Reviews of Okanagan Heritage Museum (Museum)

Evelyn matthews

Really enjoyed the Museum, very interesting.

Jay Eh

Awesome sauce

Harry Derrickson

Loved the hockey exhibit and the rest of the museum was also awesome to experience. Thanks again.

Elias Preiss

Great museum!

Dawna Davies

Was so cool!

Rodney Gray

Great museum in Kelowna

Taryn B

I love the geographic, climate and wild animals information about the Okanagan. Would love to see more about the volcanoes and minerals or something more detailed about the area lakes. Parking is incredibly difficult and I can’t even imagine where more could be created. Service was excellent, all staff was friendly and helpful!

Dean Roth

Really a good museum

Laura Carolina

Very well done museum, featuring many areas of the natural world, history, indigenous matters, local culture and industries. Great panoramic photos comparing 1912 to present day. (Reduced opening days in the off-season.)

Sarah Joliv (Sven76)

Very interesting exhibits.

Flavio C.

Small little museum that works with donations. Good for an hour so you learn about Kelowna/region history

Donald McKay

Nice little museum outlining the history on the Okanagan! I enjoyed taking my dad and hearing his stories of his homestead as a boy! I appreciated the small section on homelessness as it reminds all of us of greater needs. Thank you!

Jerry Blair

Lots to see, great location right in downtown Kelowna.

Kate O'Neill

As of Dec 2018, the exhibits have been moved around & improved. For a small town museum, everything is well presented and fairly comprehensive. Covers history of Kelowna area with sections on paleontology, First Nations culture, and other settlers. Definitely worth a visit if you like museums or are curious about Kelowna.

alanna fitzgerald

Great staff and nice place to stroll through the past

Mark Turbett

Good time; a little small, but fun.

Grace Hansen

We loved it and it had not just the history of white peoples, but also of the indigenous people that lived here before we did. It’s the only museum I’ve been to like it and i wish there was more.

Sandra Vandale

It was wonderful.

Kevin Lusty

Interesting history, interactive exhibits, helpful staff, equals a fun afternoon.

Jeff Bourne

Cool museum! Haven't been to it in years

Laura Bensler

Took our preschool kids on a field trip and learned about Dinosaurs! What a blast! Super friendly, knowledgeable staff who were great with the kiddos.

Colleen Banman

This is a fantastic museum in the heart of downtown Kelowna. There are many interesting exhibits. The native history and winter house are exceptionally good. I have been on multiple field trips over my years as a parent and every class that comes enjoys this part of the visit most of all. The kids even get to climb out of the top of the winter house. Wonderful staff, they are well informed and very friendly. They work both at this museum and the military museum down the street. They are very good with young kids and also with teens.

Chris

Very well maintained museum. The entry is by donation. The day we went was pretty quiet so we had enough time to check all the different exhibitions. It’s a good place to get familiar with Canadian History. I recommend to dedicate at least 1 hour to view everything. There’s parking available in front the museum as well as in the surroundings.

Mark Morrison

Good amount of heritage items. Was hoping to see more First Nations representation.

Irina Johnson

Very interesting place!????

Vincent Jones

We’re so lucky to have the Kelowna Museums Society in our community! KMS operates three distinct locations in downtown Kelowna — the Okanagan Heritage Museum, the Okanagan Military Museum and the Laurel Packinghouse — at each location, you will find dedicated, friendly and knowledgeable staff, engaging exhibits covering everything from Okanagan geology, the syilx people and their rich culture, European contact, modern Kelowna history and more. They also offer a massively diverse range of programs and events throughout the year — the cemetery tours with Bob Hayes are absolutely fascinating. They really do have something for everyone and the Okanagan Heritage Museum is even open late on Thursdays. KMS should be on the to-do list of every tourist and local!

Anton Strong

Good local museum. Lots of indigenous information and perspective. Large reproductions of indigenous and settler buildings. Tonnes of artifacts and interactive pieces (not currently accessible for health safety reasons). Temporary Bat exhibit was very educational. Good physical distancing and mask use.

Dan Myles

You get a great feel of the past life and experiences of the Kelowna region.

Jolene Black

Fun and informative experience. Looking forward to going back in a few weeks for their new exhibit.

Mark Smed

What an amazing place. The staff were friendly and the displays beautiful.

Alexander Oplesnin

Great museum that tells the history of the area. No entrance fee.

