We left sunny Winnipeg on Friday, with WestJet, and arrived in the snowy city of Edmonton. We then took the Sky Shuttle to our hotel, the Travelodge West.
We purchased a round trip with the shuttle service to our hotel and back to the airport. The hotel rooms were small in size, only double beds but the room was clean. The hotel had a pool, water slide and whirlpool. The water was cold but the slide was still fun. There is a Smitty’s Restaurant on-site, but there were few other amenities close by.
We took a taxi from our Hotel to the West Edmonton Mall. This was an ordeal as we had to wait for a long time to get the taxi and most of that time was spent on hold with the company on the phone.
We spent 2 days at the West Edmonton Mall, shopping and viewing the sites. Some of the attractions that we enjoyed were the Sea Caverns, Sea Lion Show, Galaxy Land and the World Water Park. All were at an extra cost to the customer.
The Sea Caverns was geared towards younger children and families, although the interactive starfish and stingray exhibits were fun. The Sea Lion show was also geared towards families with younger children, but they kept the show interesting. You can watch the Sea Lion show from behind glass panes on the sidelines for free as well.
The rides at Galaxy Land generated heart stopping fun. There are rides for kids of all ages, from 3-99 years old. Our favorite ride was the MindBender. It is the largest indoor roller coaster in Canada and it has 3 upside-down loops and a huge drop. There are other less intense rides for the less courageous.
The biggest highlight of the weekend was the water park. With many different slides and pools there is something for everyone. The wave pool was by far the favorite. Although watch out for people on tubes, they may crash into you, but with 4 foot waves every 10 minutes it was still fun. There are tube rides that are thrilling and relaxing all at the same time and slides that are quite exhilarating.
At the end of the day, we left the park with a few bruises and bumps, but would do it all over again. Make sure you do this at the end of your stay, your legs will be tired and you will feel the same.
We ended off the stay with a movie, for a cheaper price than you could find in any mall in Winnipeg. There were many different types of places to shop, including a Chinatown, Europa Blvd and Bourbon Street. We were able to come home with a few purchases that were similarly priced to that in Manitoba, but with more options and stores to choose from...but there was only 1 Tim Horton's with long line-ups, but we did win a free coffee! |
