Once Upon A Christmas at Heritage Park
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Jingle bell, jingle bell, jingle bell rock. Jingle bells chime in jingle bell time. It’s almost the Christmas season and I cannot believe how fast time has gone by! This year, I’m kicking off the holidays early by spending a day at Heritage Park, my favourite attraction in Calgary! The Park’s Once Upon A Christmas event instantly put me in a very merry mood and took me through magic of Christmas. Unlike my previous posts, today’s post will have a strong focus on images, with short sentences here and there highlighting special holiday activities that you cannot miss in the Park. Enjoy!
About Heritage Park
Heritage Park is Calgarians’ favourite attraction. It is a living historical village with more than 200 exhibits and attractions spread over the vast 127 acres of land. Stepping into the Park is like traveling back in time where you get to explore the history behind 3 key periods in Western Canada: the 1860s fur trading era, 1880s rustic pre-railway settlement and the bustling 1910s prairie railroad town.
Every year before Christmas, Heritage Park invites visitors for holiday enchantment celebration at the Once Upon A Christmas event! You can hop on for a wagon ride, sing Christmas carols or visit jolly old Santa Claus! All while experiencing the magic of Christmas past in a historical setting. This year, the event runs from November 19 through December 18th to help you get into the Christmas spirit!
Once Upon A Christmas Photo Walk
Now, let the photos put you into Yuletide mode!
Famous 5 Centre of Canadian Women
Train Track
Pro Tip: Take a wagon ride in the morning and go dashing through the snow. After 3 pm, tickets are required for the rides. Though the tickets are free, only limited number are available.
Flett’s Black Smith Shop
Watch the blacksmiths make Christmas tree ornaments!
[bctt tweet=”#ChristmasIsComing! Head over to @HeritageParkYYC & experience the magic of #Christmas past at Once Upon a Christmas! #yyc ” username=”fortwoplz”]
Claresholm General Store (Old-Fashioned Candy Store)
Christmas Train Display
Gasoline Alley Museum
The museum contains a display of thousands of vintage vehicles, most dating from before the Second World War! You’ll also find unique gasoline pumps and many products and signage from a host of petroleum companies.
Don’t forget to head towards the basement to find Santa crafts & games!
Summary
Once Upon a Christmas is like walking into another place and time – into a real make believe world. I hope you enjoy viewing the images I’ve taken at Heritage Park! Now, it is your turn – share with me how you get into the Christmas spirit.
Omg this looks like so much fun for the holiday season!
This looks so cute and enjoyable. I love this kind of nostalgic Christmas fun.
I literally cannot believe how fast this year has flown by! How is it already almost Christmas?! I’m in Canada at least once a year but I cannot believe I have still not made it to Calgary. I’ll definitely have to push my family out of their comfort zone and make a trip there next Christmas and I’m sure this will come in handy 🙂
Oh wow! It looks so nostalgic! #WeekendWanderlust
I’m from Edmonton and have been to Calgary a number of times, but have never visited Heritage Park. It looks so fun and festive for Christmas. I’ll have to go one year.
That train display is soooo cute! I really need to step up my train display design skills, as the train I have under my tree is not that impressive, haha. #TheWeeklyPostcard
Ah, it’s that time of the year again. I’d love everything related to Christmas and this park seems so cute and nostalgic. I’d to visit it. I have some friends in Calgary and I may go visit them next winter. #TheWeeklyPostcard
This is cool! I like there are several things to see in this place. I am more attracted to the gas memorabilia and the blacksmith area. That photo of the blacksmith demonstration is awesome by the way. #TPThursday
Your post made me feel Christmassy! I know it is Christmas when the mangoes ripen and my kitchen smells like ripe mango. We all love mangoes and they are only available at Christmas. Yipee!
I love place like this that effectively bring another time in history to life. If i went to Calgary I would definitely visit, even if it weren’t christmas
I am just a sucker for carriage rides. It’s hard to believe it’s snowing. This morning it was like 45 degrees here. It’s warmed back up to highs in the 70’s but it was cold enough to wear a coat. When I see your IG stories of snow falling in Calgary, it reminds me of winter, and Christmas, and how much I would love to take a carriage ride in the snow.
This is so cute! I love your photo of the blacksmiths at work. Personally, I would definitely be at the Christmas train display. Pretty sure I’m still a kid at heart because I love those! We have a little Christmas train/village here in Michigan (Grand Rapids) and it was one of my favorite things I did this holiday season!
This looks AMAZING! oh my goodness I love heritage parks for some reason and visiting during Christmas time is the best. Why is 19th century christmas just seem so much more cozy…must be from the movies, or the warmth of individual families back then without computers. I love that this is so large as well. ps. i have secret goals to learn how to forge like a blacksmith one day! cool space!
How fun! It sounds like Calgary has really made Christmas their own. I love the train display and the general store. Watching a blacksmith make ornaments is really cool, too. There are so many unique ways to kick off the holiday spirit. Thanks for sharing Calgary’s take on it!
I totally can’t believe how fast the time has gone this year either…seems like it’s getting faster and faster. I love your photos! So much to do in Heritage Park at Christmas. Calgary and Banff are two of my favorite places and I haven’t been for Christmas so I would love to do this! It’s like a little Christmas market!
What a beautiful photo essay! Visiting Heritage Park during the Christmas season looks like something I would love to do. Your set of images really captures the breadth of experiences there — and I love your black and whites, particularly the ones from the blacksmith shop.
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