by Jen Mallia
Last updated: 3:30 PM ET, Tue July 29, 2025
“Cool-cation,” “babymoon,” or “bleisure travel.” It seems like there is always a new travel trend with a cute name popping up. Add to the list, “hobbycation.” The idea is to theme an entire trip around a special interest. Booking such a trip takes extra research, creativity and an in-depth knowledge of the offerings in a destination, but the payoff is an unforgettable experience for your client and an itinerary you may be able to tailor and market again and again.
The power of enlisting someone with a deep knowledge of a destination was demonstrated to me during a whirlwind overnight to Calgary, with a fish-focused itinerary for a newfound interest in angling.
“Cowtown” may be known as ranch country, and was indeed still recovering from the Calgary Stampede when TravelPulse Canada visited. But leaning into “surf” over “turf” was the order of the day.
Field Trip Vibes
In the spirit of our angler’s hobbycation, our adventure started with a visit to Bow Habitat Station. The Sam Livingston hatchery that’s part of the facility is the biggest indoor fish hatchery in Canada and second biggest in North America (the biggest is in Alaska.) We joined a tour for a behind-the-scenes look at the process, from the incubation room to the tanks holding the 6-12-month-old trout that were almost ready to go. From the hatchery, they’ll be loaded onto transport trucks, helicopters and even horseback saddlebags to stock the public ponds and lakes in Alberta. The highlight was getting to sprinkle fish food into the tank and watching the ensuing feeding frenzy.
The station also has interactive exhibits upstairs and an aquarium downstairs. Outside is a small pond where young anglers can give fishing a whirl.
The aquarium at Bow Habitat Station (Photo Credit: Jen Mallia)
A learning vacation might not be everyone’s cup of tea, but it spoke to this nerd’s heart exactly.
The “field trip” aspect ended abruptly at supper. We did not dine on a soggy peanut butter sandwich eaten at the back of a bumpy school bus. Instead, our meal was arctic char from River Cafe — a delightful dish of layered, local flavours. The decor brings to mind a fishing lodge, set away from the hustle and bustle of downtown Calgary in Prince’s Island Park.
A Day on the Bow River
After a night at the brand new Element by Westin Calgary Downtown, (complete with a river view), we headed out for our day of fly-fishing, launched from right in town at Fish Creek Provincial Park — after Rouge National Urban Park in Toronto, it’s the largest urban park in Canada.
With the help of Josh, a seasoned guide from Out Fly Fishing, lines were soon being cast into the Bow River — a trophy fishery for brown and rainbow trout. Josh tempered our expectations of catching anything due to water muddied by recent rain, but my local angler companion and I, spurred by a shared competitive streak, were undeterred. There may have been some (mostly) friendly trash-talking about who would hook the bigger fish.
Out Fly offers half- and full-day guided float trips (overnights can be arranged) as well as “walk and wade” packages. The treatment includes lunch or snacks, depending on the package, prepared by Josh’s mom. An extra cookie mysteriously found its way into my purse.
Despite some bouncing bobber action that Josh said was “definitely, probably a fish” my line remained empty. Don’t ask me if anyone else caught anything.
Trophy trout from the Bow (Photo Credit: Aviva Kohen)
Planning a Hobbycation
Depending on how long and how invested the travellers are in the special interest, the sky can be the limit. Tourism Calgary planned a nice mix of education and activity for this itinerary, which is key.
Accommodations and extras can be a fun spot to flex some creativity to tie it together...even if it's a reach. We joked that we were in our element at the Element hotel — and that element was water.
You may also want to direct clients to on-theme Facebook groups or Reddit threads to investigate what they can do in their destination. Attraction passes like CityPASS (commissionable for prequalified travel trade operators) or GoCity (commissionable through Partnerize) can be a good add-on if your clients will be visiting included local attractions as part of the theme.
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