Manitoba’s French Connection
Experience firsthand what the French call "joie de vivre". Strap on a ceinture fléchée, stroll down the Esplanade, taste a tourtière, explore La Maison Riel, hear beaver tales at The Forks, eat cheese and syrup at a Trappist Monastery, tour the ‘French countryside', sing "Alouette". Oui! S'il vous plait!
Practice French with your kids while travelling in Manitoba, experiencing a variété of cultural possibilities that will have the kids saying – Yes! Please! Let's do Homework! Have your kids help research and plan the activities by visiting the French versions of the websites beforehand.
- A cultural passport to historic Winnipeg sites
- French culture, summer theatre style
- Visit the French countryside – Ooh lait, lait!
- Frolic in French at summer festivals
Plan your family getaway
A cultural passport to historic Winnipeg sites
Stamp your Riel Passport 2009 with visits to Old Saint-Boniface, Saint-Vital, and Saint-Norbert. See beaucoup des sites franco-manitobaine and more with the Tourisme Riel package, including admission to St. Boniface Museum, Theatre in the Cemetery, Maison Gabrielle-Roy, Riel House National Historic Site of Canada, the Royal Canadian Mint, and Fort Gibraltar. Be a modern-day voyageur and spend the afternoon on a self-guided adventure from Ti-Jean's GPS Quest in Saint-Boniface, Winnipeg's French Quarter—where it's cool to say bonjour!
Stroll across the Esplanade Riel pedestrian and cycling bridge and stop halfway for an ice cream or cheese nip at Salisbury House. Then pop over to The Forks for a guided Parks Canada tour (in French, if you like) called Beaver Tales and River Trails—walk through 6,000 years of history! Keep the pioneering spirit alive with an afternoon spent at historic Lower Fort Garry.
Plan your family getaway
- Tourisme Riel – Riel Passport 2009, Ti-Jean's GPS Quest
- Beaver Tales and River Trails
- Lower Fort Garry
French culture, for every season
Explore another culture through the imagination of Theatre in the Cemetery. Take the whole family in July and August to Saint-Boniface Cathedral to see one of two sensational theatre productions. Follow Louis Riel on a personal tour of the cemetery during "In Riel's Footsteps" or fly away in a magical canoe in "Chasse Galerie", Quebec's best-known folklore legend. Don't worry about the possibility of rain - the show will go on inside the cathedral if need be.
A trip to Winnipeg in February is not complete without a trip to experience the tastes, sounds and sights of le Festival du Voyageur. Marvel at the snow sculptures reaching 18 feet high, indulge in some sweet and savory treats at the Sugar Shack and enjoy the music, from traditional fiddle to full-on rock-n-roll.
Plan your family getaway
Visit the French countryside – ooh lait, lait!
Tip a glass of milk to all things dairy at the Dairy Museum of Manitoba in St. Claude. Showcasing local and provincial dairying methods from early practices to modern processing, the museum grounds also include agricultural exhibits, a typical county school from the pioneer days, and 2,000 bilingually catalogued artifacts from the turn of the century. Pay homage to renowned architect Étienne Gaboury at the Saint-Claude Catholic Church - Gaboury also designed the Saint-Boniface Cathedral and the Esplanade Riel in Winnipeg.
Make sure the kids get enough calcium with a trip to Our Lady of the Prairies Trappist Monastery in Holland, Manitoba to taste the crème de la crème of cheeses. The monks welcome all visitors to wander their lovely grounds and purchase the delicious cheese and syrup made on-site. This semi-soft, unpasteurized fromage is made only in Manitoba and has been made by the monks since the 17th century.
Still have room in the tummy for some honey? The kids will be abuzz to stop and buy a jar of fresh honey at the working bee farm in Notre-Dame-de-Lourdes. Experience rural French hospitality with a night at the fully modern Hôtel La Broquerie, and take the family to the St. Jean Baptiste Days Festival during June 26-28, 2009.
Plan your family getaway
- Dairy Museum of Manitoba
- Our Lady of the Prairies Trappist Monastery
- French Bee Farm
- Hôtel La Broquerie
- St. Jean Baptiste Days
Frolic in French at summer festivals
Think your kids won't appreciate a French delicacy like frog's legs? Then have a hopping-good time tracking down and racing frogs instead! Experience the small town charm and warmth of St. Pierre-Jolys during the annual Frog Follies Festival from July 31-August 3, 2009. Featured activities include a slo-pitch tournament, a huge children's tent, a parade, fireworks, supper in the park, a social featuring one of Winnipeg's hottest bands and, bien sur, the Canadian National Frog Jumping Championship—a truly unique competition.
Swing your kids round and round in a square dance at Ste-Agathe's Cheyenne Days on the third weekend of July. Canoe races and other children's activities will keep the whole family entertained.
