Pub Options Near The Centro Motel

Montgomery is one of the areas of the city that's slated for an ongoing Redevelopement Plan. It has some pretty neat stuff in it; Community Gardens, a San Francisco Trolley-Car style of public transport, even sidewalks designed to be porous so we don't get any ice or water build up on them in the spring. However, until that day off in the future, there is one area of service in the Montgomery neighbourhood that is somewhat under-filled. That area is Pubs. Don't despair though, you can always go...

On A Time Travelling Trip To 1980's Saskatchewan at Pazzer's

If that sounds horrible to you, well... It's not. Trust me. While the decor is pretty kitschy, the beer is well-priced, and the food is surprisingly good. Just to clarify here, I don't mean to say that this is the kind of place you would expect to produce bad food, I mean it is surprisingly good for ANY Pub. Also, $4 beers for Happy Hour is pretty nice. The service is quite good, the prices even better, and the hand made Perogies are fantastic.

This bar is also a very short stagger from the Centro Motel. Which makes the $4 Happy Hour drinks even better.

Grab A Few Asahis' With Your Sashimi at Sushi-Bar Miki

For those who don't know, Asahi is a brand of Japanese Beer. It's pretty good. Not as good as the Sashimi produced by Sushi-Bar Miki, though. Having said that, you can get better Sushi elsewhere in Calgary (there are 66 Sushi Bars in the city according to Yelp), but this place is a must-go if you're looking for the authentic home style Japanese restaurant experience.

The bottom line is, at Sushi Bar Miki there are decent prices, good quality food, and excellent service.

The Centro Motel is Calgary’s first Boutique Motel. Located in the Montgomery neighbourhood, just south of Calgary’s Motel Village and now on a completely unintuitive, yet direct, path from the airport. The Centro offers stylish, trendy rooms at competitive prices. Also, our parking lot is just massive. For more information on booking, rooms and rates, check out the home page, or Contact Us.

The MTT Music Festival

Calgary has new music festival. Created by the gentlemen behind the Music Times Two Blog/Online Music Magazine, this weekend the MTT Festival will rock the city to dangerous levels of cool and will test your personal threshold for awesome.

This weekend the two day Festival will feature 30 acts, most of them either renowned Indie bands or relative newcomers. For more info on the event, see the Music Times Two Blog, and for tickets Click Here. If you want up to the minute updates on guests and showtimes you can also follow them on their Facebook Page.

Sponsors for the event include our sister hotel in downtown Calgary, the Nuvo Hotel Suites, which is offering a %10 discount on room rates for concert-goers. If you don't want to stay with us for some reason ( I can't think of one), then give them a call.

The Centro Motel is Calgary’s first Boutique Motel. Located in the Montgomery neighbourhood, just south of Calgary’s Motel Village. The Centro offers stylish, trendy rooms at competitive prices. For more information on booking, rooms and rates, check out the home page, or Contact Us.

The 2011 Ronald McDonald House 'Rock The House Run'

Have you ever been out for a run and thought to yourself 'Man, I wish there was a band playing music for me right now'? Maybe, a little “Eye of the Tiger”? Well, now you can have the live music you crave during your workouts (that IS a thing, right?) as well as donate your time and money to a worthy charity.

On August 7^th, at Market Mall, the Ronald McDonald House will be kicking off its 'Rock The House Run' fundraiser. What is the Ronald McDonald House? Well, it's basically a charity that supports, finds, and creates other charities to support. It has Chapters in 52 countries for a total of 305 Ronald McDonald Houses worldwide. At its simplest level, the RMHC is there to provide a place to stay. They give out ~7,200 beds every night to families in need worldwide , saving people in need around $257 million in hotel costs. Which, given that we're a Boutique Motel, might seem something that we would rather not happen. But, there's a solid line between providing a service and avarice, and we do our best to stay on the humane side of that line.

There's a handful of ways to participate in the run. You can take in a 5 or 10 kilometre walk, or you can go for broke and compete in the 5K and 10K run. At any pace, you'll have to work not to be distracted by all the Musical Entertainers, artists, and performance artists along the route. After the race there will a concert/jam with all the performers on the main stage, and of course the awards ceremony.

You can register for the race HERE, or, if you're still not convinced, you can view the YouTube promotional video below.

The Centro Motel is Calgary’s first, and most decidely Non-Communist Boutique Motel. Located in the Montgomery neighbourhood, just south of Calgary’s Motel Village. The Centro offers stylish, trendy rooms at competitive prices. For more information on booking, rooms and rates, check out the home page, or Contact Us.

