Recreation

The City maintains outdoor community ice rinks including the Muskoseepi Park Skating Pond. In addition, the Neighbourhood Rink Program allows local homeowners an opportunity to build and maintain a small skating rink neighbourhood parks near their home. These rinks are maintained by volunteers and used throughout the winter for local skating.

With over 1,600 acres of parkland throughout the city, Grande Prairie is full of opportunities to get out and stay active. These parks are as diverse as they are beautiful, including many amenities such as outdoor sports areas, spray parks, and dog parks. Many of our parks also feature year-round programming and are open for use by community groups.

If you enjoy sports, you can join a league/club, or sign up for an exercise class. If you don’t have time for scheduled sports, there are drop-in games and facilities with fitness equipment. Grande Prairie is home to a variety of recreational sports for all ages, abilities, and skill levels, visit the Grande Prairie Sport Connection webpage to find more information.

The Design Works Centre features two ice surfaces with seating for nearly 2,000 spectators. The facility is available for public events and private bookings in its two ice surfaces and four meeting rooms.

One of the largest adventure and fitness aquatic venues in Canada, the Eastlink Centre boasts an Olympic-size 50m competition pool, diving towers, a surfing simulator, waterpark, indoor basketball, volleyball, badminton, and squash courts, as well as an indoor track. The facility also has a variety of food and beverage vendors and health and wellness merchants.

Offering hockey and skating in the winter months, Dave Barr Community Centre also hosts lacrosse and ball hockey in the summer. The community centre is also home to a variety of child and youth programs.

The Bonnetts Energy Centre is the premiere entertainment and sport venue of the northwest. The facility hosts sports, concerts, shows, and entertainment for the whole family and is the home of our Grande Prairie Storm of the Alberta Junior Hockey League.

Winding through the centre of the city, Muskoseepi Park offers 18 km of both paved and natural trails in an urban forest for walking, biking, and cross-country skiing. The park features two large playgrounds, a splash park, an all-season pond for fishing and skating, outdoor basketball, tennis and lawn bowling courts, mini golf, disc golf, and bird watching facilities.

Muskoseepi Park is the place to be for festivals and entertainment. Grande Prairie’s Canada Day, Heritage Day, and Municipal Government Day celebrations are held in the park and the outdoor amphitheater with its hillside seating provides the stage for concerts, dance performances, and other shows throughout the season. Stop by the Ernie Radbourne Pavilion for information or to check out the fun and educational programs offered for children of all ages.

At the North end of Muskoseepi Park across from Centre 2000, Maskwoteh Park features 900 metres of new trails, picnic areas and three new playground areas for children to enjoy. These new areas feature an outdoor classroom, a fossil hunt section, and a rocks and ropes area all with a unique dinosaur theme.

South Bear Creek Park offers a wide variety of recreational activities and facilities including ball diamonds, beach volleyball courts, bike skills park, campground, disc golf course and Bear Paw Par 3 golf course. The park also features a pavilion and picnic area, walking trails, and an off-leash dog park.

The Aquatera Outdoor Pool, a long-time community gem opened in the summer of 2019. The fully re-done facility will feature a water slide, games area, zero beach and swimming lanes for use throughout the summer months.

As a legacy project for the City of Grande Prairie’s 100th Anniversary in 2014, 100 parks throughout the city were officially named after citizens who have contributed significantly to our city’s history and helped make our community what it is today.