Whether you call it spring break, reading week, or party central, you should probably come spend it here in Winnipeg.
Seriously.
Who needs an expensive plane ticket followed by a bitter battle with a six-day sugar drink hangover in the tropics when you can take a short drive north, east or west to The Peg, our hip happening city that is always vibin'.
Here’s just a few reasons why Winnipeg should be your pre-midterm destination this spring.
Breweries
Let’s call a spade a spade: chances are you college kids will have some steam to blow off this semester, and Winnipeg is ready to fight for your right to party (yes, that’s a circa 1986 Beastie Boys reference, but surely that song still gets plays on campus… right?).
On that note, how about you come discover our local brewery/tap room scene, which includes Barn Hammer, Brazen Hall, Devil May Care Brewing Company, Half pints Brewing Co., Kilter, Little Brown Jug, Nonsuch, One Great City, Stone Angel, Torque and Trans Canada, while soon there will also be Sookram’s.
On top of that, you can also look for local brews from Oxus, Winnipeg Brew Werks, and Fort Garry Brewing at our local liquor stores, while the city also has two distilleries with tasting rooms, that being the multi award-wining Capital K, and the brand-new Patent 5 – the handsomest, circa 1900s-looking tasting room you’ve ever seen, which is set to open any day now.
Pro tip: Stone Angel, Kilter and Devil May Care are all located in the same building (1875 Pembina Hwy Unit 9), which makes it an excellent place to try a great deal of beers, while Winnipeg Tasting Tours offers fun, thematic and/or neighbourhood-specific brewery, cocktail and distillery and wine and food pairing tours. As everyone’s favourite Panthera tigris Tony would say, “they’re great!”
Pro tip for American students: We love you folks, and you’ll love that you can enter bars here and purchase alcohol beverages if you are 18.
Clubs and live music
In case our student neighbours in Ontario and Saskatchewan skimmed over our pro tip for Americans, you can indeed go to age of majority establishments here if you are 18 – meaning you could go clubbing for the first time ever here in Winnipeg!
While so many of our dance floors are certified fresh, we should probably single out a couple big clubs on the scene, namely 441 Main, The World-Famous Palomino Club (located right across Main Street from each other) and Fame (Winnipeg’s hottest GLBTTQ* club).
If bottle service and bass aren’t your thing, Winnipeg also has arguably more live music per night per capita in North America (outside of perhaps Nashville and St. John’s, N.L.), and on any given night here we guarantee you’ll find a great performance (for a reasonable cover charge) at Good Will Social Club, The Pyramid Cabaret, The Cavern, The Handsome Daughter, Le Garage Café, the Park Theatre, and Times Change(d) High & Lonesome Club – to name but a few.
In fact, if you check out our live music calendar, you will see well over 100 live shows in March alone, while new shows are added to our website listings daily.
Attractions
The Forks is Winnipeg’s most-visited tourist destination – and for good reason. Within its Market you’ll find The Common, a wine and beer bar with 20 wines and 20 craft beers (including a rotation of five local beers) on tap, which have been curated by Véronique Rivest, one of the world’s best sommeliers. These are available by glass (or pint) and in flight format, tastefully laid out on a Manitoba-shaped boards from Huron Woodwork.
Surrounding The Common are food kiosks from some of the city’s best restaurants and food trucks, while within the building you’ll find numerous shops selling pretty sweet locally made gifts. And get this: the building has one all-encompassing liquor license – meaning you can shop within the Market with a glass of wine or beer in hand.
On The Forks grounds you’ll also find the Canadian Museum for Human Rights, an architectural marvel brimming with stories of heartbreak and triumph, utilizing interactive technologies and artifacts.
Another can’t miss is Journey to Churchill at Assiniboine Park Zoo. This place is simply incredible – it’s the world’s foremost Arctic species exhibit – and you’ll surely be blown away at the spectacle of polar bears swimming over your head in the Sea Ice Passage. It’s also a research centre on polar bears, where you can learn about how global warming is effecting northern species.
Should you be looking to relax after a late night, Thermëa by Nordik Spa-Nature is a must. This open-air Scandinavian-inspired spa is brimming with thermal pools, relaxation chambers, Finnish saunas, steam rooms and an excellent restaurant, making it an ideal place to spend the day.
Finally, there’s no shortage of other fun indoor attractions like escape rooms (including a new one called Activate which is so dope), Golf Dome (which is licensed), axe throwing, and all manner of cool places that you can navigate here.
So what are you waiting for peeps? Find a sweet deal today using our Spring Break Packages and Deals website.
