Visit The Calgary Tower! #MOMBLR
Recently we had such a fun experience being tourists for a weekend in our own city! We toured the Glenbow Museum, had brunch & visited Fort Calgary, and then we went to the Calgary Tower! Can you believe that in the 14+ years that we have lived here that we had never visited any of these attractions! Terrible! So being able to finally visit these iconic attractions felt pretty good! I mean the Calgary Tower?! It’s a must see!
Come check out our recent visit to the Calgary Tower!
Look up…look waaaaaay up!
Have you ever stood on a glass deck 191 metres from the ground? I hadn’t either, and I swore I would never ever, until we visited the Calgary Tower. And then because you’re there you have to stand on the glass floor. You have to. Ok, you don’t really, but it’s a pretty amazing experience!
Look down…look waaaaaay down!
The Calgary Tower’s glass floor is a must see. It looks out over 9th Avenue S. and is great for gravity-defying photos! Looking down at traffic the size of ants is pretty incredible, but combined with the fact that you are standing 191 metres over them on a glass floor is such a crazy feeling!
While at the top of the tower you also have the chance to see a 360° view of Calgary. You can walk around the top of the tower and see the entire city from the observation deck.
We tried to see our house with one of the six pairs of high-powered binoculars found throughout the deck, but it was cloudy that day. The city is incredible to see from this height – even with the grey skies, so I can only imagine how breathtaking it would be with clear blue sunny skies!
Calgary Tower Fun Facts!
- The observation deck is 191 metres from the ground!
- The Calgary Tower was originally called The Husky Tower, and opened in 1968. It was rededicated as the Calgary Tower in 1971, in tribute to our city’s residents.
- The Calgary Tower’s concrete shaft was constructed in 1 continuous pour that took 24 days.
- Daily, from 9am to 5pm on the hour, the bells of the Calgary Tower carillon can be heard through downtown Calgary. The carillon was gifted by the Dutch Canadian Centennial Committee in 1973 to mark Calgary’s 100 years.
- Atop the Calgary Tower sits a gas-fired cauldron which was installed for the 1988 Winter Olympics.
- The Calgary Tower’s emergency stairwell contains 762 steps. There are 802 steps total from the ground floor to the Observation Deck.
- Although Calgary is not in an earthquake zone, the Calgary Tower was the first building in the western provinces built to withstand earthquakes.
Tips for your visit to the Calgary Tower:
- Take your camera, as the photo ops are endless!
- There is a restaurant located 155 metres up in the Calgary Tower, called SKY 360. The restaurant completes a full rotation every 45 minutes during lunch and every 60 minutes during dinner. Tower admission is waived with meal reservations in Sky 360.
- Tower admissions are good all day. Once your admission is purchased, you may return as you please until closing time.
- The Tourism Calgary information centre is located at the base of the Calgary Tower. This is a great place for planning and information on family adventures throughout Calgary and Southern Alberta.
- The Calgary Tower is only a short 1-block walk from dining, shopping and the Olympic Plaza on Stephen Avenue.
Information for your visit:
- Location: 101 – 9th Avenue SW
- For hours visit the Calgary Tower website here.
- For admission visit the Calgary Tower website here.
I hope I’ve inspired you to visit the Calgary Tower! I promise you’ll have a great time!
Disclosure: I am part of the Calgary Hotel Association Blogger Campaign and I receive special perks as part of my affiliation with this campaign. The opinions on this blog are my own. We loved our visit to the Calgary Tower!
Amazing pictures! That one of your boots over the glass gave me vertigo! What a great place to visit. Marking it as a must when I visit Calgary!
Thanks Candace! It really is quite an amazing experience, and definitely a must-do when you’re in Calgary!
So cool! I can’t believe you hadn’t been to any of those attractions before!
It really is crazy isn’t it?! So happy we finally went!
Every time I go there my kids are braver and I still feel uneasy walking out! ITs a great part of Calgary!
It’s quite a unique experience! A definite must see isn’t it?! 🙂
Never been to the Calgary tower (after living in the area for over 10 years)! Seeing that glass floor freaked me out a little as I’m scared of heights, and I’m sure I’d be gripping that railing pretty good. The views are amazing (too bad we’ve been having such dreary days though).
I’m so happy we went, and when I got there I wondered why we hadn’t visited sooner! I’d love to go again on a sunny day!
I laughed b/c I read your first line and I thought yep. I know what that’s like to live next to a tall tower for 10 + years and never go visit it. Looks like you had a great time! I would love to come visit Calgary one day. I am a bad Canadian and have never gone out “West”.
You’ve never been out west?! You need to…and you have a friend here in Calgary! 😉
I used to live in Edmonton and visited Calgary but did not get the chance to visit the Calgary tower. If I go back I will.
Oh you really should! It’s such a unique and fun place to visit! The photos you can take are completely worth the trip!
Adding this to my bucket list for our next trip to Calgary!
Oh I hope you do! It’s a great place to visit!