Calgary Stampede
Calgary Stampede
4.5
9:00 AM - 5:00 PM
Monday
9:00 AM - 5:00 PM
Tuesday
9:00 AM - 5:00 PM
Wednesday
9:00 AM - 5:00 PM
Thursday
9:00 AM - 5:00 PM
Friday
9:00 AM - 5:00 PM
About
Welcome to the Greatest Outdoor Show on Earth! The Calgary Stampede is an annual, 10-day rodeo, exhibition and festival held every July in Calgary, Alberta. It features the world's largest outdoor rodeo, a parade, stage shows, rides and games, shopping, concerts, agricultural competitions, chuckwagon racing and Indigenous experiences. The Calgary Stampede is the most authentic, memorable western experience you could pack into a vacation. Calgary is located only one hour from Canada’s majestic Rocky Mountains making the Stampede the perfect place to kick off a true western vacation, and an experience that is unrivaled in excitement.
Duration: More than 3 hours
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Neighbourhood: Beltline
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- Phil NCootamundra, Australia306 contributionsGreatest outdoor show in the world!The signage outside the entrance to the Stampede states the obvious and is pretty close to the truth! Was lucky enough to attend the 2nd and 3rd last days of the 2023 Stampede and found it to be an unforgettable experience! The rodeo was non stop action and the evening chuck waggon races and light show 2nd to none in entertainment value. Apart from the main arena, the overall fair ground was massive and held over 100.000 people each day I believe. Anyone with an interest in rodeo or cowboy events should certainly put this rodeo on their "bucket List".Visited July 2023Travelled with friendsWritten 11 October 2023
- BadiaWMexico City, Mexico241 contributionsEvening show is worth it, the park, not so muchWe were lucky to be traveling to Calgary when the Stampede was happening. The park was crowded and the food was ok but nothing spectacular. If you like amusement parks, you might enjoy this although you will be in line for a while to get on the attractions. What is worth the ticket is the evening show. Watching the chuck wagon race and the Raley Races was something worth waiting for. Very exciting. Finally the Grandstand show was very dynamic and kept us excited all the time. The firework display was something else. Need to go once in your lifeVisited July 2024Travelled with familyWritten 10 July 2024
- McJx3Wellington, New Zealand118 contributionsBrilliant day out but sit in the shade!Make sure you get a seat in the shade (there’s a map on the site that shows shade and cover). We went on the opening day and it was HOT! Absolutely loved the show. Easy to buy snacks and drinksVisited July 2024Travelled with familyWritten 28 July 2024
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4.5
3,148 reviews
Excellent
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Very good
742
Average
212
Poor
97
Terrible
66
Mairi
Manama, Bahrain13 contributions
Jul 2022 • Couples
It was a nice experience overall. The agricultural show was super informative and the motocross show was awesome. We also enjoyed browsing all of the stalls in the BMC. We got in for free, as we arrived before 10am but the parking was a nightmare and we ended up parking in a lot that charged 40 dollars. We don't believe it was affiliated with stampede but there was no way for us to know that, so we were disappointed, as we would have rather parked in the official carpark. Signage and directions could be vastly improved for tourists like us. As well as information on how to get there online. The website was not very helpful.
The food stalls were good but everything was incredibly overpriced. It actually put us off, and we would have spent more but it seemed wasteful. Bottles of water were $5 and food was expensive ($10 for a bag of donuts). We decided not to go to the rodeo as the tickets were also expensive and we had spent so much on parking and food.
The queue for tickets for rides was over an hour long at each stand, so again, we didn't bother. It was a shame as the event was good but just seemed quite poorly planned and executed. We would have spent much more time and money there if it had been a bit more well organised and smoother.
Customer service was a bit of a flop; when we asked one vendor for a recommendation for fudge, she just shrugged and said she didn't eat the stuff. The whole thing just felt a little thrown together which was weird for an event that's been going on for so long. Overall, we were disappointed. It was a nice experience but I don't think we would go again.
The food stalls were good but everything was incredibly overpriced. It actually put us off, and we would have spent more but it seemed wasteful. Bottles of water were $5 and food was expensive ($10 for a bag of donuts). We decided not to go to the rodeo as the tickets were also expensive and we had spent so much on parking and food.
The queue for tickets for rides was over an hour long at each stand, so again, we didn't bother. It was a shame as the event was good but just seemed quite poorly planned and executed. We would have spent much more time and money there if it had been a bit more well organised and smoother.
