r/Edmonton • u/Zestyy-Gold • 9d ago

Question Why does everyone say “skip Edmonton” when visiting AB?

I’ve seen a lot online where tourists will ask for a Alberta itinerary, which I understand they are excited to see mountains…but people would add the extra “skip Edmonton” line even as if there’s nothing to embrace here. I have never been to Edmonton, but as the capital of Alberta, is there really nothing to see as a traveller? I read that there is an interesting food scene, cool museums (Reynolds, Telus World of Science, Royal Alberta Museum, etc), chill neighborhoods like Whyte Ave, and a big ass shopping mall? Do people say this just so the city wouldnt be clustered with tourists or is the city really that skippable? I don’t think anyone expects it to be a Vancouver, Montreal, or Toronto…but I’m sure it still has it’s charm?

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u/OnMy4thAccount 9d ago

There's not really much you can do in Edmonton that you can't do in Calgary, and Calgary is just more convenient to get to and get other places from.

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u/space_monkey_belay 9d ago

Mountain Bike trails from one end of the river valley to the other in singletrack cross country trail network. Calgary does not have that to the best of my knowledge. This is an under promoted outdoor recreation facility. If people are cyclists going to the mountains hitting Edmonton, Hinton, Jasper, Canmore is certainly an option. Of course that's if there not going to B.C.

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u/OnMy4thAccount 8d ago

Yeah I mean that's why I said "not much" instead of "nothing at all". There are a few things Edmonton does better than Calgary for a tourist, but on average you can assume most people aren't mountain bikers lol.