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Country Guide > North America > Canada > Manitoba

Introduction

Manitoba, landlocked on three sides, comprises eight tourism regions. Most of Manitoba’s population can be found in the southern regions of the province, although Churchill, at its most northern border, remains one of Manitoba’s more popular tourist attractions.
Almost equidistant from the Pacific and Atlantic Oceans, the provincial capital stands in the heart of the vast prairie which covers much of the southern part of the province. This ‘Gateway to the North’ at the confluence of the Red and Assiniboine rivers is one of Canada’s most culturally and racially diverse cities, with a well-known ballet troupe and symphony orchestra. Places of note include the Legislative Building with Manitoba’s symbol, the Golden Boy, balancing triumphantly on its dome; the Manitoba Museum which recreates past and present life on the prairies; and The Forks National Historic Site, a 13.6 acre park with river walks, historic port, market, theatrical tours, restaurants and concerts. St Boniface is the French Quarter of Winnipeg. In the suburbs, the Royal Canadian Mint, with its high-tech building, and Lower Fort Garry, an old fur-trading post, are both worth visiting. Paddlesteamers offer excursions through Winnipeg’s urban and residential areas on the Red and Assiniboine rivers. The famous Winnie the Pooh was named after Winnipeg. A statue commemorates the bear in Assiniboine Park along with the only known oil painting of the cub. Additionally, the park offers a zoo, sculpture garden, English gardens and conservatory.
West of Winnipeg, the highway cuts through the wheat belt. Fort la Reine Museum and the Pioneer Village at Portage la Prairie reconstruct the town’s days as an 18th-century trading post.
On the eastern edge of the Interlake Region is Lake Winnipeg, with good sandy beaches and boats for hire. The western shore of the lake was once New Iceland, a self-governing area settled by thousands of Icelanders fleeing volcanic eruptions in their homeland. Gimli has the largest Icelandic population outside Iceland, and stages an annual Icelandic festival in August. Hecla/Grindstone Provincial Park, a group of wooded islands on the lake, offers a resort and conference centre as well as good hiking, golfing and camping facilities.
East of the capital along the Trans-Canada Highway is the German-speaking Mennonite town of Steinbach. The Mennonite Heritage Village provides a close-up view of early Mennonite life. Whiteshell Provincial Park has over 2500 sq km (1000 sq miles) of wilderness, and the Alfred Hole Goose Sanctuary nearby is home to four different species of wild geese. The more developed resort towns of Falcon Lake and West Hawk Lake have good facilities for swimming and sailing.
En route to the great northern wilderness, Riding Mountain National Park is a vast recreational area providing wildlife viewing, biking, backpacking, and horseback riding on 300km (190 miles) of hiking trails. Golfing, swimming and shopping are available. Bison still roam the range near Lake Audy in the park. Ukrainian immigrants colonised the farming area around Dauphin in the 1890s and their influence is still felt in the cuisine and costume of the area, notably during the annual National Ukrainian Festival.
Densely wooded parklands are home to moose and wood bison, the Spirit Sands, a 5 sq km tract of blowing sand dunes towering over 30m, the International Peace Garden dedicated to the long-standing peace between Canada and the USA, located at the North Dakota border and Canada’s longest free suspension foot bridge in Souris.
Just north of the 53rd parallel, is the town of The Pas, a jumping-off point for trips to the lakes and rivers of the northern interior. Further east, near the border with Saskatchewan is the mining and lumbering town of Flin Flon, noted for its abundant fishing opportunities, and Grass River Provincial Park, a huge granite wilderness with excellent canoeing adventures. Churchill, a sub-Arctic seaport in the far northeast, is best reached by air across the vast flatlands running into Hudson Bay. It is known for its bird-watching opportunities and the beluga whales that congregate at the mouth of the Churchill River in the summertime. It is an ideal spot to view the aurora borealis (northern lights) in winter and to take an organised tour by tundra buggy in the autumn, and see why the area is known as the polar bear capital of the world. Wapusk National Park is a remote area with a severe sub-Arctic climate and home to one of the world’s largest known polar bear den sites, in addition to hundreds of thousands of waterfowl and shorebirds.
Panoramic valleys and rolling hills recapture the centuries-old past of the North West Mounted Police. The rough and tumble of the Manitoba Stampede is as exciting as Morden’s Corn and Apple Festival is appetising.