Customer service was a bit of a flop; when we asked one vendor for a recommendation for fudge, she just shrugged and said she didn't eat the stuff. The whole thing just felt a little thrown together which was weird for an event that's been going on for so long. Overall, we were disappointed. It was a nice experience but I don't think we would go again.
Written 14 July 2022
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
BDR416
Buckinghamshire, UK100 contributions
Jul 2019
Had a two day package as part of a wider trip. The Stampede park is exceptionally busy particulalry around the food and funfair areas. The rodeo was great but spectators can be a long way away. Evening show was spectacular, both included in our package but an expensive extra if just turning up. Glad we did it but wouldn't go again
Written 19 March 2020
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
SB01
Sonning Common, UK894 contributions
Jul 2022 • Family
We happened to be in Calgary during the Stampede so obviously decided to see what all the fuss is about. We just paid the $23 entry fee for the show ground. There is quite a lot to see for general entrance, but it gets increasingly expensive the more you want to do. Basic tickets for the rodeo cost another$39. A round trip for 2 on the chair lift is another $20, etc, etc. There was an impressive motor cross display and easily the most fast food concessions I've seen in many a year. Some decent complimentary music was performed thru the day. If you've any interest in cow, sheep or horse grooming this is the place for you, although we all commented the animals, often in tiny pens, looked pretty miserable. It's fairly easy 15 min walk from downtown, but it's a big site so be prepared for a lot of walking.
Written 17 July 2022
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
CummingDubai
Aberdeen, UK482 contributions
Jul 2022
Visited on two days. First day we went to the afternoon Rodeo and the second to the evening show.
We really enjoyed the Rodeo, but was bit disappointed with the rest of the Stampede consisting of mainly food stall and funfair rides. We went early the second day thinking we could go to the Nashville tent but were informed that there were queues up to 2 hours long just to get into the tent which was obviously packed. The evening show was brilliant> there was Chuck Wagon racing to start with which was entertaining enough to start with but became a bit tedious by the 9th race especially once you saw that provided Wagon No 1 completed his turn roughly in line with the other two they almost always won. Setting up for the show took a bit of time while they wheeled the backdrop into place, which was an impressive set up. The Country Singer who came on after the DJ was excellent. Wasn't sure what was coming after he went off stage as we thought he was the main event. The show which followed involving local children of a range of ages was absolutely brilliant working so well with the stage lighting, the drones and ultimately the fireworks.
We took the Metro train to and from the event from Downtown which was pretty efficient. It is not possible to buy a return ticket but the transport company put on lots of additional staff selling tickets to supplement the machine which helped greatly.
The Friday afternoon and Saturday evening combination we had the best from a visit to the Stampede.
We really enjoyed the Rodeo, but was bit disappointed with the rest of the Stampede consisting of mainly food stall and funfair rides. We went early the second day thinking we could go to the Nashville tent but were informed that there were queues up to 2 hours long just to get into the tent which was obviously packed. The evening show was brilliant> there was Chuck Wagon racing to start with which was entertaining enough to start with but became a bit tedious by the 9th race especially once you saw that provided Wagon No 1 completed his turn roughly in line with the other two they almost always won. Setting up for the show took a bit of time while they wheeled the backdrop into place, which was an impressive set up. The Country Singer who came on after the DJ was excellent. Wasn't sure what was coming after he went off stage as we thought he was the main event. The show which followed involving local children of a range of ages was absolutely brilliant working so well with the stage lighting, the drones and ultimately the fireworks.
We took the Metro train to and from the event from Downtown which was pretty efficient. It is not possible to buy a return ticket but the transport company put on lots of additional staff selling tickets to supplement the machine which helped greatly.
The Friday afternoon and Saturday evening combination we had the best from a visit to the Stampede.
Written 26 July 2022
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Kate3353
Boston, MA11 contributions
Jul 2022 • Couples
Bucket list wish to attend the Calgary Stampede and it did not disappoint.
It was crowded but we had advance tickets, the evening show with finale of fireworks was the best I have seen - topping Disney for sure.
If you go, beware that the stadium is in the sun and we only lasted 2 hours. Must have sunglasses, hat ( preferably cowboy hat) and sunscreen.
Loved the area that had dog demonstration, crafts,art - totally enjoyable.
