Event: Canada - Calgary

Calgary Zoo

When:	Daily
Where:	Calgary Zoo
Costs:	C$18; seniors C$16; 13-17 yrs C$12; 3-12 yrs C$10; under 3 yrs free
Opening Hours:	Daily 9am-5pm

Calgary Zoo, Botanical Gardens and Prehistoric Park has earned a reputation as a must-see in the city thanks to its impressive collection of creatures great, small... and extinct.

The zoo itself features primates, birds, big cats, elephants, hippos, giraffes, snakes, insects, meerkats - if it moves then there's an enclosure for it. The dwellings themselves are about as far from the pokey cages of old as is possible to get. All the African creatures, for instance, are housed within the Destination Africa section - a fully recreated piece of the continent thousands of miles away.

The Botanical Gardens are the next highlight of a trip to the zoo. The Dorothy Harvie Garden boasts over 4000 ornamental plants, many of which are the unique and hardy plants that have adapted to the harsh conditions of Alberta. There are six speciality gardens in all, such as the Arid Garden, the Rainforest Garden and the Butterfly Garden.

The climax of a visit for many though is the six and a half hectare Prehistoric Park - a recreation of how Western Canada would have been when the dinosaurs roamed the Earth. A T-Rex, Stegosaurus, Triceratops and horned Ceratopsians are among the 15 dinosaurs that have been lovingly recreated to satisfy visitors' curiosity.