About
Population: 718,648
Climate
Winnipeg experiences a continental climate characterized by four distinct seasons. Average temperatures range between -12° Celsius (+10.4° Fahrenheit) in the winter months to +26° Celsius (+78.8° Fahrenheit) in the summertime. Due to its northern location, Winnipeg residents enjoy 2,300 hours of sunlight annually and up to 16 hours of sunlight daily during the summer months. Winnipeg averages approximately 51.4 centimetres (20.2 inches) of precipitation each year.
Time Zone
Winnipeg is located in the Central Standard Time Zone (CST). In Manitoba Canada Daylight Saving Time begins at 2:00 am local time on the second Sunday in March. On the first Sunday in November areas on Daylight Saving Time return to Standard Time at 2:00 am. During Daylight Saving Time clocks are turned ahead one hour.
Language
English and French are Canada’s two official languages. English is the predominant language spoken in Winnipeg. Old St. Boniface - Winnipeg’s French Quarter, is largely French-speaking. Many banks, hotels, airline offices, service institutions, shops and key tourist destinations have multilingual staff.
Currency
The currency used in Winnipeg is the Canadian Dollar. It is recommended that visitors exchange their currency at a bank, a foreign exchange outlet or use a banking machine.
Provincial and Federal Taxes
Goods and services purchased in Manitoba are subject to the Provincial Sales Tax (PST: 8%) and the federal Goods and Services Tax (GST: 5%).
Accommodation Tax
There is a 5% tax on accommodations within the city of Winnipeg. For more information please click here.
Liquor Laws
Spirits, wine and beer are available at Manitoba Liquor Control Commission outlets; wine is also available at private wine stores; domestic beer also from hotel vendors. Open liquor must be stored in the trunk. Legal age for consumption of alcohol is 18 years. These laws are strictly enforced. Please drink responsibly. Don’t drink and drive.
Smoking
Smoking is prohibited in all public places including restaurants, bars, malls and sporting events.
Relocating For Business
Thinking about relocating your business to Winnipeg? Check out some great information and resources at Economic Development Winnipeg.
History
The City of Winnipeg is located at the junction of the Red and Assiniboine Rivers, almost at the geographic centre of North America. With an ethnically diverse population, Winnipeg is characterized by slow but steady growth. It is the eighth largest city in Canada and dominates the Manitoba economy.
The name Winnipeg has its origin in the Cree name given to the lake 40 miles north, meaning "Win", muddy, "Nipee", water.
Though there have been fur trading posts on the site since 1738, the first permanent settlement of the area occurred in 1812 when a group of Scottish crofters arrived. Winnipeg was incorporated as a city in 1873 with a population of 1,869 people. The arrival of the Canadian Pacific Railway in 1885 brought a 30-year period of growth and prosperity unequalled in Canadian urban development. A flood of immigrants, high wheat prices, plentiful capital, and improved farming techniques contributed to making Winnipeg the wholesale, administrative, and financial centre of western Canada. Following World War I, economic stagnation due to low wheat prices and the Depression lasted well into the 1940s.
Since 1945, Winnipeg has grown steadily, based on its position as a major grain, financial, manufacturing, and transportation centre.
In 1972, the unified City of Winnipeg was created by amalgamating the following 13 municipalities, towns and cities:
- R. M. of Charleswood
- R. M. of North Kildonan
- Town of Tuxedo
- City of West Kildonan
- City of Transcona
- City of St. James-Assiniboia
- The Metropolitan Corporation of Greater Winnipeg
- R. M. of Fort Garry
- R. M. of Old Kildonan
- City of East Kildonan
- City of St. Vital
- City of St. Boniface
- City of Winnipeg
There are facilities for playing golf, tennis, swimming, boating and other outdoor sports. Close to Winnipeg, anglers will find good fishing in many lakes accessible over first-class highways. Few Cities have as many beautiful parks. Visitors to Assiniboine Park will find magnificent facilities for rest and recreation as well as one of the finest Zoos in the country, while Kildonan Park is the home of some of the most beautiful trees in Winnipeg.
LOVE TO EAT? So do Winnipegger’s!
Check out Peg City Grub for the latest eats on the scene ...and also browse restaurants by category! Yum! I have some of my own personal favourites—ask me!
Tourism
The Canadian Museum for Human Rights
Designed by architect extraordinaire Antione Predock, Canada’s newest, most eye-catching attraction dominates the Winnipeg skyline, shining like a beacon. An ambitious museum meant to foster dialogue and promote change for a better world, the CMHR provides a stirring account of the human experience unlike anything you’ve ever witnessed.
Journey to Churchill at Assiniboine Park Zoo
Everybody loves polar bears — that’s why they're the main attraction at the new Journey to Churchill exhibit at Assiniboine Park Zoo. Watching these majestic mammals dive, swim, and frolic above you through the exhibit’s glass dome will take your breath away, while the vast new terrain also features an incredible selection of animals, like muskox, wolves, moose, and seals. The zoo also features uber-rare animals, like red pandas and snow leopards, along with over 200 other species.
Hermetic Code Tour at the Manitoba Legislative Building
Dan Brown would be at a loss trying to decipher all the meaning enlaced in Canada’s finest provincial legislative building. The grandiose interior of this ode to Olympus is studded with hieroglyphics, freemasonic symbols and numeric codes, all of which are unveiled in the Hermetic Code Tour — a must for anyone with a sense of intrigue.
The nine permanent galleries in this award-winning heritage and edu-tainment centre will enthral kids and adults alike. Whether you are catching a Planetarium show featuring one of the world’s most advanced projection systems, or viewing some of Canada’s most important historical artifacts in the Hudson’s Bay Company Museum Collection, the Manitoba Museum is sure to please.
Six hundred-forty acres of pristine prairie beauty are waiting to welcome you in this oasis just south of the city. In summer, feel the wind in your hair canoeing or sailing on one of FortWhyte’s several lakes. Witness North America’s largest animal (the bison) roam or go cross-country skiing or snowshoeing on its many trails. No matter what the season, there is always an adventure to be had.
The Exchange District National Historic Site
One of Canada’s architectural marvels, this 30-block district boasts North America’s most extensive turn-of-the-20th-century buildings. You’ll find some of the city’s trendiest and tastiest spots, up-and-coming and established galleries; vintage and antique shops, and some of the best the city has to offer in coffee and café culture.
One of Winnipeg’s most beautiful buildings, its reflective glassy exterior is a sight to behold. On the inside you’ll find guided tours that will have you holding a $600,000 gold bar, ogling over the Olympic gold medals that were made for Vancouver 2010, and witnessing coins being produced for over 70 different countries. A trip to the Mint is surely worth every penny.