience.
When: May 7 (early show: Finding Nemo, late show: Dazed and Confused) and May 9 (early show: Lilo and Stitch, late show: Ghostbusters)
Time: Two early showings and two late showings each evening (visit website for showtimes)
Where: The Grey Eagle Resort and Casino (3777 Grey Eagle Drive)
Cost: $40 per vehicle
Relax with dinner and a movie at Hotel Arts
What: Escape for a night with an in-room dinner and a movie at Hotel Arts. The package comes with a night’s stay in the hotel’s luxury accommodations, a gourmet in-room dinner for two, a bottle of wine, two craft sodas, truffled parmesan popcorn and other movie snacks, and a $25 credit towards your in-room movie.
When: Available daily
Where: Hotel Arts (119 12th Avenue SW)
Cost: Package starts at $275
Locked Zoo: Fab Forests (adults only night)
What: Explore the zoo without tiny humans running around, find clues, enjoy a boozy beverage, and solve the puzzles to save the day in this outdoor escape room-style experience. The challenge isn’t timed, so players can visit animals along the way, and delicious dinner boxes can be added on to the experience.
When: May 5 and 6
Time: 4:30 to 9 pm, with staggered entry times
Where: The Calgary Zoo (210 St. George’s Drive NE)
Cost: $45 or $60 to add a dinner box
Enjoy some cheesy creations during La Pizza Week
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What: The folks who brought us La Poutine Week and Le Burger Week are at it again, bringing La Pizza Week to cities across Canada. They’ve even paired up with Skip the Dishes so that customers can easily order some tasty ‘za for pick up or delivery right through the app.
29 Calgary restaurants have created a special pizza at a special price for the week of the event, and pizza lovers are encouraged to vote on their favourites through La Pizza Week’s website.
When: Now through May 7
Where: Grab pizza from 29 participating restaurants around Calgary
Cost: Varies by restaurant
Shop at the Kensington Market
What: Support local businesses and celebrate the arrival of spring with this monthly market, offering wonderfully unique finds from a wide array of vendors.
When: May 8
Time: 11 am to 4 pm
Where: The parking lot beside the Kensington Tim Horton’s (1204 Kensington Road NW)
JazzYYC: International Jazz Days Festival
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What: Join JazzYYC for their second virtual International Jazz Days Festival. The event features artists from Calgary and across Canada in a series of online tutorials and performances.
When: Now through May 27
Time: Videos released at 6 pm on Thursdays and 7 pm on Fridays
Where: Online
Cost: Free
GlobalFest Flavours: Indonesian Cuisine
What: GlobalFest Flavours is celebrating eats from around the world with a 10-episode series featuring food, spices, recipes, and flavours. In this week’s edition, discover Indonesian cuisine with Indonesian Kitchen as chefs prepare a featured dish online.
When: May 4
Time: 5:30 pm
Where: Online
Cost: Tickets are $10 each, or $25 to include a Spice & Dry Goods Box
Catch a drive-in movie at Canyon Meadows Cinemas
What: Calgary’s favourite “cheap theatre” has pivoted amidst public health restrictions, turning their parking lot into a drive-in theatre. After selling out their first feature of The Rocky Horror Picture Show this weekend, Canyon Meadows Cinemas now has tickets on sale for two additional movies, Shrek and Fast & Furious 5.
When: May 7
Time: 9:20 pm (Shrek) and midnight (Fast & Furious 5)
Where: Canyon Meadows Cinemas parking lot (13226 Macleod Trail)
Cost: $35 per vehicle
Spark Science from Home
What: TELUS Spark Science Centre hosts a wide variety of fun and educational options online, from virtual programs and Dome Movies at Home to Cereal Science and a collection of experiments and activities.
When: Programming varies, learn more through their website
Where: From the comfort of your own home
Cost: Varies by program
Book exclusive hydrotherapy access at Kananaskis Nordic Spa
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What: Kananaskis Nordic Spa is now taking bookings for private access to their hydrotherapy facility, which includes access to the hydrotherapy pools, steam room, and sauna, plus the spa’s locker rooms and showers. For those who haven’t experience it before, hydrotherapy is the Nordic-inspired cycle of alternating between hot, warm, and cold baths, followed by periods of rest.
Anyone can book the spa from Monday to Thursday, with access limited to hotel guests with reservations at Pomeroy Kananaskis Mountain Lodge and Crosswaters Resort from Friday to Sunday.
When: Now until May 31
Time: Two-hour time slots are granted per group throughout the day.
Where: Kananaskis Nordic Spa (1 Centennial Drive, Kananaskis, Alberta)
Cost: $499 total for up to 4 guests. (Additional household members can join in on the booking for $119 per person, up to 10 people.)
Take a walk through Devonian Gardens
What: Feel like you’re in a tropical paradise in downtown Calgary at Devonian Gardens. Stroll the boardwalk, take in the plants and ponds, and grab a quick bite at the food court.
When: Daily
Time: 11 am to 5 pm Monday through Saturday and noon to 5 pm on Sundays
Where: Fourth floor of the CORE Shopping Centre (400 – 317 7th Avenue SW)
Cost: Free
Visit the National Music Centre’s Amplify platform
What: Amplify serves as an extension of the NMC’s onsite programs through an online hub detailing the sounds and stories of music in Canada. Take a guided tour of the museum virtually, delve into articles from their vast collection of historical musical instruments, equipment, and memorabilia, and learn more about the power of music for healing and wellness.
