Calgary, CA

A romantic farm-to-table cabin tucked on Prince's Island, with a wood-fired kitchen turning out Canadian regional cooking and one of the city's deepest wine lists. Walking in across the footbridge feels like leaving the city behind.

A 17th Ave SW landmark inside an old dairy plant, doing inventive modern Canadian cooking in a buzzy two-level room. The Sunday Supper family-style menu has been a local institution for years.

Model Milk's smaller sibling next door, a tiny natural-wine bar with snacky Mediterranean-leaning small plates and one of Calgary's most interesting by-the-glass lists. Walk-ins sit at the bar; everything else fills up fast.

A glamorous 40th-floor steakhouse downtown with city-and-mountain views and a polished modern menu of chops, seafood and martinis. The view alone is reason to book; the cooking holds up.

A 17th Ave SW bar serving Pacific Rim small plates with influences from Hawaii to Vietnam, paired with serious tiki cocktails. The garage-door front and patio set the buzzy summer mood.

A bright modern Italian on Stephen Avenue doing scratch pastas, antipasti and wood-fired pizzas in a beautiful heritage-brick room. The happy hour is one of the best deals downtown.

A coast-to-coast Canadian restaurant on Stephen Avenue with a warm exposed-brick room and a menu that travels from East Coast oysters to Alberta beef. It's a thoughtful, locally rooted downtown dinner.

A bright, plant-forward room on the edge of the Beltline serving vegetable-driven small plates with global influences. Carnivores happily come along; the cauliflower and the broccolini are local legends.

A buzzy Beltline taqueria doing Mexico City-style tacos with house-made tortillas, slow-braised meats and a serious mezcal list. It's Calgary's defining modern Mexican room.

A beloved Sunnyside cafe in a historic corner building, doing all-day brunch, scratch baking and good coffee. A neighbourhood fixture for the morning queue and a takeaway pastry on the river pathway.

A small modern Korean restaurant in East Village doing inventive banchan, fried chicken and natural wine in a tight, design-forward room. It's one of the more exciting recent additions to the city.

A long-running French bistro on 17th Ave SW with award-winning cooking from a Provencal-trained team. The set menus with wine pairings are the best way to experience the kitchen.

A casual 17th Ave SW pizza spot from the team behind D.O.P., turning out creative pies including the famous pickle pizza. It's the go-to slice on the strip.

A long-running 17th Ave SW pizzeria and wine bar with California-inspired pies and a buzzy room that runs late. Tucked at the back is Frenchie, a speakeasy-style wine bar.

A 100% gluten-free pizzeria in West Hillhurst that quietly turns out some of the best pies in town, with Thai, Indian and Italian topping combinations. The crust is good enough that you wouldn't guess it's GF.

A stylish Beltline Indian restaurant doing modern street-food-inspired plates and tandoor cooking in a clubby room with great cocktails. It's a fun, sharable Indian dinner with a contemporary edge.

An East Village wood-fired restaurant in the Simmons Building doing Argentine asado-style grilling with a riverside patio and a rooftop bar. The Bow River view is half the appeal.

A sourdough bakery and all-day cafe inside the Simmons Building with stellar pastries, sandwiches and Israeli-influenced lunches. It's the best bakery stop downtown.

Calgary's defining specialty coffee roaster, with the Simmons Building location their flagship cafe. The pour-overs and seasonal espresso blends are the gold standard locally.

A widely respected third-wave roaster with several Calgary cafes turning out competition-quality espresso and beautifully sourced beans. A favourite of locals who take coffee seriously.

Chef Darren MacLean's eight-seat counter inside the Alt Hotel East Village, weaving Japanese technique with Canadian ingredients across a long tasting menu. It's the city's hottest reservation and one of Canada's most acclaimed tables.

A glamorous West End restaurant with a Mediterranean-leaning sharing menu, killer cocktails and one of the most photographed dining rooms in the city. It runs late and brings the energy.

A consistently top-ranked cocktail bar in the Beltline with serious classics, small bites and an industry-favourite crowd. If you take cocktails seriously, this is the stop.

A stylish Downtown West End Italian doing scratch pasta, espresso by day and Negronis by night. The room is one of the prettiest dining spaces in the city.

A massive prairie hilltop park in the northwest, with mountain-and-city views, native grassland and a web of unmarked trails. It's huge, exposed and feels nothing like a city park.

One of Canada's largest urban parks, a long ribbon of forest and creek across south Calgary with 80+ km of paths, picnic areas and Sikome Lake. You can spend a day and not cover it all.

The signature paved riverside pathway that runs through the city for over 40 km on the Bow, linking downtown to the western suburbs and beyond. Walk, run or rent a bike and follow the river.

A leafy Bow River park west of downtown with the Douglas Fir Trail climbing into the wooded escarpment. A short drive from downtown and a quick nature reset.

A 16 km paved loop around the Glenmore Reservoir through Heritage Park, North Glenmore and South Glenmore parks. A favourite local cycle or long walk with water views the whole way.

A wild river-delta natural area where the Elbow River meets the reservoir, with quiet wooded trails and excellent wildlife viewing. It connects the Glenmore loop to the south.