Kim W

Lots of fun to explore! Tiny, and doesnt take long to tour but wonderful displays make up for it. I wish there had been a better gift shop area but otherwise everything was quite enjoyable! Entry by donation.

Melissa

Walking Tour of City Park and Bernard Ave. Highly recommend even for Locals!

Haddessah Block

Is very good for taking ur family for a science lesson

William Dai

Very small heritage museum, worth a look.

Eddy Wallace

Very enjoyable small museum

Srikanth Mukku

Lovely efforts by the city to preserve the heritage. I enjoyed going through the whole experience

Alex Mohai

Compact but expansive & highly informative collection of artifacts and specimens . Friendly staff and periodic new exhibits. Come down for a tour and educate yourself!

Tong Shen

Felt like seeing the indigenous spirit of the land get stuffed? Did you ever feel like history was trivial and impersonal and put on display inside an institution that had no answers to offer anybody? Like that, with a slight touch of sadness and a couple of layers of dust. Would go for a date here because the rest of the city is even stranger than this place. Imagine that.

Myrian Bellido

I thoroughly enjoyed the museum. I went there with my daughter on September 30th, on Truth and Reconciliation day and learned a lot about the residential school and how it impacted native children and their families. My daughter is 8 years old and she did not have to wear a mask, only me.

Ashley Elizabeth

Awesome place

Francisco Jose Sanchez Serrano

Great opportunity to learn about first nations and a lot of fun for kids

Julia Hadford

Huge space with lots of info on kelownas history

Joe M. Brabeck

Very nicely curated local museum. Lots of local and natural history which is just what we were looking for.

Jonathan Bowden

Great little museum. Lots of displays some utilizing many different mediums to showcase the natural and contemporary history of the Okanagan region. Good for an afternoon activity especially if you have kids who can read or are interested in history.

Craig Carleen

Great museum!! Free with donation!! Plentiful parking.. even on Saturday in summer!! Easy walk from waterfront!! Great native and local history!!

Shannon Zayonce

Very friendly and educational experience! Kids loved it and it was very clean????

Hilary Miller

Great museum. Friendly staff and lots of cool old paraphernalia and photos. Really enjoyed the little exhibit about homelessness featuring stories by people experiencing homelessness.

Sharon Flanagan

Loved it. Definitely going to take friends there when they come to visit !

Tyler warner

Must go for all people from okangan

Inhyouk Jung

It was clean and fun. Especially, the exhibition about homeless people was interesting and new.

Miles Thorogood

Best show in town. Great for taking kids and the family as they come through town. The museum is worth a revisit as the display are always changing.

Dually Boss

Good little museum, alot of stuff in there to look at then i expected.

Arjun Unni

Lot of history and interesting information.

trevor boller

Great museum. Great artifacts. Weird there is no residential school information.

Kristy Dabels

So amazing to learn about the Okanagan and how it came to be the place we love. Very necessary education centre for kids and adults. Thank you! Winter house

Dave Oram

Lots of interesting stuff to look at. Lots of drawers to open to discover more. I learned a fair amount about the history of the Kelowna area. For instance, I didn't know there was a tobacco industry here. We went for the dinodig event but found lots to look at.

Devon Helgason

Awesome

Jill Johnson

Short and sweet

Helene Corbin

(Translated) Interesting little story and it's free. (Original) Petite histoire intéressante et c'est gratuit.

Tim Stephens

A good way to spend an hour or so.

O Koenig.

Always a super interesting to visit. I loved the exibit on swinwear over time.

Ing. Héctor Carrillo Ramírez

(Translated) Only things typical of the history of the region (Original) Solo cosas típicas de la historia de la región

LingLing “Ling-Ling” K

Had a wonderful time with 3 children at the museum. They found our museum very fun and interactive!

Danielle OShaughnessy

It was awesome. I noticed they had a few new exhibits. I loved it. The dinosaurs were awesome.

Kookie Uy

nice place

Rob King

Great place to learn about Kelowna history

Moi Dea

Staff there is wonderful! Everyone does their best and always has public interest in mind. They work hard on their displays!!

Shree Latha

Great place to go.

