Diefenbunker Museum: Canada’s Cold War Museum

Despite living nearby, I had never brought my daughter to the Diefenbunker Museum until this summer. It had been on our to-do list for a long time, and I am so glad we finally got to visit. Not only were we looking for an escape from the summer heat, I wanted her to see for herself why this underground museum is so unique.

The Diefenbunker, located in Carp, Ontario, is a massive four-story underground bunker, built between 1959 and 1961. During the Cold War, top officials were to take shelter here in the event of a nuclear war. It was active as Canadian Forces Station Carp until 1994. Today, it operates as a not-for-profit, charitable museum.

Visiting the Diefenbunker is not only an engaging way to teach older kids about the Cold War, but a place preserved in time that will show kids and adults alike what it was like to live in the 1960s and what it’s like to live in an underground military station (especially with there replica Canex canteen from 1977). Adult visitors will love seeing telephones and computers from their youth and, if you’re with kids, they may enjoy teasing you about it (something my daughter really enjoyed). 

There are many ways to tour the Diefenbunker Museum. You can book a guided tour, explore on your own or you can download their audio guide from their website.

The museum is well organized, clean and every exhibit has a written explanation of what you’re looking at (and the description is just the right length that you have enough time to read it before your kids move on to the next exhibit). 

If your kids are really young, this probably isn’t the museum for you. They don’t want children running around and the exhibits are not as hands on as in other museums, but there is a lot to see, do and learn. If you have a child who is into history, learning about the military or wars, or is into learning about technology then they will love this museum. My daughter enjoyed seeing how far technology has come over the years as well as how some of the technology used forty years ago is still in use today.

She also loved learning about the construction of the Diefenbunker and seeing the rooms of where the Prime Minister would have stayed and worked. She also loved seeing how the CBC Radio had its own space in the Diefenbunker, learning who would be allowed into the bunker and who would not be allowed, and touring a huge bank vault that once housed a lot of gold. 

A few years ago Lara brought her children, who at the time were 5 and 8 years old to the museum, and she shared her experience here. Needless to say, they had fun!

If you’re looking for a different kind of museum that takes you underground and transports you to a completely different time, then the Diefenbunker Museum is a great way to spend an afternoon.

At the time of writing this blog post, the Museum was open daily from 10 am to 4 pm. Parking is free and admission was: Adults: $17.50, seniors: $16.50, students: $13.00 , youth: $11.00, family rate: $48.50, and children 5 and under are free.

You can buy tickets online or in person. The museum is underground and the entrance to the museum consists of three (3) ground barriers at each doorway. For more information on museum accessibility, please click here. There are bathrooms onsite, a gift shop, and although there was no food available onsite at the time of our visit, Carp offers some great restaurants including Alice’s Village Café, Ridge Rock and The Carp Custom Creamery.