Tour 8 of Canada’s Most Impressive Public Spaces

Located in Winnipeg, Manitoba, the Canadian Museum for Human Rights opened its doors in 2014. The building is dedicated to preserving and honouring human rights as seen through a Canadian lens.

Carefully constructed from glass, limestone, steel and concrete, the striking structure is the work of renowned U.S. architect Antoine Predock. It spans more than 260,000 square feet (the equivalent of about four football fields).

The contemporary tower’s cloud-inspired facade is comprised of 1,300 glass panes, which flood the building with natural light. Its topped with a 328-foot-high crystalline “Tower of Hope” that overlooks the Winnipeg prairie.

A peek inside the museum, which features 12 galleries (including six theatres) accessed via glowing ramps. The ramps symbolize a path of light weaving through darkness. Referencing stories from across the country and globe, the museum hones in on themes like “Protecting Rights in Canada” and “Breaking The Silence”.

View the building from the north and you’ll be struck by its imposing facade clad in 400-million-year-old limestone, which draws a stronger connection to the great outdoors.

Located in downtown Ottawa just south of Parliament Hill stands the Canadian Museum of Nature. The stately structure, which specializes in natural history, opened in 1912 as Canada’s first national museum.

Originally designed by Canadian architect David Ewart, the castle-like stone structure maintains its historic Tudor-Gothic style. However, the building underwent an extensive facelift from 2004 to 2010 that resulted in the modern glass addition known as Queens’ Lantern.

Peering up while standing inside Queens’ Lantern is arguably even more mesmerizing than gazing at its exterior.

A verdant green space (officially termed the “Landscapes of Canada Gardens”) is a new addition to the site that flourished in 2016. The garden boasts a variety of foliage linked to three of the country’s major ecozones, along with a 13-metre-tall iceberg-inspired sculpture crafted from stainless steel.

Zip through Calgary’s iconic Peace Bridge and you’ll feel like you’ve entered a new dimension of sorts. The webbed, tubular structure is the masterful work of Spanish architect Santiago Calatrava.

The pedestrian-only bridge, which spans the bow river, made its grand debut in 2012. It connects walkers and cyclists to other pathways throughout the city as a means of travelling more safely.

A closer look at the innovative structure, which features a central bike line flanked by elevated sidewalks reserved for foot traffic.

The bridge’s bold-red steel exterior is set in a criss-cross pattern and sealed in with weather-resistant glass panels. Stretching 126 metres, it’s already recognized as an iconic structure worldwide.

The National Music Centre (also known as “Studio Bell”) is yet another public space in Calgary that’s known to make a bold statement.

The shiny new facility designed by Allied Works Architecture fittingly opened its doors on Canada Day 2016. Spanning 160,000 square feet, it’s comprised of nine interlocking towers with a sleek steel exterior clad in glazed terracotta tiles.

As the country’s primary cultural and musical hub, the public space houses interactive exhibits, concert venues, recording facilities, broadcast studios and a spacious performance hall.

An inside look at the building’s 300-seat performance hall.

The Glacier Skywalk in Banff’s Jasper National Park makes living on the edge totally worthwhile. The glass walkway cantilevers 30 metres from a cliff to provide sweeping views of the Canadian Rockies.

The kilometre-long walkway was crafted from weathered steel and strengthened glass to provide unobstructed views of the Athabasca Glacier.

If heights have nothing on you, you’ll readily walk all over this glass-clad lookout point, which suspends 918 feet above ground (bonus: it even has glass floors).

As Canada’s largest museum, the ROM is nothing if not impressive. The expansive museum of world cultures and natural history opened its doors to the public in 1914, and has long been considered a major landmark in Toronto’s downtown core.

In the early 2000s, the museum underwent an ambitious reno and expansion project. This eventually led to the creation of the building’s crystal-shaped aluminum and glass addition designed by famed architect Daniel Libeskind. Fun fact: he originally dreamt up the idea on a paper napkin.

Due for a natural history lesson? The ROM has you covered thanks to its extensive collection of six million objects and more than 30 must-see galleries (from The Blue Whale Story exhibit to a gallery on Chinese architecture).

The museum’s crystal-like addition (termed the “Michael Lee-Chin Crystal”) is comprised of five interlocking and self-supporting structures that, aside from two bridges, aren’t actually attached to the original building. In addition to its striking look, the crystal adds 56,000 extra square feet of space.

Vancouver’s Science World officially unveiled itself in 1987. Resembling what at first appears to be a giant disco ball (or golf ball, as others describe), the building’s geometric globe is something of a spectacle.

The central dome is comprised of 766 triangular panels and 391 light fixtures. The spherical structure is also for show in more ways than one: It houses a giant movie theatre that, at five storeys high, is touted as being the largest dome screen in the world.

Science scholar or not, the many interactive exhibits are fit for youngsters and grown-ups alike – the building even offers adult-only events.

The colourful science centre, located along the city’s seawall, is 155 feet tall and offers more than 46,000 square feet of exhibition space.

Aquatic centres across the country were due for a design upgrade, and this sleek structure in Surrey, BC is leading the charge.

The brand new swimming facility was completed in 2016 by HCMA Architecture + Design. Its innovative wave-inspired roof is the longest curved timber roof in the world.

While the structure is easy on the eyes, it also strikes the perfect balance between form and function. Crafted from locally-sourced Douglas fir beams, the roof’s curved form reduces the building’s volume to save on energy costs.

The centre houses a 10-lane Olympic-size swimming pool, 10-metre dive towers, a water slide, a steam room, hot tubs and a leisure pool complete with a lazy river.