Canada - Facts for Kids

Canada has a strange place called Magnetic Hill in New Brunswick where cars seem to roll uphill—but it’s actually a clever optical illusion that tricks your eyes!

The Canadian town of Vulcan in Alberta has a fun Star Trek connection! Because its name matches Mr. Spock’s home planet, the town built a Star Trek-themed tourist center and space-themed attractions for visitors.

In 2017, the Canadian Army gave Santa Claus a special honorary military rank—Honorary Lieutenant-Colonel—to celebrate the holidays and his worldwide gift-delivery mission!

Canadians use special coins called the “loonie” for $1 and the “toonie” for $2 instead of paper bills for these amounts!

Canada has a special phone number—1-800-O-CANADA—that people can call to get helpful information about the country and its government services!

There’s a town in Newfoundland, Canada called Dildo, and it even has a funny mascot named Captain Dildo that makes many visitors smile and take photos!

Near Osoyoos in British Columbia, Canada, there is a rare desert-like ecosystem called the Okanagan Desert—the only desert region in Canada!

The Royal Canadian Mounted Police train for 26 weeks at the RCMP Academy called “Depot” in Regina, Saskatchewan, where cadets learn police skills like driving, fitness, law, and teamwork.

Red Green, a funny fictional Canadian handyman from The Red Green Show, always reminded viewers: “If the women don’t find you handsome, they should at least find you handy!

The world’s first UFO landing pad was built in St. Paul, Alberta, Canada in 1967 as a fun Centennial project—just in case aliens ever wanted to visit!

n Alert, Nunavut—the northernmost continuously inhabited place in the world—the Sun doesn’t rise from about mid-October until late February, leaving the area in months of winter darkness!

Canada has more donut shops per person than any other country in the world!

Canada invented the fun tabletop game called table hockey, where players control tiny hockey players with rods to pass the puck and score goals—like a mini hockey rink at home!

The town of Shediac in New Brunswick, Canada is famous for a giant lobster statue that is about 11 meters (36 feet) long and weighs around 90 tons!

In the 1950s, Canada built an experimental aircraft called the Avrocar that looked like a flying saucer, almost like something from outer space!

The butter tart, a delicious Canadian pastry, causes friendly arguments across Canada about whether raisins should be included or not!

Canada’s Parliament Hill in Ottawa once had a special cat sanctuary where stray cats were cared for by volunteers, and many tourists loved visiting the famous “Cats of Parliament Hill”!

Canada’s red and white maple leaf flag was adopted in 1965. Before that, Canada used a different flag called the Canadian Red Ensign!

In 2007, the Royal Canadian Mint created a giant gold coin weighing 100 kilograms (220 pounds). The coin has a face value of $1 million and is one of the largest gold coins ever made!

Canadians sometimes use "milk bags" instead of cartons or jugs in Ontario and Quebec!

Saskatoon berries are sweet purple fruits that grow across Canada’s prairies. The city of Saskatoon in Saskatchewan was actually named after these berries!

In Springhill, Nova Scotia, Canada, heat from abandoned coal mines is used to warm buildings in winter, turning old mines into a clever source of clean energy!

The town of Churchill in Manitoba, Canada is so remote that there are no roads connecting it to the rest of the province—you can only get there by plane or by train!

The Narcisse Snake Dens in Manitoba, Canada contain the world’s largest gathering of snakes, where tens of thousands of garter snakes gather together each spring!

Canada's Confederation Bridge connecting Prince Edward Island to the mainland is 12.9 kilometers (8 miles) long – the longest bridge over ice-covered waters!

The Ice Hotel near Quebec City in Canada is rebuilt every winter using about 500 tons of ice and around 30,000 tons of snow!

Canadian astronaut Chris Hadfield became famous for singing "Space Oddity" while floating in the International Space Station!

On September 11, 2001, the town of Gander in Newfoundland welcomed 38 planes and more than 6,500 passengers when U.S. airspace closed.

The Canadian Football League (CFL) uses a larger field and only three downs instead of four like American football!

Peameal bacon, a famous Canadian food, is covered in cornmeal and tastes different from the “Canadian bacon” Americans often talk about!

Canada’s Wonderland theme park near Toronto has about 17–18 roller coasters, making it one of the theme parks with the most roller coasters in the world!

In Dawson City, Yukon, Canada, there’s a famous tradition called the “Sourtoe Cocktail,” where brave visitors drink a shot with a real preserved human toe in it—and their lips have to touch the toe!

The Bay department store comes from the Hudson’s Bay Company, which was founded in 1670 and first traded furs with Indigenous peoples long before it became a famous Canadian store!