Shea Reid

Loved our time at the museum! We’ll be back :)

C. A. McPherson

Cool

Chris B

Awesome experience! Only costs $5 per person. I could spend DAYS in this museum and not get bored. Staff is awesome and friendly. I loved learning about the indigenous culture. It was great learning about the animals that live in this area :)

Hanna Karin

Hidden gem in downtown.

audrey tryan

Good for kids to learn history and pay by donation so if your downtown and looking for something to do I would recommend a stop here.

Elaine Cada

Not a lot of exhibits.

Grace Waeohongsa

Free entry just for donations. You can learn many things from this museum. Feel like back to. 1900s

Sue Miller

Great to take kids TO

Bette Chadwick

Wonderful exhibit of childrens art from the Inkameep IndianSchool 1932-1942

Phil Paterson

They were showing the old flintstones place there and wanted to show the kids.

Gary Chiang

This is by far one of the most interesting museums in the Kelowna region and a hidden gem. The military museum although small has excellent displays and the staff take their time to show you around.

Kylagh Cornford

I was really pleased with the quality and wide range of information presented at the museum. The staff are vested in community education and committed to enhancing the preservation of our local history. Thanks!

D Man

Good tour with my kids.

Jordan van Besouw

Stopped in for the Halloween tour, great experience with the toddler in tow.

Barb Williams

Absolutely great. So much fun Admission by donation. There are uniforms you can try on and take photos. Awesome place

John M

Nice little museum. The history of the area was nice. Very organized.

Barbara Hardie

Wonderful learning experience

Victoria Overton

I enjoyed myself a lot here, yes it is not very big but the exhibits are well put together. I really enjoyed being able to walk into the cabin and seeing the actual store front. It is a nice way to spend the afternoon.

Tanvir Alam

Not bad wish it was bigger

Carol Turner

A wonderful experience , full of rich haritage for the old and young alike , a must see

Diane Davis

Very interesting!

Daniel Bryan

The history of local events was fascinating. It was also very well kempt

Don G

Wonderful local museum with friendly staff. It's cramped a bit. They told me they have a huge number of historic exhibits in storage, but not enough room to set them up. Vernon was actually developed earlier and was more significant in the early days than larger Kelowna, to the south. Fascinating place!

Shaun Kohut

Awesome

Lauren Giesbrecht

Love seeing the photos of old Kelowna and the taxidermy collection

Alain Karout

That was such a wonderful experience!????

Jocelyn Maynard

(Translated) Very interesting to discover the history of the region. (Original) Très intéressant pour découvrir l'histoire de la région.

Dylan

Quaint little museum with some real animals on display. It goes off of donations so if you are in the area it's worth a visit although it is quite small.

Tony

Always a nice place to visit. Brought my mom and her friend for a tour, lots to learn and see. If you want to learn about our city go here then explore!

R Sangha

Pleany of things to see, really fun for kids and overall great experience

susan miriam thomas

Staff was informarive and help us find some nearby attraction

Brandon Dodds

Brought some kids from work here and they enjoyed it, staff were great

Jason Tao

historical exhibition of Kelowna.

Jennifer Sterling

Great for young families. It's not too big so the kids can see everything and not lose focus. Nice interactive displays and info, and they offer events throughout the year that are always fun.

Wendy Alexander

Great displays on heritage and first native issues. Worth visiting.

Sen Yang

Very lovely small museum but staff are very friendly and helpful, thanks for playing matching animal bones game with us, must recommend hey!

Thadeus Divinagracia

A wonderful little museum but with huge information inside to learn how things were like before, the peoples and wildlife of Okanagan and surrounding areas.

Sandra Gunn

Very interesting and wonderful staff...

Taurus painting

Great place! Very informative and nice displays. Very well laid out. Its been awhile since visiting here, the next time won't be as long before going back. This would be a great place to take company to learn about this area or locals to get more information about this area.

Paula Cristina dos Santos

This is a good place to know about history of Kelowna. Employees are friendly

Michael Popko

Nice little local museum

steve sankey

Great museum

Marianne Cote

Great place to bring kids or out of town visitors, to look at Okanagan wildlife displays, aboriginal heritage, and temporary exhibits.

Dominic Calderer

It's ok, but lacklustre.

sj j

(Translated) You can see it for free ~ (Original) 공짜로 볼 수 있어요~ 직원들도 친절하시구요~

Jordan McIntosh

Great collection of local history.

Dale Felske

Great history of the valley

Nathan Myers

Front deskman was really courteous. Had some great historical items that we didn't realize existed. The Artifact or Artifiction game was also fun.