Page 31 - 2022-2023 Travel Guide to Canada

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HERITAGE PARK HISTORICAL VILLAGE, CALGARY, AB • TRAVEL AB/COLIN WAY
Indigenous Tourism:
Telling Their Stories
Their Way
BY E. LISA MOSES
Whether you dream about soaring
with eagles, paddling with fish or
howling with wolves, Canada’s
Indigenous tourism industry has it
all—and then some.
“Indigenous People today are not
stuck in the past or in museums, but
rather practicing and sharing their
culture with the world,” says Keith
Henry, President and CEO, Indigenous
Tourism Association of Canada (ITAC).
“We see examples from coast to coast to
coast of Indigenous People using tourism as
a means to share their thriving and vibrant
culture with international visitors.”
Despite the pandemic and ongoing
challenges, there is a continued demand for
Indigenous experiences. Across Canada,
there are approximately 1,900 Indigenous
tourism businesses. These enterprises
provide the economic backbone for their
communities across the country while
sharing authentic, memorable and enriching
experiences with international travellers
(www.indigenoustourism.ca).
WEST
On the turbulent shores of the Pacific Ocean
in British Columbia is the Great Bear
Rainforest, the world’s largest intact
temperate rainforest. Just a stone’s throw
across the water is the base camp for Coastal
Rainforest Safaris, where guests can reach
out and touch nature—and benefit from
cultural interpretation by an Elder and
hereditary chief of the Gwa’sala-’Nakwaxda’xw
First Nation (www.whalesandbears.ca).
Just 116 km (72 mi.) north of Edmonton is
Métis Crossing, Alberta’s first major Métis
cultural interpretive centre. The centre
engages in the learning of Métis art,
paddling an authentic voyageur canoe and
dancing the traditional Métis jig (www.metis
crossing.org).
At the museum in Fort McLeod, Alberta,
visitors can view First Nations artefacts such
as clothing and accessories, baskets, travois
and hand tools. Nearby, a UNESCO World
Heritage site, Head-Smashed-in Buffalo
Jump, recalls the days when Blackfoot
warriors augmented their communities’
food supplies by driving plains bison over
the cliff to their deaths and processing the
meat (www.headsmashedin.ca).
CENTRAL
The Canadian Museum for Human Rights
(CMHR) in Winnipeg, Manitoba, aims to
effect positive change by raising the public’s
understanding of human rights, promoting
respect for others and encouraging global
dialogue about the issues. Set in a field of
sweetgrass at the Forks of Manitoba’s Red
River, the building’s architecture evokes ice,
clouds and stone. Using the elements of this
design, an Indigenous Elder leads the
Mikinak-Keya Spirit Tour, sharing the sacred
teachings of the Anishinaabe, Cree and
Dakota Nations (www.humanrights.ca).
Saskatchewan’s Northern Plains People
offer transformative experiences at
Wanuskewin Heritage Park, just outside of
Saskatoon. Monthly Han Wi Moon dinners
feature guided tours of the 6,400-year-old