A week and a half ago I traveled to Winnipeg, Manitoba. My purpose of the trip was to see my San Jose Sharks play the Winnipeg Jets, but when I travel to new cities I like to explore what they have to offer. Today I am sharing my Winnipeg travel guide and I hope it will be useful to anyone who may be traveling to the city.
Hotel
As I said, the purpose of my trip was to see the hockey game, so we stayed as close to the arena as possible. We stayed at Radisson Hotel Winnipeg Downtown which was a quick 2 minute walk to the arena, and is in a centrally located spot in downtown. The hotel has nice, clean rooms with plenty of space and super comfortable beds! I found that the biggest perk of the hotel is the full Starbucks in the lobby because it made coffee runs so convenient and kept me out of the frigid cold. And it was cold..-10 degrees Fahrenheit to be exact, so pack your warm clothing if you are visiting in the winter!
Things To Do
There are seven cities in Canada that have an NHL team – Vancouver, Edmonton, Calgary, Ottawa, Montreal, Toronto, and Winnipeg. Winnipeg was the last Canadian city with a team that we have not yet visited, so we now have been to every major city in Canada. I will say that Winnipeg seems to have the least to offer out of the seven cities. The city has a relatively large population, but it seems that things like bars and restaurants are few and far between. We did some walking around and I just didn’t see many options of places to go. Despite that, we were able to keep busy for the two days we were there and did enjoy some of the places we visited.
Canadian Museum For Human Rights
In doing research prior to the trip, I kept reading about the Canadian Museum For Human Rights. I had read over and over that the museum is very nicely done, interesting, and also has amazing architecture. We walked to the museum from our hotel, which took about 15 minutes, and visited on a late Thursday afternoon. This time was perfect because there were very few people in the museum so we could really take our time and I was also able to get great photos.
The museum focuses on human rights and has plenty of interesting and captivating displays. The building’s architecture truly is as amazing as everyone says and it is beautiful. The museum has seven levels, so it is rather large, and on the 8th floor of the building is the Israel Asper Tower of Hope. This level has a viewing platform with floor to ceiling windows that gives you a 360 view of the city. You can get some great photos from this area!
The Forks
One of Winnipeg’s most popular spots is The Forks. The Forks is a historical area that is at the confluence of the Red River and Assiniboine River. This area was a meeting place for aboriginal peoples over 6,000 years ago, and now has a park area, skating trails, as well as The Forks Market.
The Forks Market is a large indoor market that has food and beverage vendors, along with shops and boutiques. There are so many food options featuring all kinds of cuisines and there is something for everyone. There is open seating throughout the building and it’s a great place to hang out with food or even coffee, beer, or a cocktail.
Food and Drinks
I had mentioned that from what I saw while visiting Winnipeg, there wasn’t an abundance of bars and restaurants downtown. While at The Forks Market, I ordered food from a hot dog stand called Weinerpeg (which I think is a great name, by the way). One of my food guilty pleasures is a good hot dog, so I enjoyed my meal from Weinerpeg.
When talking to the locals, we were told about Mitzi’s which is a Chinese restaurant that also serves chicken fingers. These chicken fingers are infamous in Winnipeg but unfortunately we didn’t get a chance to go because the restaurant closes for a few hours in the afternoon. If you are ever in the city and like simple foods like chicken tenders, most people would recommend you go here.
One place I wanted to go to while in Winnipeg was Oh Doughnuts, a gourmet doughnut shop. Oh Doughnuts is known for its fancy doughnuts, along with vegan and gluten-free options. When I tried to visit the shop, it was closed because they were sold out! They were sold out by 1 PM and I was so bummed. I am not sure if this is typical or if they were only sold out because it was Valentine’s Day, but if you are ever visiting the city you should stop by and hopefully be luckier than I was. I would suggest going earlier in the day to avoid the shop being closed.
Sharks / Jets Game
The hockey game was the whole purpose of our trip to Winnipeg, and it was our last night in the city. I have talked about my goal to see the Sharks play in every arena in the league, and Winnipeg was arena #25, as well as our last Canadian arena. The arena is aesthetically nice although very small compared to other arenas I have been to. The crowd was decent and most importantly we were able to see a Sharks win!
The very next morning we had a 6:00 AM flight to Minneapolis to see the Sharks play the Minnesota Wild. The games were only 22 hours apart, so it was a bit hectic in terms of travel, but still enjoyable overall. I will be sharing my Twin Cities travel recap on the blog next week, so check back then!
