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Glenbow
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Temporarily closed until further notice

Glenbow

Temporarily closedClosed until further notice
About
Glenbow is currently closed for renovations as we transform the museum through Glenbow Reimagined, our campaign to deliver a revitalized museum with you — our community — at its core. Glenbow will reopen in its renovated home, the JR Shaw Centre for Arts & Culture, in 2026. We look forward to welcoming you back!
Duration: 1-2 hours
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Neighbourhood: Downtown
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Most Recent: Reviews ordered by most recent publish date in descending order.

Detailed Reviews: Reviews ordered by recency and descriptiveness of user-identified themes such as waiting time, length of visit, general tips, and location information.


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4.5
4.5 of 5 bubbles865 reviews
Excellent
502
Very good
288
Average
54
Poor
13
Terrible
8

Wish 2 Travel
1 contribution
1.0 of 5 bubbles
Nov 2020
I was a big fan of the Glenbow and used to have a membership. My husband and I were going to be downtown on the weekend and decided to pay the reduced admission fee of $10 each and go for a visit, since we hadn't been there in some time. What a waste of time and money! We didn't realize that the 3rd and 4th floors were closed. There were just a few meagre exhibits left on the 2nd floor. Seriously, it wouldn't be worth my time even if it were free. Such a disappointment.
Written 30 November 2020
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Deb M
Peace River, Canada2 contributions
1.0 of 5 bubbles
July 2013 • Family
The Glenbow is a world class museum, it is well worth a visit and five stars. The service in the gift shop is the reason for the poor rating. I misunderstood that the shop hours were not the same as the museum and arrived 10-15 minutes before the actual closing. First the woman handling the till loudly made inappropriate comments about the customer still in the store and then belittled the other staff and insinuated they were not doing their job as I had not yet left. As I approached the till with my purchases, the woman (Linda) made it quite clear that she was doing me a favour to allow me to buy the books, any later she would have closed the till and I would have been out of luck. Even though I explained my mistake, apologized repeatedly for arriving late, told her that I would have purchased even more had I had more time and that the store was amazing, her response of too bad so sad better luck next time did nothing to encourage me to return the next day before I left town. Interestingly, the time on my receipt was still before the 6 PM. closing.
Fortunately the rest of the people we came across in Calgary at Heritage Park, the Calgary Tower, various shopping complexes, restaurants, and Port o Call Hotel had the opposite attitude to this woman and made our visit a great experience.
If you do choose to visit the gift shop, and it is worth the trip, be careful who you deal with and watch the time!
Written 29 July 2013
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

ProfessorDoel
Drumheller, Canada28 contributions
4.0 of 5 bubbles
Feb 2012
A solid museum, through and through. Not overly crowded, and has some very interesting exhibits on the history of Alberta. When I visited, the exhibition on Asian art was a must see.
Written 12 August 2012
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Annette638
Sydney, Australia8 contributions
5.0 of 5 bubbles
July 2012 • Solo
Enjoyed it so much went back twice. First Nation area excellent and informative must see. My absolute heaven was the Charles Russell paintings kept going back to see an artist I have enjoyed all my life. Good shopping for gifts to bring home.
Written 9 August 2012
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

RelaxedFish
Calgary, Canada82 contributions
2.0 of 5 bubbles
July 2018 • Couples
Based on both our conversations with their constantly changing executive staff, and their negative comments made RE: MUSEUM ANTIQUITIES, as well as their lack of attention in either presenting or preserving Alberta”s heritage, it is clear that they continue to focus on becoming a “art gallery”, rather than a museum!
Written 2 June 2019
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Chris M
Vancouver, Canada27 contributions
4.0 of 5 bubbles
May 2012 • Friends
The museum does a good job covering all aspects of Calgary and Alberta. With five floors, anything you'd want to see from history, to geology to international exhibitions are represented within.
Written 2 September 2012
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Alison L
Palm Springs, CA124 contributions
5.0 of 5 bubbles
June 2012 • Friends
Fabulous museum which gives you a real sense of the history of western Canada. Displays are interactive and engaging and include hilarious tidbits about the early stampede as well as a large series of displays and spoken history of the native peoples. Where else can you go into a teepee,walk through a 19th century train and enjoy a WWII canteen?
Written 2 September 2012
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

pengAB
Alberta, Canada93 contributions
2.0 of 5 bubbles
Aug 2012 • Family
Talk about a time warp. This is a museum that shows what museums were like in the 60s and 70s. Hidden in a downtown office tower, it totally lacks any setting or ambiance. The lack of exhibit-related signage and hand-out materials makes it a little difficult to plan your visit if you don't have time for everything. There is no museum-dedicated parking which is makes it difficult for tourists, as does the poor street level signage.

But it does have an impressive art and artifacts collection, but the curation is a mixed bag. The Canada on Canvas show was top notch and the tree-inspired modern sculpture installation thoughtful. The Asian religious artifacts display was repetitive and lacked a proper introduction. It really seemed like a pandering to donors.

The mineral display was perhaps the most boring museum display I've seen in five years (and I've been to many small town museums in that time). The Aboriginal gallery is the highlight, but perhaps tries to cover too much geography.

All in all, worth a visit, but not a good place for kids.
Written 31 August 2012
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Forestchick
Alberta, Canada33 contributions
4.0 of 5 bubbles
Aug 2012 • Family
Glenbow Museum had some very good western art when we visited, as well as a great indigenous people display, military display with armor, weapons from all over the world, mineral display (awesome) and more. We got to do some hands on beadwork in the craft room, which was the hilite of the week for my seven year old. The museum was a nice quiet place to go after having been at the very noisy and busy Telus Spark earlier in the day. I definitely would visit again..
Written 9 August 2012
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Kriscoombs
Essex, CT11 contributions
5.0 of 5 bubbles
July 2012 • Family
Be sure to visit the First Nations Exhibit - very comprehensive history as well as an extensive collection of beadwork and other artifacts.
Written 9 August 2012
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

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Glenbow - All You MUST Know Before You Go (2024)

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