Fort Wellington
Fort Wellington
4.5
About
Parks Canada protects and presents the cultural heritage and integrity of Fort Wellington on behalf of all Canadians. Open to the public, the fort tells unique and authentic stories, from the War of 1812 up until the First World War, by facilitating real and inspiring visitor experiences. Costumed historical interpreters engage visitors through interpretive talks, presentations and period demonstrations such as cooking over an open fire, rifle and cannon firings, period crafts and games. Special events take place throughout the year and education programs entertain school age children from the area and as far away as Toronto, Ottawa and Kingston. Currently, visitors begin their visit at the Visitor Centre, enjoying exhibits and an orientation video. Visitors then follow the path to the historic site where interpretive staff dressed as soldiers and wives of soldiers bring the site to life. The Barracks Store Gift Shop specializes in merchandise including local arts and crafts, souvenirs, historical publications, period games and clothing. The Prescott Heritage River Trail is a walking trail running along the St. Lawrence for the length of the Fort property. This scenic trail is enhanced with interpretive panels exploring the history of the property and the use of the river as a transhipment route.
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Most Recent: Reviews ordered by most recent publish date in descending order.
Detailed Reviews: Reviews ordered by recency and descriptiveness of user-identified themes such as waiting time, length of visit, general tips, and location information.
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4.5
134 reviews
Excellent
78
Very good
49
Average
6
Poor
1
Terrible
0
Will D
Georgetown, TX94 contributions
May 2015
We arrived at 10AM (shortly after opening) and we were the only ones there. As a result, the very friendly and helpful staff treated us to a room by room tour of the fort, as well as a rifle firing exhibition. The restoration and maintenance of the buildings is excellent, and there are a surprisingly large number of artifacts to view. There is a large military boat (circa 1800's) on display salvaged from the St Lawrence River that was fascinating and unexpected.
My wife and I visit many of these types of historical sites around the world, and this one was very well done. Definitely recommend!
My wife and I visit many of these types of historical sites around the world, and this one was very well done. Definitely recommend!
Written May 27, 2015
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
petuniaowen
Ottawa, Ontario85 contributions
Jul 2016
We read the reviews and chose Fort wellington over upper Canada village on our way to sandbanks. Big mistake.
It is tiny. It is not a living Fort with ongoing reinactment.
If you pay for the tour, you get a host dressed in period costume and a lot of one on one information about the Fort.
However, when we got to the main building inside thee was an overwhelming smell of mould. With two young kids in tow I was not impressed. My toddler and I had to leave the building. My seven year old refused to leave, and went on for over half an hour inside. He is still wheezing.
I hope parks Canada fixes this issue. If my office had mould like this, I would not go to work!
It ruined our day for sure. If that is fixed, great stop, spectacular views!
It is tiny. It is not a living Fort with ongoing reinactment.
If you pay for the tour, you get a host dressed in period costume and a lot of one on one information about the Fort.
However, when we got to the main building inside thee was an overwhelming smell of mould. With two young kids in tow I was not impressed. My toddler and I had to leave the building. My seven year old refused to leave, and went on for over half an hour inside. He is still wheezing.
I hope parks Canada fixes this issue. If my office had mould like this, I would not go to work!
It ruined our day for sure. If that is fixed, great stop, spectacular views!
Written July 24, 2016
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Thank you for bringing this to our attention. It has been a particularly humid summer in this region and Indoor Air Quality can be an issue in historic buildings. I can assure you that we are taking this very seriously and have begun remediation. I apologize that you and your family had such a negative experience and appreciate the feedback.
Written July 26, 2016
This response is the subjective opinion of the management representative and not of Tripadvisor LLC.
MilwReader
Milwaukee, WI40 contributions
Sept 2015 • Solo
I'll admit, forts are not usually my favorite places to visit. To my surprise, this was one of the most interesting stops that I made on my trip. The gun boat in the main building was fun to look at, and the restored fort and exhibits were well done. But what really put it all over the top for me was the presentation by our guide. He brought the structures and their contents to life, and answered the further questions that his explanations invited. I had a really fantastic time and learned a lot about a period of Canadian history that I was unfamiliar with.
