Recreation centres are great places for families to stay fit and have fun together. Work out with weights or cardio machines and go for a swim or a skate . . . there are lots of different options in the city, and that’s especially great when the weather is unpredictable. Here’s where to find all of them in Calgary!
Please note, this is a work in progress.
Within Calgary City Limits
Cardel Rec South
In addition to being the home of the Shawnessy YMCA and a branch of Calgary Public Library, Cardel Rec South also has four ice arenas, a community gymnasium, meeting rooms and more. They run programs for kids and families including preschool classes, skating lessons, clubs and day camps.
Address: 100, 333 Shawville Blvd SE, Calgary, AB
Website: www.cardelplace.com
City of Calgary Aquatic & Fitness Centres and Arenas
In addition to the city’s two Leisure Centres (listed here separately), the City of Calgary maintains 12 Aquatic & Fitness/Recreation Centres and 10 arena locations throughout the city.
Aquatic & Fitness/Recreation Centres Website: www.calgary.ca
Arenas Website: www.calgary.ca
Genesis Centre
Along with indoor soccer fields, the Genesis Centre provides a wide variety of services from fitness, health, and recreation services to cultural events and social activities. They partner with the Saddletown YMCA and the Calgary Public Library. Note: Genesis Centre does not have any swimming pools or arenas.
Address: 7555 Falconridge Blvd NE, Calgary, AB
Website: genesis-centre.ca
JCC Calgary
JCC is a non-profit organization offering social, educational, recreational, and cultural programming to individuals and families of all ages, stages and backgrounds. The recreation centre facilities include a pool, hot tub, fitness facilities, a climbing wall, an indoor play structure, and more. While the centre has a thriving Jewish community, anybody is welcome to be a member, sign their kids up for programs, or pay a day admission to use the facility.
Address: 1607 90 Avenue SW, Calgary, AB
Website: www.calgaryjcc.com
MNP Community & Sport Centre (Formerly Repsol Sport Centre)
MNP Community & Sport Centre offers a number of activities for all ages and abilities all under one roof!
A membership or drop in admission gets you access to some amazing amenities like:
- 2 Olympic sized pools with public swim times
- 20 Person hot tub
- Steam Room
- 5 Gymnasiums
- 2 running tracks
- 700+ pieces of cardio and weight training equipment
- A variety of Group Fitness classes including yoga, Power Cycle, Boot Camp, Kickboxing and much more
Address: 2225 Macleod Trail South, Calgary, AB
Website: www.mnpcentre.com
Mount Royal University
Mount Royal University Recreation Centre offers an energetic, social environment for everybody and the public is always welcome. They offer fitness training and classes, drop-in play, a climbing wall, and an Aquatic Centre featuring a hot tub and an eight-lane salt water pool and an open dive tank area.
Address: 4825 Mt Royal Gate SW, Calgary, AB
Website: www.mtroyal.ca
SAIT Wellness Centre
The SAIT Wellness Centre offers a variety of facilities that include: weight room, featuring full cardio and weight lifting equipment, double size gymnasium, 25-metre salt water pool, 9-metre dive tank area, shower facilities with lockers, 6 squash courts, 1 racquetball/wallyball courts, fitness/dance/martial arts studio, and more. There are both lane swims and open swims that the public can attend and the facility has children’s programs including day camps, birthday parties and sport/fitness programs.
Address: 1301, 16 Avenue NW, Calgary, AB
Website: www.sait.ca
Southland Leisure Centre (City of Calgary)
Southland has a tropical beach themed AquaPlay structure within its spectacular waterpark, which includes a wave pool, dive tank, water slides, kiddies pool, hot tub, and steam room, as well as swim lessons and aqua fitness programs.
Other amenities include twin arenas, which offer seasonal public skating and shinny hockey, a dry sports area which includes multi-use rooms, a gymnasium, a rock climbing area, gymnastics gym, racquet and squash courts, three playhouse classrooms, a babysitting room, a children’s playroom, and a birthday room.
Programs within the dry sports area include fitness, sports training, gymnastics, racquet sports, skating, dance, martial arts, pre-school, registered and non-registered programs, leagues and tournaments, drop-in sports, and day camps during school breaks and more!
Address: 2000 Southland Drive SW, Calgary, AB
Website: www.calgary.ca
Trico Centre for Family Wellness
Trico Centre is a neighbourhood active-living recreational facility, offering a vast range of programs and services.
Trico Centre sells facility memberships, runs a variety of registered programs for all ages and interests, rents out the facility to user groups, offers daycamps, childcare services, before & after school care programs, organizes birthday parties and corporate functions, and offers specialized community and school programs.
Some of the features of the facility include:
- 13,500 sq ft fitness centre
- 3-lane running track
- 2 fully equipped fitness studios
- 316 ft indoor waterslide & wavepool
- Hot tub, sauna, steam
- Arena
- Gymnasium
- Multipurpose rooms
- Childcare
Address: 11150 Bonaventure Dr. SE, Calgary, AB
Website: www.tricocentre.ca
University of Calgary
The University of Calgary offers a wide range of recreation facilities and programs. On-campus facilities include a pool, gyms & courts, fitness studios, climbing/bouldering walls, gymnastics centre, racquet sports centre, ice surfaces, and more. There is also an excellent Outdoor Centre, which runs programs on and off campus. Kids’ programs, including day camps, are very popular.