When: Anytime
Where: Online, from the comfort of your own home
Cost: Free
Watch a tournament happening in Calgary’s Curling Canada Bubble
What: Calgary is hosting Curling Canada’s curling bubble at WinSport’s Markin McPhail Centre right now, and there are a few matches left to watch during the final tournament. Tune in to the action on TSN and cheer on athletes in this truly Canadian sport.
When: April 30 to May 9 (World Women’s Curling Championship)
Time: Broadcast schedule available here
Where: Broadcast on TSN and Sportsnet
Wordfest’s Imagine On Air broadcast channel
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What: Wordfest’s broadcast channel has assembled the “best writers, biggest thinkers, and sparkiest creators” in one virtual place to help fuel your curiosity. Join these great minds for a live conversation and get inspired.
When: May 4 and 6
Time: 7 pm
Where: Broadcast on wordfest.com
Cost: Free
Go on a spring walk
What: Calgary is home to some incredible parks and pathways, creating the perfect backdrop for a lovely spring walk walk. Head outside to get some fresh air and exercise while enjoying some of the city’s gorgeous green space. Check out our list of the best places to walk this spring.
Crossroads Market
What: This isn’t your traditional farmers’ market. Along with fresh produce and local eats, shoppers will find comics, jewellery, vintage items, a hair salon, and more at Crossroads Market.
When: Weekly from Friday to Sunday
Time: 9 am to 5 pm
Where: 1235 26th Avenue SE
Cost: Varies by purchase
Check out High Park
What: High Park offers downtown views, adorable string lights, colourful picnic tables, and fun signs to take photos with – on top of a parking garage in the Beltline. Have a spring picnic six floors above street level and grab some cool photos while you’re at it.
When: Open daily
Time: 7 am to 11 pm
Where: The top level of the Centre City Parkade at 340 10th Avenue SW
Cost: Free
Heritage Park Ghost Tours
What: Visit Heritage Park after dark for a guided ghost tour through the abandoned streets of its Historical Village. Hear spooky stories and learn a little bit about Calgary’s haunted past during a 90-minute walking tour, covering approximately 2 km of the park.
When: May 6
Time: 7 and 7:30 pm
Where: Heritage Park Historical Village (1900 Heritage Drive SW)
Cost: $22.95
Zombie Scavenger Hunt
What: Test your ability to survive after a zombie apocalypse in this scavenger hunt game that leads you through the city. Players have 60 minutes to collect supplies to survive during the interactive game that invites participants to complete challenges and answer trivia questions.
When: Daily
Time: One hour of your choosing between 10 am and 9 pm
Where: Downtown Calgary
Cost: $29.30 per team (up to 10 people)
Calgary Farmers’ Market
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What: Pick up farm-fresh produce, warm and delicious baked goods, and locally-produced artisan goods at the Calgary Farmers’ Market. Pet products, coffee and tea, and flowers are also available to purchase.
When: Thursday to Sunday weekly
Time: 9 am to 5 pm
Where: 510 77th Avenue SE
Cost: Varies by purchase
Visit a sculpture covered with flowers and snakes in this Inglewood window
What: While we wait for the Esker Foundation’s main gallery to reopen, their Project Space window brings some art into our lives while simultaneously providing a concept to contemplate. Visible from street level, “The Garden” is a clay sculpture combining elements of nature with the human form, created by ceramic artist Yvonne Kustec.
When: Now through June 6
Where: Esker Foundation’s Project Space window (1011 9th Avenue SE)
Cost: Free
Explore fandoms and win prizes during Calgary Library and Calgary Expo’s four-month reading challenge
What: Calgary Public Library and the Calgary Comic & Entertainment Expo have paired up to host a reading challenge. Over the next few weeks, kids and adults alike can take on both reading and creative challenges to be entered to win one of 25 prizes.
When: Now through May 15
Where: Anywhere
Cost: Free with your Calgary Library card
Tee-off at one of the world’s best courses from Hotel Arts’ Golf Studios
What: Choose from simulations of more than 20 of the world’s best courses, including Pebble Beach, Oakmont, and Valderrama, and tee-off from your own private Golf Studio in downtown Calgary. Players can enjoy their own stocked carts with food and beverage service from Hotel Arts’ Clubhouse during the game.
When: Open daily
Time: Book one-, two-, three-, or four-hour time slots from 8 am to 9 pm
Where: Hotel Arts
Cost: Starting at $50 for 55 minutes
Glenbow from Home
What: Tour Glenbow’s extensive collection and galleries of rotating exhibits virtually and get cultured without even leaving the house.
When: Anytime
Where: Online, available through Glenbow’s website
Cost: Free
“Escape from the Alternate Dimension” in this ’90s-themed virtual escape room
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What: In this virtual escape room, players are transported to a parallel 1990s universe using a time machine. A Live Adventure Guide will host the experience and cater to your group based on the ages of players, making this a fitting activity for everyone – whether you were alive during the 90s or not.
When: Daily
Time: Start times are staggered through the day, typically between 9 am and 9:30 pm (players have 60 minutes to win the game)
Where: From the comfort of your own home
Cost: $25 per person
Snap photos at PARK PARK
What: PARK PARK took an urban parking lot in Inglewood and turned it into a modern play space. Visitors will find life-size symbols of a tree, a phone, a picnic table, a bike, a book, and more. Each of these colourful symbols also contains a useful feature integrated that relates to what they depict – check out these curiosities and be amazed.
When: Open daily
Where: CPA Lot 43 (880 11th Street SE)
Cost: Free
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