Written September 12, 2015
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
SeeCanada
Lindsay, Canada106 contributions
May 2012 • Family
Few people have heard of Fort Wellington, but it's absolutely worth a side trip, especially during War of 1812 commemorations. It's small, although the addition of a lovely new visitor centre greatly enhances the experience. But the real attraction is the interpreters, who are friendly, extremely knowledgeable and bilingual. Highly recommended.
Written May 24, 2012
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Jennifer L
4 contributions
Oct 2019 • Family
I took my 9&11 yr old sons to Fort Wellington today. I am a history nerd and have been to many forts and other historical sites with my children.
I was very impressed with a young man named Wyatt who was full of information about Fort Wellington and the conflicts of Upper Canada.
I was very impressed with a young man named Wyatt who was full of information about Fort Wellington and the conflicts of Upper Canada.
Written October 13, 2019
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Sam L
Leamington, Canada44 contributions
Aug 2019 • Friends
From the moment we arrived, we were greeted with amazing customer service. The museum was impressive with an 1812 era shipwreck. The fort itself is well preserved and staff was so friendly and knowledgeable. Would absolutely recommend the guided tour - ours was amazing and ended with a rifle demonstration. We were blown away by our visit!
Written August 8, 2019
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Simba
Toronto, ON64 contributions
Jul 2018 • Couples
We opted for the guided tour of Fort Wellington. It costs a little extra, but is well worth it! Our guide, Allison, was ver knowledgeable, and gave us lots of insights that we wouldn’t have learned without the tour.
Written August 7, 2018
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Shannon S
2 contributions
May 2018 • Family
I took my kids to Fort Wellington with a group of home schoolers for a planned tour. We had 30 families and they put us into four groups and had all four groups do the educational tour at different spots at the same time. It is not a big fort but everything ran very smoothly. The activities were interesting and well-planned. There was a wide age range of kids from toddler to about 16 years old but they managed to make it work for all those ages. The staff were all very friendly and helpful; our guide (Emily) was knowledgeable and enthusiastic and was great with the kids.
Very clean site, well-maintained (they were doing maintenance while we were there and it had very little impact on our enjoyment of the site). Our tour was 2 hours long and then we were free to go back and check out the fort on our own which we spent another half hour doing. There are kid-sized uniforms to wear in the barracks and plenty of interesting details in the rooms on the main floor of the blockhouse.
As it is a small fort, I wouldn't plan to spend a long time there, especially if you are with small kids. You could do it all in 30 mins and I wouldn't expect to spend more than an hour there if we hadn't done the tour activities. There is more inside but we didn't get to it. There is also a small gift shop. The hill and lawn outside were great for a picnic.
Very clean site, well-maintained (they were doing maintenance while we were there and it had very little impact on our enjoyment of the site). Our tour was 2 hours long and then we were free to go back and check out the fort on our own which we spent another half hour doing. There are kid-sized uniforms to wear in the barracks and plenty of interesting details in the rooms on the main floor of the blockhouse.
As it is a small fort, I wouldn't plan to spend a long time there, especially if you are with small kids. You could do it all in 30 mins and I wouldn't expect to spend more than an hour there if we hadn't done the tour activities. There is more inside but we didn't get to it. There is also a small gift shop. The hill and lawn outside were great for a picnic.
Written May 28, 2018
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
JennyHero
Trenton, Canada96 contributions
Jul 2017 • Family
Came a as a family, we had 4 kids with us and they had a great time. The interactive program was interesting and doubled as a self guided tour. The kids loved it and got prizes at the end for completing the activities. Free for Canada 150, not sure what regular admission is.
Written February 3, 2018
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Amy S
Kansas City, MO97 contributions
Jul 2017
Fantastic guided tour! Thank you Camren for making it memorable and very historically informative. Fun at the same time. Definitely want to pay the minimal price for the guided tour by a reenacted soldier and soldiers wife.
Written July 30, 2017
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Bonjour sera t'elle ouverte entre le 28/4 et 02/05 svp merci
Written January 16, 2019
Fort W
Prescott, Canada
The Fort is not open year round. It is open in the Fall season from 10am until 5pm on Thursdays to Mondays (closed Tuesday and Wednesday) until Canadian Thanksgiving Monday October 12th.
Written September 27, 2015
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