A surprisingly rugged ridge trail along the Bow escarpment between Edworthy and Sandy Beach, through one of Calgary's last old-growth Douglas fir stands. It feels far wilder than its in-city setting.

A small hilltop natural area above the Calgary Zoo with one of the best free city skyline views. A short, easy climb that punches above its weight.

A small foothills park about 35 minutes northwest of downtown with a creek of natural springs cascading over tufa formations. A short, magical loop, especially in winter when the springs run clear and the rest freezes.

A long ribbon of Bow River escarpment park in the northwest with cliff-top pathways, prairie grassland and great views down to the river. Mixed paved and natural-surface trails.

A quiet riverside woods on the Elbow at the west edge of the city, with boardwalk and dirt trails through spruce forest. Often one of the city's least crowded natural areas.

A pretty Bow River park in the southeast with three lakes, a paved pathway loop and easy wildlife viewing. A favourite for an easy stroll or a paddle in summer.

Calgary's hands-on science centre with a planetarium, big outdoor science park and rotating exhibits. The 18+ Adults Only Night once a month is a Calgary favourite.

One of Canada's top zoos, with a strong focus on conservation, a botanical garden under glass and a great panda-and-penguin lineup. It sits on an island in the Bow next to downtown.

The 200-acre downtown home of the world-famous July Stampede, with year-round events, the Saddledome arena and the BMO Centre. In Stampede week the whole city basically lives here.

Calgary's main downtown performing arts complex, home to Theatre Calgary, Alberta Theatre Projects, the CPO and the Jack Singer Concert Hall. Most of the city's big theatre and classical happens here.

The city's flagship theatre company, staging six to eight productions a year inside Arts Commons. The annual Christmas Carol is a Calgary tradition.

A downtown theatre at the base of the Calgary Tower specializing in mystery and thriller plays. It's a smaller, intimate house with a distinctive niche.

An independent two-screen downtown cinema showing arthouse, foreign and repertory films you won't find at the chains. The lounge bar is part of the appeal.

An Inglewood live-music room and restaurant booking blues, roots, country and singer-songwriters most nights of the week. It's the heart of the city's live-music scene.

A northwest live-music bar with seven nights a week of blues, jazz and rock in a juke-joint room. The cover is cheap; the talent rotates regularly.

Calgary's contemporary art museum in the dramatic former planetarium building near downtown. Rotating shows of major Canadian and international artists; the building alone is worth seeing.

A free contemporary art gallery on the top floor of the Atlantic Avenue Art Block in Inglewood, with serious rotating exhibitions. One of the best free art experiences in the city.

The 1988 Olympics venue on the western edge of the city, now a year-round sports park with skiing, tubing, mountain biking, zip-lining and an Olympic Hall of Fame. Something for every season.

A historic riverside park on the Bow with a lagoon, paddle-boat rentals in summer and a giant outdoor skating rink in winter. A classic Calgary day-out spot for families.

A small East Village arts venue and cafe hosting readings, open mics and chamber-style live music. A grassroots, locally rooted alternative to the big rooms.

Calgary's 191-meter downtown observation tower with a 360-degree view, a glass floor and a revolving restaurant. It's the classic first-day orientation to the city and the Rockies on a clear day.

Canada's largest living-history village, a sprawling park of restored period buildings, a steam train, paddlewheel boat and costumed interpreters. Plan a half to full day; kids in particular love it.

A striking East Village music museum and performance space housing the Canadian Music Hall of Fame and a deep collection of historic instruments and gear. The building itself is worth the visit.

A leafy island park in the Bow River right downtown, with pathways, summer festivals and easy access to River Cafe. The pedestrian bridges from Eau Claire make it a short walk from the core.

A protected wetland just east of downtown along the Bow River, with easy interpretive trails through cottonwood forest and a small nature centre. Quiet, free and a great urban-nature stop.

Santiago Calatrava's red-and-white helix pedestrian bridge across the Bow, connecting Sunnyside to downtown. It's an iconic photo and a regular crossing for joggers and bike commuters.

Downtown's central pedestrian street, a National Historic Site lined with sandstone heritage buildings, patios, restaurants and street performers in summer. It's the heart of downtown by day.

The 1875 NWMP outpost where Calgary began, now a museum and interpretive site at the confluence of the Bow and Elbow rivers. The grounds connect to the river pathways and East Village.

The downtown plaza built for the 1988 Winter Olympics medal ceremonies, now a year-round civic gathering space with a winter skating rink and summer events. Engraved bricks honour the city's Olympic moment.

A long, ravine-style park stretching across north-central Calgary, with a creek, paved pathways and the famed Lions Festival of Lights in December. A great low-key urban park anytime.

A free indoor botanical garden on the 4th floor of The CORE mall downtown, with a koi pond, living walls and warm humid air all winter. A perfect cold-day downtown break.

A restored historic alpine and rock garden across from the Stampede grounds, with quiet winding paths and a small heritage tea house. A lovely, often-overlooked downtown-adjacent green space.

Jaume Plensa's giant wire-mesh head sculpture outside The Bow tower downtown. You can walk inside it; it's Calgary's most photographed public artwork.