Fort Calgary

Murder Mystery evening at Fort Calgary. Yes please!
As no one in our work group had done a murder mystery dinner before our christmas party seemed like the perfect excuse to go. And it was. Really blown away by what a great evening it was.
Was told that Fort Calgary is open before the show starts and you can look around. Honestly not sure if this is true or what the rest of Fort Calgary looks like as we were in time to get a drink and our seats before it all started.
Presented our tickets to one of the managers who told us where we were seated. They seem to put all the people booked under the same name at the same table which made it very pleasant not to have to worry about being separated all over the place. Round tables seem to sit 6 – 8 with more than enough space.
Drink selection was very wide and covered everything on the basics. If you are looking for the top shelf stuff you may not get it here but we had no issues getting everything we felt for drinking. Bar service was a little slow to start but there was only one lady serving there. Once we realised their were waiters on hand to help it made the drinks service much speedier.
Food was delightful and so much better then the general buffet options I always expect. Started with the most delicious fresh biscuits and butter on our table. The actors had a really innovative way of choosing the table as they went up for food and kept everyone entertained while they were waiting — handled very well and the wait to get food sped by.
Buffet had a wide variety of vegetable (kale, spaghetti squash, mashed potatoes, gnocchi in cheese sauce with cauliflower and corn), salad options (lettuce wedges, tomatoes with mozzarella, fennel salad) and chicken thighs grilled with a light sauce. Everything tasted fresh and healthy — not drowning in oil or sauce at any point. The kitchen does a great job and based on our meal this evening would really be interested to go back and try the brunch they have at the Fort.
Dessert came towards the end of the show and there were more than enough options to please anyone. Once again dessert was doing really well and nothing served was bland or just ok. They put a lot of effort into the food and it really shows. Coffee came complimentary during dessert.
In regards to the show — we saw the Christmas show. Nick Clause, all his employees, an inspector, murder most foul and laughs a plenty. There was a kid of about 12 in the audience and even though the innuendo ran deep at all times, they kept everything above board so would happily bring older kids to enjoy the show. The actors walk around the whole time chatting to every table telling you stories about the other characters and giving you «clues». At the end you vote on who did it with a prize for the person who gets it the closest. They also read out some of the worse guesses — amazing guesses from the audience, lots of laughs!
Had an amazing time and would highly recommend it for an evening out. Worth every penny and more!

Our fiends had heir wedding here, so we were able to walk through the museum for free. It was nice walking through and learning some Calgary history. The venue upstairs for the reception was wonderful. Great place to visit or have a wedding!

I have kids and we’ve never visited the inside of the Fort as a family! How sad is that. However having said that I think they appreciated it more being a little older.
Family Day was the day we dropped in to experience it all. We enjoyed the maple syrup outside for the event but were sad pandas they had no hot chocolate left. There were a lot of people inside but we managed to move through the museum and check out the displays as best we could while participating in the kids scavenger hunt.
We quite enjoyed the museum and know we will be back again when it is perhaps a little quieter.

This little museum facility in Calgary has a great mix of historical information and interactivity (I love the fact that you can put on the red serge and have your photo taken as if you were a North West Mounted Police person!). It is rather a small facility so one should be aware of this, although they are planning a major expansion in the coming years so that might change.
I was visiting (and volunteering) at one of their most busy events: the Family Day Winter Carnival. And this event was a very busy one indeed, but it was well run including activities for children and adults alike (though most activities were oriented toward children and young families). Food services were top notch in this facility and the outdoor space was very well utilized for sleigh rides, maple taffy on the snow, and hot chocolate while the indoor space included a scavenger hunt, crafts, temporary tattoos, carnival games and performances in the theatre!
The volunteer program here is quite well developed and the use of veterans to help out with aspects of the event was very beneficial to all the attendees. Overall I was quite pleased with how well run this very small facility is and would recommend a visit if you have a young family, or if you have a small amount of time and would like to learn more about the early history of the North West Mounted Police.

