Explore - our insights on Alberta and Canada's Top Destinations

Edmonton’s 104th Street is a magical place in the summer. With numerous cafes spilling out onto the sidewalk, it is a hot spot for people watching, while also offering the perfect opportunity to indulge in a range of high-quality food and drink. You can sip cocktails while sampling tapas at Tzin Wine and Tapas, relish a craft brew with poutine at Blue Plate Diner, or choose from a selection of Canadian and international cheeses at Cavern, paired with a glass of thoughtfully curated wine. Perhaps the best way to get a good sense of 104th Street is to visit the bustling City Market held every Saturday between 9 a.m. and 3 p.m. between the May long weekend and Thanksgiving. Some 20,000 visitors will join you of a pleasant day. All of you will be able to pick up a great…

Calgary is a sprawling city of just over 825 square kilometres . The downtown is filled with skyscrapers but just a short walk or bike ride across The Peace Bridge lies a compact liveable, walkable area known as Kensington. The fact that Calgary has a string of neighbourhoods like this circling it like pearls on a necklace surprises many. This is where locals hang out and this is why we like to share areas like this with visitors to the city. As our friend Kenny Dunn at Eating Europe says, It’s nice to take a break from being a tourist. Calgary Food Tours has offered food tours in Kensington for a few years now. We love our long-standing partners and in an effort to help more people attend the previously only daytime offering, we recently moved the hours of operation to Thursday evenings,…

The Old Strathcona Farmers Market sells food and crafts, absolutely. But visitors to this hopping space in the heart of Edmonton’s south side are guaranteed to leave the site inspired by not only the quality of the offerings but the stories of the folks who toil at the booths. Vendors like Graham Sparrow, who has put years of sweat equity into his organic farm – Sparrow’s Nest – and brings both passion and fresh flavour to the fruits and vegetables he hauls into town weekly. And Laurel Ferster and Zinovia Hardy of Calico Baking Co. – who have perfected a range of artisanal breads, scones, croissants and tarts that sell out most Saturdays at the market.  “People don’t have to go to France for world-class bread,” says Ferster with confidence. “They can go and see the two gals at the market.” So…

We are thrilled to be part of an incredible web series called On The Road Canada with Ryan Pyle and Lu Fei. Ryan Pyle is famous for his Tough Rides and Extreme Treks brands and in this gruelling adventure he and his sidekick Lu road motorcycles across Canada from Newfoundland to Tofino on Vancouver Island. They even ventured North to the Arctic. We were able to share a little more cushy adventure when they stopped off in Canmore to enjoy some of Alberta’s finest food on our Canmore Tasting Trail food tour. Our partners El Gaucho and PD3 byBlake are featured in the video. The whole town looks spectacular and after our tour, they also quenched their thirst at The Grizzly Paw Brewing Company. Check out the fun video above. If you are lucky enough to live here, it will make you…

When the temperatures plummet in Calgary that means one thing and one things only – it’s time to embrace the season. Winter is loaded with fun things to do in Calgary and here are few of our favourites. Skating – Every community in Calgary has a volunteer committee to create and maintain an outdoor skating…

From Arctic to Atlantic to Pacific and every place in between, Canada, the world’s second largest country, celebrated its 150th birthday in 2017. Lonely Planet thought that was a good reason to name Canada the number one place to travel to next that year. The tipping point for that decision was the fact that access to all of our national parks were absolutely free for the whole sesquicentennial year. We have a lot of national parks – 44 of them to be precise. Our 150th birthday may be over but our great country and province are still here. Alberta is blessed with some of the country’s most magnificent national parks. (We think they might actually be the best in the world.) Waterton stands guard at our Southern border. Banff and Jasper cover vast territory in the West and Wood Buffalo looms in the…

Canmore is a fun town to visit any day in the summer, but Canada Day in Canmore is especially fun. Here’s this local’s perfect Canada Day itinerary. First things first. Bring good walking shoes or a bike. Canada day in Canmore is busy, so prepare to park your car outside the downtown core ( hopefully at your hotel because you should stay the night) and walk or bike to all of the events. 8 a.m. The Rotary Club of Canmore hosts a FREE pancake breakfast every year in the park (cash donations are much appreciated). Head to centennial park for the 8am start as it gets pretty busy later on. Besides, you need to eat breakfast early so you can have brunch too. 10 a.m.  Our food tour partners over at PD3 by Blake are hosting an awesome Canada Day party. They will be setting up riser seating…

It really doesn’t matter where you are in Canmore,  you are surrounded by stunning views. We wanted to share our top five spots for great food AND great views. PD3 by Blake. The intimate fine dining restaurant atop a fully renovated 1962 Leland double decker bus has the perfect view of Canmore’s famous three sisters. You’ll be treated to the outstanding 5 course prix fixe menu (with a glass of on tap Prosecco to start) while you watch the golden evening light sweep across the mountains. Murrieta’s Canmore. In the summer, Murrieta’s has a wall of windows they can open up, and the view of the Ha Ling Peak and the East end of Rundle is stunning. If you aren’t too full after dinner, we highly recommend you say yes to dessert and try the flourless chocolate cake with a sour cherry compote and vanilla tobacco…

Every time I watch this video I get teary. I love where I live and this video really does it justice. So what are you waiting for? Check out our calendar and book some tours. Come share all the food, fun and adventure we have right here.

  Here’s a fun map of the World’s Great Food Tours and guess what? Calgary Food Tours was the only Canadian food tour company to make the list. That’s cool. Thanks to our friends at Taste of Catalina Food Tours for the vote of confidence. It’s nice to belong to a great group of Food…