Quote: (07-05-2012 09:35 AM)chyamor Wrote:
Does one need to rent a car? Staying in downtown near 17th but will be bar/club hopping
If you're staying on 17th then you won't necessarily need a car because that's close to where all the bars are and you can walk to the Stampede grounds from there in about 15-20 minutes.
You should be able to get a shuttle from the airport to your hotel for around $15 or a taxi will cost about $30-40.
Staying where you are is the best option logistics wise, and if you want to check out other areas of the city, you can take the C-Train, just walk 10 blocks down to 7th and hop on. Honestly, outside of down town there isn't a lot to see, except maybe hitting up some of the bars over in Kensington (C-Train stops there, Sunny Side station). I would recommend Chinook mall as a good place to day game, but with the amount of action happening around the Stampede and down town, you'll be better off there. The bars around your hotel on 17th will be rocking all day and night, check out Melrose, Rose & Crown, Ship & Anchor, etc. There's a also some good spots on Stephen Ave for the afternoon business crowd
Stampede grounds and the entire city of Calgary for that matter will be great for both day game and night game, play up the fact that you're from the States and the women should be very receptive.
The only reason that you should rent a car is if you want to drive out to Banff national park, even if you just go for a day, it's definitely worth it.
Unfortunately, I won't make it down to Stampede this year because of work, have fun man and report back with a Stampede data sheet!