Québec & Montréal: Collaborating Cultures

It’s a good thing Ottawa is so photogenic – Queen Victoria chose the provincial logging town as Canada’s capital in 1857 after seeing only a few watercolors of the area. (More cosmopolitan rivals Toronto and Montreal were not amused). Setting aside its reputation for barroom brawls, Ottawa concentrated on running the country from its London-style Parliament Buildings, built in the 1860’s. The central Peace Tower indicated when Parliament is in session. The 90-mter tower was built in 1927 to honor the Canadians who served in World War I and was paved from stones from the battlefields of Europe.

Originally the hub of Ottawa’s logging industry, the Byward Market area has many restaurants and cafes. The area hosts a daily market with crafts, fruits and vegetables, souvenirs, clothing and more.

Tour the Old Carleton County Jail, built in 1862, and learn about why Ottawa was once considered 'the most dangerous town in North America'. Learn about early prison life, as you see the jail cells, death row and the last working gallows in Canada. Students learn about classic tales of strange occurrences and ghostly visitations.

Ottawa boasts some of the best recreational pathways in North America. What better way for students to explore the nation's capital? Strap on your helmet, hop on your bike and tour along the easy pathways along both sides of the scenic Rideau Canal.

Step back a century of so at the BCE Place, where the faces of twelve buildings that survived the city’s 1904 fire still stand, one of them seemingly encased in glass. The complex’s 19th-century Bank of Montreal Building now houses the Hockey Hall of Fame. Continue your sports education at the Air Canada Centre (home to the Raptors and Maple Leafs) and the Rogers Centre (Skydome), under whose retractable dome the Blue Jays won their second World Series title in 1993. After a view of the city’s harbour, go back to the future at City Hall, a modern glass-and-concrete crescent reaching into the sky. The beloved statue that stands outside the building, “The Archer,” was so controversial in 1965 that the city refused to use public money to buy it; the mayor raised private funds for it and then was soundly defeated in the next election. The walking tour will end up in Kensington Market and Toronto’s Chinatown and experience first had the ethnic diversity of Toronto.

The entire metropolis of Toronto spread beneath your feet as you hover 1,136 feet in the air. Ride the glass-front elevator to the glass-floored observation deck of the CN Tower, the world's tallest manmade self-supporting structure. It's the perfect place to get a view of the city.

There is more to Niagara than the thunderous falls themselves. Travel to Queenston Heights, the site of the 1812 Battle of Queenston Heights where Major-General Sir Isaac Brock was killed in the defense of Upper Canada (now Ontario) and see Brock’s Monument. Then watch as huge ferries and barges make their way between Lake Ontario and Lake Erie on the man-made Welland Canal.

After a discussion with your Tour Director, students re-enact the battle of Queenston Heights where General Sir Isaac Brock died while leading his troops to victory over the American Forces. The monument, erected in 1856, serves as a testimonial of the fallen General who saved Canada from being overrun by its southern neighbor.

This spectacular IMAX movie takes you back to the days when Native peoples worshipped the thunder spirits, and when the first European encountered of this wild wonder of nature. Meet the daredevils who challenged the fury of the Falls, from the Great Blondin, who completed a death-defying tightrope walk over the river in 1860, to Annie Taylor, a 63-year-old schoolteacher, who became the first person to go over the Falls in a barrel and live to tell the tale. Share the heart-pounding terror of seven-year-old Roger Woodward, who survived the plunge with only a lifejacket. Following the film, explore the Daredevil Gallery, the world’s largest collection of Niagara Falls history including real artifacts and vessels used by Niagara Falls Daredevils!

Board the Maid of the Mist for a cruise to the base of Niagara Falls. This exciting and memorable trip passes directly in front of the American Falls, the Rock of Ages, beyond the Cave of the Winds and on to the foot of the thundering Horseshoe Falls.