It was crowded but we had advance tickets, the evening show with finale of fireworks was the best I have seen - topping Disney for sure.
If you go, beware that the stadium is in the sun and we only lasted 2 hours. Must have sunglasses, hat ( preferably cowboy hat) and sunscreen.
Loved the area that had dog demonstration, crafts,art - totally enjoyable.
Written 13 September 2022
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
moodblu
West Valley City, UT1,495 contributions
Jul 2022
I have to write a little disclaimer and preface: I am an introvert, not a rodeo fan, not entirely comfortable with huge crowds, lots of lights & noise, and late night entertainment. But that being said, going to the Calgary Stampede and some of its surrounding events was an interesting, entertaining and fun experience. There were around 140,000 people on the grounds the day we went. We attended the rodeo, chuck-wagon races, bareback relay races, the evening show and the fireworks and laser show. We also spent some time on the midway, mostly people-watching, as I don’t do carnival type rides and games, but we ate food, looked at exhibits, and walked around seeing the sights. There were additional entertainments and activities available that we didn’t participate.
The rodeo featured excellent competition in all the normal rodeo events. The announcing was interesting and informative. My favorite parts were the chuck-wagon races and bareback relay races—both very exciting competitions! The evening show was long, loud and bright for my taste, but featured a lot of good music and dancing. I was impressed with the production of the show. I very much enjoyed the fireworks and the lighted drones that were featured, forming shapes and animations among the firework displays. There were native tribal singers and dancers, which was also quite enjoyable. There was no shortage of food on the midway, whatever a person liked, it was probably there. Some of it sounded kind of strange, but many brave souls were partaking.
Going to all the events that we did made for a long day, arriving at the Stampede grounds at 11:30 a.m., and getting back to our hotel around midnight. All in all, I was glad that we were able to experience this event, billed as “The Greatest Outdoor Show on Earth”.
The rodeo featured excellent competition in all the normal rodeo events. The announcing was interesting and informative. My favorite parts were the chuck-wagon races and bareback relay races—both very exciting competitions! The evening show was long, loud and bright for my taste, but featured a lot of good music and dancing. I was impressed with the production of the show. I very much enjoyed the fireworks and the lighted drones that were featured, forming shapes and animations among the firework displays. There were native tribal singers and dancers, which was also quite enjoyable. There was no shortage of food on the midway, whatever a person liked, it was probably there. Some of it sounded kind of strange, but many brave souls were partaking.
Going to all the events that we did made for a long day, arriving at the Stampede grounds at 11:30 a.m., and getting back to our hotel around midnight. All in all, I was glad that we were able to experience this event, billed as “The Greatest Outdoor Show on Earth”.
Written 17 August 2022
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Laurie M
88 contributions
Jul 2023 • Couples
We went on July 11 after a 17 year absence and were pleasantly surprised to benefit from free entry until 11:00 am! We always like the map and daily event schedule provided at the gate as it really helps to make the most out of your day. The RCMP were celebrating 150 years so we enjoyed seeing the Misical Ride which is a proud Canadian event. The illusionist was OK and 2500 others watched it with us. The Indigenous camp by the river was also a treat with dancers in regalia. Stampede show riders and probably far too many people packed into a Dog Stars show made the list of shows u til the final Coca Cola Stage concert of Tegen & Sarah. Many new venues and improvements have occurred since we last visited especially the Coca Cola stage, River Vp and Nutrien
Agricultural areas. Lots of fun concerts and night life is available as well.
It was tricky to search out gluten free food so possibly a link to a list of items or providers of such on the Stampede website would be a benefit to many. We did find gf poutine and in the Ag Grill there were options. It was a lot of fun, the weather was perfect +20 🤠
Agricultural areas. Lots of fun concerts and night life is available as well.
It was tricky to search out gluten free food so possibly a link to a list of items or providers of such on the Stampede website would be a benefit to many. We did find gf poutine and in the Ag Grill there were options. It was a lot of fun, the weather was perfect +20 🤠
Written 12 July 2023
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
chriskeeno52
London, UK125 contributions
Jul 2022 • Couples
We came to the stampede befor covid struck and we decided this time we would make a
longer trip and combine a few other places in our itinerary and spend longer here.We picked a hotel near by(The Downtown Marriott) and we also took a 2 day package which included entry to the stampede,free ride on the gondola across the site,2 free stetsons,entry to the chuck wagon finals and entry to the rodeo plus while you are in the grounds there are many other activities going on.
