Ticket to the Past
Canadian Museum of Civilization
Fall/Winter 2010
Canada’s most popular museum isn’t in Toronto, Vancouver or Montreal, but just outside Ottawa, the country’s lovely but oft-overlooked capital. It’s impossible, however, to overlook the vast 150-year old Canadian Museum of Civilization.
The museum is located on the banks of the Ottawa River, directly across from Ottawa’s Parliament Hill, in Gatineau, Quebec. Relocated to a new building in 1989, its bold façade — designed by architect Douglas Cardinal to emulate the elements and the Canadian landscape — is visible for miles.
The building’s undulating shapes recreate the Canadian Shield, an Arctic glacier, the water and the Great Plains. Inside, extensive interactive exhibits bring Canada’s history to life.
The Grand Hall, filled with multistoried windows and towering totem poles, evokes Canada’s vast resources and unoccupied land. Other permanent galleries honor Canadian personalities and the country’s Aboriginal influence. Elsewhere, visitors walk through realistic replicas of forts and houses, and climb aboard whaling ships. It’s not quiet, either — the exhibits actually move, shriek and creak.
If you’re on history overload, the Canadian Children’s Museum, the Canadian Postal Museum, a sculpture garden and an IMAX Theater are all under the same roof. Younger tourists love the Children’s Museum, where they first visit a travel agency to plan their adventure. Will it be a jaunt to the Great Pyramid? A trip to an African bazaar? Better yet, a stroll through the International Village covers all the bases.
Want to explore more Ottawa-Gatineau area museums? Purchase a “Canada’s Capital Museums Passport.” This all-inclusive ticket is good for seven days from your first visit and includes admission to the Canadian Museum of Civilization and nine other capital city attractions, including the Canada Agriculture Museum, Canada Aviation and Space Museum, Canada Science and Technology Museum and the National Gallery of Canada.
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