Manitoba

Tours of Manitoba’s oil fields, air museums, pioneer villages, spacious parks, government mint, and scenic waterways provide non-stop options for action-minded tourists. And there’s another kind of action to be found at the province’s casinos and race track.
First stop is Virden, on Trans-Canada Hwy 1. Naturally, you’re going to want to take an oil field tour and step back to a Victorian lifestyle at the circa 1988 Pioneer Home Museum in town, right?
Now that we’ve scratched that itch, travel east on Trans-Canada Hwy 1 towards Winnipeg. However, don’t “leadfoot” your way through the town of Brandon. Manitoba’s “Wheat City” features the Commonwealth Air Training Plan Museum where loads of WWII-era Royal Canadian Air Force planes and memorabilia are on display. At Brandon’s Daly House Museum, you can investigate the details of a late 1880s family home and grocery store. Hearing the proverbial “call of the wild?” Then it’s time to rent a kayak or bike or take a narrated boat ride on the Assiniboine River at the Stream ‘N Wood Adventure Centre. Otherwise, Portage La Prairie’s Fort La Reine Museum and Pioneer Village showcases a 1700s-style replica fort and a circa 1880s village with trapper’s cabin, trading post, fire hall, country school, church, and doctor’s office.
Winnipeg time. Check out the Casinos of Winnipeg to experience zesty live entertainment, bountiful buffets, a walk-through aquarium, Millennium Express historic ride, tumbling waterfall, and first-class gaming at two locations – Club Regent and McPhillips Street Station.
Or focus your wagers on the four-legged variety at Assiniboia Downs with seasonal thoroughbred horse racing and year-round simulcast wagering. The fun and learning opportunities never cease at Assiniboine Park, with its exceptional zoo, conservatory, miniature railroad, and assorted gardens, restaurant, museum, and theatre.
Participate in a guided tour and visit the museum and store at the Royal Canadian Mint, where all those shiny new coins for circulation in Canada and several other countries are made on-site. At the Western Canada Aviation Museum, you can practice your piloting know-how on the FLIGHTWAYS simulation program and view vintage aircraft, including a replica Avrocar flying saucer. Sorry, no aliens on display just yet.
www.travelmanitoba.com; 800/665-0040.