Prehistoric World

by Rebecca This post originally appeared on Bit of Momsense. Thank you to Becky for sharing it here too.

In June, when we took the kids to Upper Canada Village, we passed by Prehistoric World – a place I had been as a child, but had completely forgotten about. We made note that we should take the Boy there someday. In August, we did!

Prehistoric World is all outdoors and has big and small statues of dinosaurs. Naturally, the almost 3 year old and almost 6 year old loved it. All the adults agreed, it was really well done and worth taking the kids (including my husband who was very doubtful about it’s ‘cool’ factor, but he was wrong! ;)

The path passes through a bush/treed area and is clearly defined, and very well maintained. It’s about 1 km in total distance, and takes about 45 minutes to an hour to do. There is a large sand box with ‘bones’ buried to dig up too!

Cost: $8 for each adult, $4.25 for kids 4-15 and children under 3 are free. Bring insect repellent/outdoor lotion because there are mosquitos!

Distance from Ottawa: About an hour

Prehistoric World

Exit 758 from Highway 401 Upper Canada Road Morrisburg, Ontario K0C 1X0 Telephone: (613) 543-2503

OPEN DAILY Late May through September 10:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m.

You may want to call first to be sure they are open.

Other Notes: Stroller accessible. Bring Mosquito Repellent (although they had some on-site, if you prefer something other than Off, bring it.) It is very close to Upper Canada Village/Chrysler’s farm, so it may be worth planning a whole day and bringing a picnic like we did.

(The white one above is a work in process…)

Rebecca blogs about family and motherhood, is a self-professed foodie, and dabbles in online engagment and community giving.  She has a strange love for maple syrup that can possibly only be matched by her love for chocolate and coffee.

Alight at night festival – Upper Canada Village

by Natasha I love Christmas lights, and one of the best places to visit during the holiday season is Upper Canada Village, during their Alight at night festival.  It takes about two hours to get there, but it is well worth the drive.

The festival starts on December 2, and is open Thursday to Sunday, December 2 to 18^th and nightly starting on December 19 to January 7.  The Village is open from 4:30 to 9pm.    I recommend arriving early or purchasing your tickets in advance online because the line-ups can get quite big.

Festival admission which includes, admission, wagon ride, the train and parking is $13 for adults, $10 for seniors and kids 6 to 12 and kids 5 and under are free.

If you have never been to the "Alight at night" festival before, you are in for a treat.  The village is beautifully decorated with half-a-million lights.  On select evening you can join the sing-along carollers in the Christ Church.  It is magical to hear the music and walk through the snow and enjoy the lights, it really gets you in the holiday spirit.

One of my favourite things about Upper Canada Village this time of year, is watching the sounds and lights show that happens multiple times a night.  This is not to be missed, make sure you bring your video camera.

If you need a break from walking, you can hop on the Toy Train and take a ride through Crysler Park, or you can grab a hot chocolate and jump on an old fashioned horse-drawn wagon ride.  These are great ways to enjoy the multitude of lights.

On your way out you can visit the gift shop that is filled with a variety of festive Christmas decorations and décor that are available to buy.  Last year we purchased the cutest Santa cookie plate for Baby H.

They also have a beautiful Santa display, the kids can visit with Santa and get their photos taken.

Another little tip – make sure you bundle up, it can get very cold on a windy night by the water.

If you get a chance to visit the Alight At Night Festival, tell me what you loved most.

Natasha is a new mommy to her first born, Baby H. She runs ShopHaven, a blog that reviews products and profiles local businesses and individuals from the Ottawa area. Natasha is also the creative force behind ShopHaven Baskets; a highly customized gift baskets service.

Upper Canada Village: You can't go wrong!

One of the things I enjoy as a parent is being able to take Liam places that I can remember visiting as a child.  One of those places that we chose to explore this summer was Upper Canada Village in Morrisburg.

We hadn’t planned on visiting the 1860’s pioneer village this summer as we knew that at only two and a half, Liam would not understand the significance.  However when booking a weekend of camping at Riverside-Cedar Campground, we discovered that The Parks Of St. Lawrence offers a 40% discount on admission to Upper Canada Village with your site reservation.  We quickly changed our minds and visited twice this summer.

Our first visit was just the three of us, but when we went back a couple of weeks ago, Liam brought his grandma and aunties too!  And that is one of the beauties of Upper Canada Village, there is something for everyone.

As adults, we enjoyed the physical beauty of the old building, the stories about the way of life in the 1860s and the antiques.

For Liam, it was the animals – horses going by no matter where you are, pastures of cattle, the pig pen and even little pig lets running around like puppies.

Be prepared for lots of walking as you check out everything from the village schoolhouse to the bakery, the church to the sawmill, the Tavern to the Doctor’s house.  If it was part of life in the 1860s, you are likely to find it along the roads of Upper Canada Village.

If you’re not up for walking there is a horse drawn wagon tour as well as a horse powered boat ride that will save your feet!

Along the way, the costumed interpreters are all happy to chat and share stories with you but as many of the buildings are actually working buildings they do have a job to do.

You may happen into the newspaper office in time to see them printing a poster for an upcoming event.

Cheese and bread are made daily in the cheese factory and bakery and sold in the gift shop.

There are lovely picnic areas around in the Village if you want to bring a picnic lunch or if picnics aren’t your thing, there is a cafeteria as well as a restaurant in the village.  The cafeteria has all the modern day choices of burgers, fries, sandwiches and of course, ice cream while the restaurant servers period meal choices.

Once you’ve walked all you can walk, checked out the gift shop on your way out and think that you are done for the day, there is one last thing left to do.  No, it’s not get in the car and hope that the kids sleep for the hour and a half drive back to Ottawa, it is to ride the Moccasin, or as Liam calls it, the Little Red Train.

Take a ride (the short ride is about 17 minutes and the long ride is about 45 minutes) along the St. Lawrence River, listening to the story of the battle of Crysler Farm.  The scenery is gorgeous and if you are so inclined, you can get off the train at Crysler Beach for a few hours before taking the train back to your car.

Although there is an extra charge for the train, it is well worth it as it was the highlight of Liam’s day both times.

Fun, family oriented, educational, outdoors, exercise . . . where can you go wrong with Upper Canada Village?

*****

Nicki is a working mom of one two-year-old boy, Liam. She is an Early Childhood Educator and in her spare time, volunteers for New Moon Rabbit Rescue and as a Brownie Leader with Girl Guides of Canada. She loves to garden, scrapbook and write! You can read more about Nicki on The Perils of a Working Mom.