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Heritage Park Museum

School House
Heritage Park has been a place which I have always wanted to visit. The Husband and I decided to stop in at Heritage Park on our way to Lethbridge, and I honestly cannot tell you how excited I was; the rumors that I cried (just a little) when we pulled in are well founded. I couldn't even tell you why I was that excited, but there is just something about fulfilling childhood dreams that does something to a person. The Husband was admittedly not as excited as I was and only made fun of me for a few minutes. That's love.


First Two Pins
Now, I know a lot of people have want to compare Heritage Park and Fort Edmonton Park. I may share my thoughts on the two parks in a later post, but for now, I only want to share with you my experiences at Heritage Park, free from any contrasts to Fort Edmonton Park.

Review
First of all.. that parking lot is beautiful! It might seem silly, but having such a gorgeous parking lot immediately set the tone of the park. It was incredibly well manicured. Almost Disney-like, if you will. As we strolled up to the main entrance, I was immediately impressed that they had businesses which existed outside of the front gate, which is a fantastic way of keeping some revenue throughout the year.

The Husband has a major obsession with maps.
While we didn't stop in at the restaurant, it was fairly busy and smelled great and the shops near here were really neat and had tons of fantastic gift items. While there were definitely some "Tourist Canadiana" items, there were also some items that were really unique which I think would make the trip to Heritage Park worth it, especially around the Christmas season.

The walk from the front gate to the first exhibit was a bit long, though that may be due to the work they are doing on their energy-sector exhibit. Again, it was my first time there, so I can't say for sure, but we will definitely make a point of returning to see this exhibit once it's done!

The Cleanest!
One thing that struck me was the layout of the buildings, as it was done in such a way as to make you feel as though you were in a bustling prairie town. The use of mannequins was also a surprise to me, and a few times I nearly choked on my gum they scared me so badly (only a few minutes of jesting from The Husband followed). I also thought it was interesting that in lieu of chains across open doors, Heritage Park opted for doors with glass panels, which permits guests to view the exhibit while mitigating risk.

I will admit that we ran out of time, and had to head out of town before we could experience the entire park. But, that means we will just be heading back sooner rather than later! I also was unable to find a patch from Heritage Park, so I settled on two pins: one of the Heritage Park logo, and the other of a golden rail spike.

Highlights: having the opportunity to feel emersed in Calgary circa 1910 was incredibly fun, and we both loved the printing press demonstrations. The train was also fun to ride, even if it was an incredibly hot day (35 C). The shops also had really great items, and the Caterpillar Ride in the Midway was a blast!

Missed: We didn't have enough time to see half of the park, and we also forgot to ask for a self-guided tour. Next time, we will try and catch some programming, do a tour, and try to get to the other half of the Park. The Paddle Boat was also out of commission due to the damage from the flood a few years prior, so that is still something we would like to experience.

Recommended Time: At least 4 hours

Ratings: 
Family Friendly: 5/5
Cleanliness: 4/5
Staff Knowledge: 3.5/5
Content: 4/5
Experience: 4/5
Overall Rating: 4/5

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