Free Event!
Saturday May 28th & Sunday May 29th, 2011

The 8th Annual and Biggest Event Ever!

Don't forget to look for the Doors Open Winnipeg insert in The Winnipeg Free Press on Thursday, May 26th. The insert has great information on all the buildings, locations and times for this year's event. It's a great tool for helping to plan your day.

Check out the What's New section of the website to see what we've added to this year's event, and also for some discounts from participating restaurants.

Doors Open Winnipeg

Doors Open Winnipeg is a free public event put on annually by Heritage Winnipeg. This year there are over 70 buildings and events that have committed to participating in the 8th annual Doors Open Winnipeg event. It really underscores the importance and value to the city that this event has when you have that many owners willing to showcase their buildings. The viewing public is in for a few special treats this year. To begin with there are many new participants. Some of these include the Caron House in Charleswood, St. Mary’s Academy, Fort Gibraltar in Saint Boniface and the Transcona Museum.

Equally exciting, is that we are giving the public a chance to vote for their favourites. Ballots will be distributed to visitors giving them a chance to vote in 5 different categories, including Best Restoration, Best Tour, Best Architecture, Best Overall Experience and the Hidden Gem. We believe that this will be an excellent way to get the public involved, and it will also provide us with some valuable information about their experience. The five winners will be presented an award created by Jordan Van Sewell, a Winnipeg artist.

We are also introducing “Storytelling – Celebrating the Stories our Buildings Tell”. This event will involve storytelling by prominent Winnipeggers at various historic sites throughout the city. This event will be geared for both adults and children.

About Doors Open

Doors Open originated in France in the 1980s, with the number of participating countries increasing in ten years to 47 and the number of visitors reaching the 20 million mark in 2000.  Building on the European success, New York City, Sydney, Australia, and Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, launched their own Doors Open programs. The Doors Open phenomenon came to Canada when Toronto began an annual event in 2000, attracting 76,000 visitors to over 90 buildings. Since then, events have been held in Ottawa, Calgary, St. John's, and Brandon. The Ontario Heritage Foundation has helped 27 communities establish their own events.