Address: 2500 University Drive NW, Calgary, AB
Website: www.ucalgary.ca/activeliving
Vecova Recreation Centre
The Vecova Recreation Centre is a public facility that provides recreation and leisure opportunities to Calgarians of all ages and abilities.
The barrier-free facility in northwest Calgary is home to a specially heated salt water pool, a full-size gymnasium, an aerobics studio, and two arts and crafts classrooms. They offer a wide variety of programs such as adult health and wellness, children’s swimming and dryland lessons, preschool classes, day camps, birthday parties, first aid, and leadership courses.
Some popular gymnasium and studio programs include pilates classes, piloga classes, yoga classes, and skipping classes.
Address: 3304 – 33rd Street NW, Calgary, AB
Website: www.vecova.ca
Village Square Leisure Centre (City of Calgary)
Village Square consists of a safari-themed water park including a wave pool, dive tank, three water slides, kiddies pool, hot tubs, steam room as well as swim lessons and aqua fitness programs.
Other amenities include twin arenas, which offer year-round public skating and shinny hockey, a dry sports area which includes multi-use rooms, a gymnasium, activity rooms, fitness/dance studio, playschool classrooms, a babysitting room, a Jungle Gym playroom, and birthday party rooms.
Programs within the dry sports area include fitness, Mom & Baby classes, dance, sports, skating, martial arts, pre-school registered and non-registered programs, leagues and tournaments, drop-in sports and day camps during school breaks, and more!
Address: 2623 56th Street NE, Calgary, AB
Website: www.calgary.ca
Vivo
December 2021: Vivo is undergoing a major renovation and will be mostly closed until further notice.
Vivo is a 195,000 square foot LEED Gold Accredited Facility that provides a bright, comfortable, inviting space for a wide range of spontaneous and structured activities for individuals and families of all ages and abilities. Facilities include a climbing wall, fitness centre, gymnasiums, ice rink, and more. There is an aquatic centre with a couple 25 m lanes, hot tub, tot’s pool, lazy/rapid river, and a steam room. The Calgary Public Library also has a location here.
Where: 11950 Country Village Link NE, Calgary, AB
Website: www.vivo.ca
Westside Recreation Centre
Westside bills itself as ‘a leisure lifestyle centre for the whole family in southwest Calgary’.
Indoors, the aquatic park includes a wave pool, waterslide, lazy river, lap pool, waterslide, and hot tub. The indoor leisure ice skating facility, 25’ climbing wall, and three gymnasiums welcome people of all ages and abilities. A 15,000 square-foot fitness facility with a 500 metre running/walking track has state of the art equipment and a team of fitness consultants to meet your fitness and training needs. The one-of-a-kind youth wellness centre is a place for teens and pre-teens to enjoy active recreation in their own space. Party rooms are available for a variety of social and business functions and childcare is available for parents using the facility.
Outside, everyone can enjoy the skateboard park, shoot hoops at the hard court, or access the multiple pathways connected to the city’s system. Westside’s tenant services include a coffee shop and preschool with before and after school care.
Address: 2000 69 Street SW, Calgary, AB
Website: www.westsiderec.com
YMCA Calgary
There are seven YMCA facilities in Calgary, located throughout the city. They have open gym and open swim times where you can go with the kids to burn off steam, plus childcare if you’d rather fit in a little healthy ‘me time’!
Melcor YMCA: 8100 John Laurie Blvd NW
Saddletowne YMCA: 180, 7555 Falconridge Blvd NE
Shawnessy YMCA: 400, 333 Shawville Blvd. SE
South Health Campus YMCA (no pool): 4448 Front Street SE
Remington YMCA: 108 Quarry Park Rd. SE
Shane Homes YMCA at Rocky Ridge: 11300 Rocky Ridge Rd. NW
Brookfield Residential YMCA at Seton: 4995 Market Street SE
Gray Family Eau Claire YMCA: 101 3 Street SW – PERMANENTLY CLOSED AS OF WINTER 2021
Website: www.ymcacalgary.org
Nearby Facilities Outside Calgary City Limits
Genesis Place (Airdrie)
Genesis Place features an aquatic centre, arenas, dry land fitness & leisure facilities like indoor and outdoor soccer fields, gymnasiums, indoor running track, and more. Many drop-in and registered programs are available.
Address: 800 East Lake Blvd NE, Airdrie, AB
Website: www.airdrie.ca
Okotoks Recreation Centre (Okotoks)
This Recreation Centre is home to indoor pools, hot tub and sauna, fitness studio, ice arenas, curling rink, a child-minding service, a youth centre, and more. Many drop-in and registered programs are available.
Address: 99 Okotoks Drive, Okotoks, AB
Website: www.okotoks.ca
Spray Lakes Sawmills Family Sports Centre (Cochrane)
SLSFSC boasts an expansive facility with 3 NHL Size ice surfaces (plus the Original Cochrane Arena), full indoor soccer turf, indoor running/walking track, full gymnasium, climbing wall, multi-purpose space, childminding centre, University of Calgary gymnastics facility, martial arts centre, Cochrane Sport Physiotherapy/Massage, Edge Sports, the Skating Lab, and Lifestyles Fitness Centre. Many drop-in and registered programs are available.
Address: 800 Griffin Road East, Cochrane, AB
Website: www.slsfamilysportscentre.com
