Exchange District

Located minutes from downtown Winnipeg in beautiful Assiniboine Park, the Assiniboine Park Zoo is one of Manitoba's premier tourist attractions. Home to nearly 200 animal species, the Zoo is a great place for exploration and family fun. Open year-round, the Zoo is the home of Journey to Churchill, one of the best arctic species exhibits in the world. Here visitors can experience polar bears and seals swimming above them in the amazing Sea Ice Passage as well as encountering musk ox, snowy owls, caribou and more! The Zoo also provides visitors with the opportunity to experience animal species from all corners of the globe including Amur tigers, camels, snow leopards and more. With over 80 park-like acres to explore, the Zoo has been a favourite destination for families, tourists, school groups, and animal lovers for over a century. https://www.assiniboineparkzoo.ca/

Designed by architect extraordinaire Antoine Predock, Canada’s newest, most eye-catching attraction dominates the Winnipeg skyline, shining like a beacon. Inside an immersive experience that you can’t possibly shake awaits as 11 powerful, interactive and awe-inspiring exhibits gradually climb to the CMHR’s pinnacle, the Tower of Hope (which provides a stunning view of the city). An ambitious museum meant to foster dialogue and promote change for a better world; the CMHR provides a stirring account of the human experience unlike anything you’ve ever witnessed. https://humanrights.ca/

How many places do you know that can take you from the towering dinosaurs of the Cretaceous Period, to across the cosmos through space and time, to the buffalo laden prairie plains all under one roof? If your answer is none, then you haven’t been to the Manitoba Museum. The nine permanent galleries in this award-winning heritage and edu-tainment centre will enthral kids and adults alike; whether you are catching a Planetarium show featuring one of the world’s most advanced projection systems, to viewing some of Canada’s most important historical artifacts in the Hudson’s Bay Company Museum Collection, the Manitoba Museum is sure to please. https://manitobamuseum.ca/main/

The newest jewel in Winnipeg’s luxuriant-spa crown, Thermëa brings a bit of Scandinavia to the heart of Canada. Let the stress soak out of you in thermal pools situated amongst the pines; indulge your senses in Finnish saunas; treat yourself to the best in body treatments and massage therapy and then finish your day with some exquisite dining — because hey, you are worth it. https://www.thermea.ca/

One of Winnipeg’s most beautiful buildings, its reflective glassy exterior is a sight to behold at sundown, glowing under an orange prairie sky. On the inside you’ll find guided tours that will have you holding a gold bar worth more than $750,000 (it’s really quite heavy), ogling over the Olympic gold medals that were made for Vancouver 2010 and witnessing coins beingproduced for 75 different countries. A trip to the Mint is surely worth every penny. https://www.mint.ca/store/template/home.jsp

Six hundred-forty acres of pristine prairie beauty are waiting to welcome you to this natural oasis, which is located right inside the city. In the summer feel the wind in your hair canoeing or sailing on one of FortWhyte’s several lakes; in the fall sip a locally brewed beer on their restaurant patio while witnessing North America’s largest animal (the bison) roam in its natural habitat as migrating birds fill the sky; in winter go cross country skiing on their many trails or take the kids out for a ridiculously fun day of sliding on the Richardson Rrrun Toboggan slide. No matter what the season, there is always an adventure to be had at FortWhyte Alive. https://www.fortwhyte.org/

Saturated in 6,000 years of history, the meeting of the Red and Assiniboine rivers has always been a gathering place for people. Across 54 beautiful acres you’ll find a bustling central market, exceptional dining and accommodations, vast tree-lined paths overlooking all the bends in the riverbank, a world-class skate park, a children’s play area and water park, and all the best things a Winnipeg winter has to offer like skate rentals and access to one of the world’s longest skating trails. It also bridges, via the sexy Esplanade Riel, très-European St. Boniface — with its restaurants, cafes, artistic flair and francophone flavour — and the downtown core. https://www.theforks.com/

Ace Art Inc. is an artist-run centre dedicated to the work of contemporary artists, curators and writers. Ace Art invites and solicits proposals, explorations, uncertainties, site-responsive works and art centre/artist partnerships toward presentation. http://www.aceart.org/

Since its establishment in 1991, the St. Norbert Arts Centre has become a cultural, historical and recreational focal point for people from all walks of life and locales. Its seclusion allows for quiet contemplation and respite from the busy urban environment. The Centre acts as a diverse community dedicated to the cultural, environmental, and spiritual preservation of its home— the historical Trappist Monastery site located in St. Norbert, Manitoba. Its mission is to promote Earth, Spirit, and Culture. The St. Norbert Arts Centre is surrounded on three sides by the LaSalle River, old-growth forest, lush gardens and orchard. The Trappist Monastery Provincial Park hosts the breathtaking Ruins of the Monks chapel. http://snac.mb.ca/