Exam time is almost over, and for many people so is their school career. What a better way to treat yourself than a trip! Perhaps Europe or a more tropical vacation, such as Thailand? STOP THINKING THAT WAY!! Canada is the second largest country in the world and each province offers something diverse and unique, and it is a great chance for you to discover your own nation.
Feeling adventurous and potentially physical? Want to do something you have never tried before? http://outdoors.ca/en-CA/Articles/SummerActivitiesInCanada.aspx offers many different activities for the outdoorsy person in you! Did you know you can surf in Canada? This site tells you where to go and the skill levels they are at. Some of the activities they have listed on the site are: bungee jumping, sky diving, rafting, camping, mountaineering, golfing and many more. Does your boyfriend love hunting or the relaxing calm of fishing? This site also lists prime locations for both, even down to where to fish different kinds of fish like bass and trout, and specialty fishing locations like spear fishing. Fishing lasts all summer, but hunting is more of a late summer activity and only certain animals can be hunted. Make sure you read all the rules about hunting or fishing and get all the paper work. HINT: some provinces offer free fishing weekends where you do not have to buy a license. Whatever you do make sure you know everything about it, because the law could get involved if you don’t and there could be fines involved.
Feeling like seeing some tours or do you have an amateur historian somewhere inside of you? http://www.pc.gc.ca/eng/docs/r/system-reseau/sec6.aspx features a map that one can click on to discover different historic sites run by Park Canada, just click on a province to get a close up view of each. Or use the search engine http://www.pc.gc.ca/apps/dfhd/default_eng.aspx to look up historical sites in a city. Of course you could just walk around downtown Montreal and Quebec City and see some of the oldest buildings in Canada. If you love dinosaurs you have to check out Drumheller Alberta to see stuff older than any building in Canada.
Festivals are some of the coolest events to attend. Kadmus Arts has a HUGE list of festivals happening in Canada and lists them all by province and then by date, and says what type of festival it is, music or others. (http://kadmusarts.com/countrie… ) Just click on the festival and it has a description including who to contact about the festival. HINT: This site has year round activities, hello Winterruption in BC or Saskatoon Blues Festival during winter break. Also this site does not have all festivals on it, there could be many more to discover like Saskatoon Folk Fest, but it is a very good list.
Sports are so much fun and a great activity for a bunch of people. While the only place to see professional baseball in Canada is in Toronto, don’t let that stop you! Many provinces have lower level baseball which is still pretty fun to watch if you’re into that. Because of the lockout in hockey, there will be playoff hockey pretty late into summer, just keep an eye on the local teams. Just because it is no longer winter does not mean you can’t enjoy Canada’s game. But I am going to throw something really crazy at you: Rodeos. You might be thinking if it`s even a sport, well it definitely is. http://www.rodeocanada.com/rodeo_schedule.htm lists all of the pro rodeos happening in Canada (only in BC, Alberta and Saskatchewan) and is a great way to experience something new. The Calgary Stampede is a good event if you want a taste of the rodeo but want to be able to do other things like amusement rides, and see some great country stars. http://cs.calgarystampede.com/ shows everything at the event, and accommodations.
Planning a big trip is incredible and so much fun! Staying in Canada can save you money and allows you to not have to worry too much about language barriers, except. If you are set on visiting a certain province then your best bet is to try that province`s tourism website. This is your chance to experience something new and all in the country you live in and love, we hope we didn’t give you too many ideas. Have fun re-falling in love with Canada this summer and happy holidaying and bon voyage from Her Campus uOttawa!
Photo credits:
http://latos.net/canada/gallery.html
http://stateinthereal.com/live-feed-from-ultra-music-festival/