3 Things You Need to Know About The Calgary Folk Festival

Who's Playing Where & When

There isn't just one stage at the Folk Fest, there's Seven. Keeping a schedule on hand so you know who's playing when is pretty much the only way you can be sure to find the bands you want to hear, and identify the unknown bands that you've just learned you love (or hate).

For a full schedule of all their events, click here.

What To Bring

There are a few items that make any Folk Music Festival awesome or, if you're attending against your will, a better time. Mostly it's common sense but, make sure you have

A Folding Chair

Not that Folk Music isn't good, and I'm sure there's going to be lots of dancing, but if you buy a whole day pass you;re going to want to sit down eventually. While sitting on the ground is always an option, you can up your level of enjoyment by bringing along a comfy little camp chair.

Snacks

There will of course be vendors working the Festival, but the snacks can get pretty pricey. Also, sometimes the vendors are a long ways off from the concert you want to check out.

A Blanket and/or a Sweater

This is the Prairies. It gets Cold here when the sun goes away.

Where You Can Park (Nearby)

The closest major parking lot is at Eau Claire Mall, but it gets pretty full pretty quick. There are other parking options, but they involve a short walk. You can park in some of the closer lots and parkades downtown, but who really wants to drive downtown if they don't have to? Anyone? No? Yeah, that's what I thought.

It can also be convenient to park on the other side of the river from Prince's Island. The closest parking lots are in Kensington, a 15 minute walk away, and you can also try your luck parking in the residential areas along Memorial Drive. Although, I wouldn't recommend that option due to the chance of getting a stiff parking fine, or even getting towed.

The Centro Motel is Calgary’s first Boutique Motel. Located in the Montgomery neighbourhood, just south of Calgary’s Motel Village and now on a completely unintuitive, yet direct, path from the airport. The Centro offers stylish, trendy rooms at competitive prices. For more information on booking, rooms and rates, check out the home page, or Contact Us.

Floating Down The Elbow and Bow Rivers in Calgary

Due to the Centro Motel's location south of Motel Village, and on the other side of Shouldice Park, we commonly see Calgarians flocking to the Bow river in the summer to indulge in a uniquely Calgarian pastime. From Late Spring to Late Summer, floating down the Bow and Elbow Rivers is one of the best ways to spend a hot day in Calgary. If you're interested in trying it yourself, here's what you need to know.

 

Tubing on the Elbow
Starting after May long weekend, Perhaps the prime thing to do on a hot, sunny day off is to join the crowd floating down the Elbow River. This distinctly Calgary summer diversion is simply not to be missed and is surprisingly easy to arrange. From late May through to the end of August, Calgarians drift down this shallow, safe, gently-flowing river on almost anything that floats. Inflatable beds, large pool toys and more sophisticated inflatable boats hardly need to be navigated at all by their reclining passengers soaking up the rays. Easy breezy. Canadian Tire is the best bet for a variety of floating vessels to fit all budgets. Or, if you ant to rent one for an afternoon, the closest rental to the Cento Motel is the aptly named Sports Rental. The popular launch spot in the city is off Sandy Beach, just below the Glenmore Reservoir, then just go with the flow to Stanley Park, or if the current allows, a bit further on to the Talisman Centre. The most complex planning involved is arranging transport to the launch spot and from the landing point; having use of two cars is ideal. However, if you're going to launch at the Day Rec area in Shouldice park, then Transit will get you back to your car pretty easily. Life jackets are required by law, although the Elbow River is extremely safe and is not to be confused with the larger, faster Bow River, on which tubing is not really a good idea.

Floating down the Bow River

I've covered this more extensively in another article, so I'll just give you the cliff notes. Navigation on the Bow is necessary, don't try to float down it on anything that isn't river-worthy. Pool toys won't cut it. Bring and wear lifejackets, and be careful when going under bridges, as the pylons will pull you into them if you're not careful. Do. Not. Go. Over. The Weir. You will die (maybe).

The Centro Motel is Calgary’s first Boutique Motel. Located in the Montgomery neighbourhood, just south of Calgary’s Motel Village and now on a completely unintuitive, yet direct, path from the airport. The Centro offers stylish, trendy rooms at competitive prices. Also, our parking lot is just massive. For more information on booking, rooms and rates, check out the home page, or Contact Us.