Inside the grounds you will eat various types of food,drink various beers and enjoy visiting the Indian site.Plenty of rides for the kids and lots of animals for them to see and pet.
The site covers a large area so be prepared for a lot of walking and large crowds especially around the main stadium.
A light railway operates between the stampede and uptown/downtown which is very well used at peak times.
Outside of the stampede are various areas where other things are going on like Rope Square(Olympic Square) which features line dancing,childrens activities,country and western singers and many other amusing features.
longer trip and combine a few other places in our itinerary and spend longer here.We picked a hotel near by(The Downtown Marriott) and we also took a 2 day package which included entry to the stampede,free ride on the gondola across the site,2 free stetsons,entry to the chuck wagon finals and entry to the rodeo plus while you are in the grounds there are many other activities going on.
Inside the grounds you will eat various types of food,drink various beers and enjoy visiting the Indian site.Plenty of rides for the kids and lots of animals for them to see and pet.
The site covers a large area so be prepared for a lot of walking and large crowds especially around the main stadium.
A light railway operates between the stampede and uptown/downtown which is very well used at peak times.
Outside of the stampede are various areas where other things are going on like Rope Square(Olympic Square) which features line dancing,childrens activities,country and western singers and many other amusing features.
Written 27 August 2022
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
bluechippm
Bristol, UK616 contributions
Jul 2022 • Couples
We had waited 3 years for the stampede to open after covid and we were delighted with what we saw and experienced. Although we never did not try the fairground rides the shows and exhibitions were superb. The evening show with singers, artists, fireworks and races was slick, professional and well put together. The afternoon event was great fun exciting and entertaining.
Stampede staff and performers were lovely and a pleasure to deal with.
A knock out show all around
Well done Calgary - we loved your city and the Stampede.
Stampede staff and performers were lovely and a pleasure to deal with.
A knock out show all around
Well done Calgary - we loved your city and the Stampede.
Written 14 July 2022
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Phil N
Cootamundra, Australia306 contributions
Jul 2023 • Friends
The signage outside the entrance to the Stampede states the obvious and is pretty close to the truth!
Was lucky enough to attend the 2nd and 3rd last days of the 2023 Stampede and found it to be an unforgettable experience!
The rodeo was non stop action and the evening chuck waggon races and light show 2nd to none in entertainment value.
Apart from the main arena, the overall fair ground was massive and held over 100.000 people each day I believe.
Anyone with an interest in rodeo or cowboy events should certainly put this
rodeo on their "bucket List".
Was lucky enough to attend the 2nd and 3rd last days of the 2023 Stampede and found it to be an unforgettable experience!
The rodeo was non stop action and the evening chuck waggon races and light show 2nd to none in entertainment value.
Apart from the main arena, the overall fair ground was massive and held over 100.000 people each day I believe.
Anyone with an interest in rodeo or cowboy events should certainly put this
rodeo on their "bucket List".
Written 12 October 2023
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Does anyone know why there is no buck the line this Thursday July 4 for Washboard union? If no buck the line, how long is the line up on the Thursday night before Stampede starts the next day. Also, can you do buck the line for the weekend once we arrive? Is it more pricy than pre booking buck the line? Not wanting to pay it, but not willing to wait in line for hours. If you go into Nashville north early, is there food in there?
Written 1 July 2024
What time do you suggest arriving at the Nashville North tent to see the evening show?
Written 9 July 2022
I was wondering if afternoon rodeo tickets are good for evening show as well or I have to buy two separate tickets ?
Written 28 March 2022
Is there a funfair,shows music like concert or is it just rodeo
Written 2 August 2020
Hi Sorry I am not able to answer the question.
I believe that this year's Clagary Stampede is cancelled due to the COVID 19 pandemic.
Regards to all
Written 21 June 2020
Sharon M
Edinburgh, United Kingdom
Hi there
We are attending the Stampede this year with our son, 20 and daughter, 17. Does anyone know how strict they are in the over 18 venues and would they ask for ID for my daughter?
We are attending the Rodeo one day and the evening show another. Any tips on what to do the rest of the time we are in Calgary would be greatly received :)
Thanks
Written 4 March 2020
They will definitely ID her in spots she needs to be 18 (like Cowboys and Nashville North). But you dont have to be 18 to get into the rodeo or evening show. Tonnes to do and see.
Written 5 March 2020
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