My husband and I attended a Murder Mystery dinner at Fort Calgary tonight. So much fun! The food was delicious with served appetizers and desserts and a buffet dinner. Everything was super tasty, and the wait staff were all excellent and attentive. The entertainment was a cast of seven actors who interacted with the audience and did the typical murder mystery scenario. Very funny stuff. Our table really got into the story and participated so it was a good laugh.
We didn’t tour through the other parts of Fort Calgary, as they were closed.
We will definitely be back, and I will be booking an event at Fort Calgary for a non-​profit I manage.

Fort Calgary was a disappointment. The Interpretive Centre is pretty small & the map they gave us was confusing because not all the areas were labelled. We almost stumbled into a room where a private function was being held because we were going the wrong way. The artifacts themselves from the RCMP & etc were very interesting though. I think the layout of the museum needs to be improved. Some of the rooms with the artifacts were so tiny & with a group from a tour bus there at the same time it was pretty crowded.

This Canadian historic site is a fun place to visit if you want to get a sense of how Calgary came to be.
Fort Calgary is the symbolic heart of the City of Calgary, and this museum describes, through a sequence of rooms and exhibits, how the fort came to anchor the city, from the establishment of the fort itself by the predecessor of the RCMP, to the blooming of a city as ranchers, oilmen and other settlers found a home in the shade and protection of the fort.
Several of the exhibits are fun to play with even if you don’t care about the history. One of the rooms has many old time toys — dolls, jack in the boxes, board games and other wooden or mechanical playthings. A different room looks like a small broadcast booth complete with implements (chains, coconut shells, clapper) for reenacting a radio drama.

It’s a respectable location for private functions. I’ve attended at least six events here and it’s a nice change of scenery with lots of parking. They offer a good variety of delicious hors d’oeuvres with a few rare items. While on-​site during the day, I have taken time to sit outside and enjoy the tranquility and landscape.
As a Calgary resident, I feel I should pay the Interpretive Centre and Deane House a visit at least once. I may have seen some of the Centre before and if so, unfortunately it’s not memorable. Solely based on my limited experience, I wouldn’t put it high on the to-​do list as far as tourist attractions go.
Review 11 for Unilocal’s 30 Day Challenge — Nov 2012

I’ve attended a few events here now from a community group luncheon, a Stampede party, a weekend afternoon information session, to an evening celebration. Fort York is a great space for a mid size event (less than 100 – 125 people I’d say in the spaces I’ve been in).
The event rooms have character rustic charm and warmth. The catering is great whether it be a meal or reception type snacks/​hors d’oeuvres. I find the staff to be friendlier and more welcoming than a lot of competing spaces (hotel venues etc) are. Judging by the variety of events I’ve attended, the clearly are able to cater to most budgets, whether it be corporate or non profit and the quality does not suffer.
There is a decent amount of parking available too and they are a quick cab ride from downtown — perfect if your party/​event has out of town guests or if your event is right after work.
Events can be held during business hours or outside of the posted hours.

Such a historic spot deserves better. The actual area of the old fort is in a public park and all that is there are 3 wooden buildings which appear to be used as sheds, a gate, and the old flag pole. My kids favorite part; playing with some rocks.
Beside the physical location of the fort, is an interpretive center. I’ve seen dozens of these in my time and this is a fairly simple look into life of the late 19^th and early 20^th century. Essentially, the exhibits are just rooms with artifacts, some genuine, so they are cordoned off. There is a small theatre playing Dudley Do-​Right shows back to back… perhaps they could have done better than this. My kids favorite part; playing with broken wooden (and some plastic) toys

I would not recommend Fort Calgary as a very first place to visit when in the city, but if you stay for some time — it will definitely be worth visiting.
Just to give you an idea: Roughly half of the museum looks like a bunch of empty rooms with some old RCMP office equipment in the corners. I can imagine that this part of the building is used for educational games and other kid-​oriented activities.
Another half of Fort Calgary is a nice walk-​through the thematic rooms, filled with interesting artifacts. Feels more like travelling through the grandpa’s basement than anything else, but in fact collections are organized quite neatly. I specifically liked the audio support — adding a lot to the atmosphere.
Staff is friendly and helpful, and price is reasonable.