This place is beautiful and you learn so much about canada! The children's museum is a lot if fun too!
First and foremost, on Thursday entry is free as of 4pm and the museum is open until 8pm (as opposed to 5pm on any other day). You will have access to all exhibits, permanent and special, free of charge. However the IMAX theatre is extra and costs $9 (student) to see a movie. Didn't really feel like a "history" museum because the permanent exhibits concern culture (aboriginal) more than anything else. The First Peoples exhibits were nonetheless impressive with the great number of totem poles, collections of objects and interesting stories. The special exhibits were more history orientated with Canadian Confederation, the Canada Stamp Collection and the Empress of Ireland. The last one I really enjoyed and you should check it out. I also saw the Galapagos 3D movie, and it did seem a bit much to pay $9 to see a 30 minute movie. Although cinematographically it was impeccable. Parking is available, but does not come cheap. Ended up paying $12.50 for 4 hours. Good museum, could use a little more history but is still worth the visit, especially on Thursday.
If coming from the Ottawa side, entering the parking garage can be a little tricky as one has to cross the traffic. However, once it, everything is fine. There is usually a very good temporary exhibit, and this time it was on the Empress of Ireland and how she sank. There are also short films in the Imax theatre. Most people line up at the main ticket vending area to get entrance and theatre tickets. However, the queues are shorter if one heads for the Imax theatre and buy the tickets there. Sometimes exhibitions can be linked to the Nat'l Gallery or the Museum of Nature, best to check first. The permanent collection features and entire Haida village, complete with totem poles and lodges. . This museum really caters to children.
We went to learn more about Canada's Titanic. The Empress went down in the St. Lawrence River when it was truck by a coal ship in May 1914 (over 1,000 died that night). We were 4 adults and a 11 year old -- were were all thoroughly entertained. Allow 75 to 90 minutes just for this display. There's a nice shop at the end of the exhibit.
Thank you for your comments and for taking the time to share your experience. We have a passionate team of experts that work very hard at the preservation, research and sharing Canada’s history through special and permanent exhibitions. We strive to provide unique, fun, interactive and quality learning experiences to visitors. Reading comments and feedback from visitors is the best reward for all of us at the Museum.
This is an awesome place to visit with kids or as an adult.For kids: there is the best kids Museum I had ever seen so much activities and attraction.For adults: The first nation exhibit is just WOW
We would like to thank you for bringing forward your concerns regarding your mixed experiences. The Museum hosts many private events during the year and while we often hear about how an event went well, we do not often receive feedback on what we could have done to improve the client’s experience. This type of input is vital in our ongoing effort to meet and exceed our client’s expectations. Rest assured that we have followed up with our catering and production staff to ensure that we continue to improve our services. I would like to thank you once again for bringing your concerns to our attention. Should you wish to further discuss your experiences, please contact our Head of Facility Rentals, Geneviève Mercier at 819-776-7027 or by email at genevieve.mercier@warmuseum.ca.
Thank you for your comments and for taking the time to share your experience. We strive to provide unique, fun, interactive and quality learning experiences to visitors. We are indeed renovating the Canadian History Hall. This new exhibition, which represents the largest and most ambitious exhibition project that our Museum has ever undertaken, is due to open on July 1, 2017, the 150th anniversary of Confederation. Between now and then, we will continue to offer spectacular world-class special exhibitions such as The Greeks (opens June 5, 2015) and We call them Vikings (opens December 3, 2015) and many more. We hope you will have the chance to visit us again real soon!
I really wanted to like this museum - it has a good reputation - at least that what I have heard. I also understand now, after being there, that a major section (3rd floor) is shut down and preparing for the 150th anniversary of Confederation in 2017. However, had a I known, I would have waiting till 2017! The First nation display - special focus on West coast Aboriginals - was okay - every provincial museum has one similar and I really didn't see anything unique here. The Imax theatre is expensive and I didn't have the time to see a show and the museum but most of those shows I can see at home in my hometown Imax theatre. I have to admit I really did enjoy the Empress of Ireland exhibit. I had never heard of it before (and I am a history teacher). The display and the information was good, the artefacts interesting and story appealing. It saved the day for me!
Thursdays from 4-8 are free and we took advantage of that. Thoroughly enjoyed walking about and seeing the different displays. Coming from a small province, it felt wonderful to browse around and enjoy the museum. There is a children's area that was pretty noisy but they were having lots of fun! Would definitely go again if in the area.