Explore CPDC

WELCOME TO CALGARY POLICE DISCOVERY CENTRE

You’ve been cleared to nose around the Calgary Police Discovery Centre—no badge, no paperwork, just pure investigative curiosity. Every gallery is a new lead to chase, from helicopters overhead to rogues from Calgary’s past, hands‑on forensics, and safety exhibits that put your street smarts to the test. Follow the clues, connect the dots, and see how Calgary’s policing story unfolds when you’re the one doing the sleuthing.

THE ATRIUM

Where It All Begins

It’s not every day you stand beneath a full-scale helicopter indoors, but that’s how your visit begins. Suspended overhead, it sets the tone for an immersive look at the Calgary Police Service in action.

Surrounding you are dynamic exhibits featuring Patrol, Canine, Tac Team, Public Safety, and HAWCS. Here, history meets modern policing. Explore the tools, technology, and teamwork behind today’s public safety, and discover just how much coordination and training it takes to protect a growing city.

It’s big. It’s immersive. And it offers an up-close look at the people and innovation keeping Calgary safe.

POLICING STREET

Policing Street: Walk the Beat

Policing Street puts you right in the middle of the story. On both sides, exhibits explore major crimes that shaped Calgary, real true crime cases, and the units who respond every day, from Victim Assistance (and their remarkable facility dogs) to the Mounted Unit and its proud police horses. You’ll hear stories from the Beat Unit, explore the Traffic Section, climb onto a historic motorcycle, and step inside a real patrol car. Front seat or back, your choice.

It’s interactive, story-rich, and always evolving. There’s always something new to discover down this street.

ROGUEs' GALLERY

The Rogues’ Gallery: Faces from Calgary’s Wild Past or Discover Our Past

Winner of the Alberta Heritage Award, the Rogues’ Gallery is a digitally immersive journey into Calgary’s early 1900s when the West was a little wild. At its heart is a rare mugshot book from a time when these photographs were cutting-edge tools of criminal identification. Our team uncovered the stories behind the faces, revealing a young city shaped by outlaws, outcasts, and unforgettable characters. It showcases how policing evolves with the communities it serves. It’s history brought vividly back to life

FORENSICS

Forensics: Discover the Clues

Think you have what it takes to follow the evidence? Start here. From fingerprints and footwear impressions to blood spatter, hair and fibre, insects, skeletal analysis, and facial recognition, this is where evidence transforms into answers. Watch what appears under black light and see how science guides investigation.

This is where you discover the science behind the scenes.

THEATRE & COURTOOM

Take a seat. The story is about to begin.

Step inside and early 1900’s mugshots surround you, transporting you to a Calgary of a different time. This intimate space plays two roles: a cinema for our award-winning documentaries, and a courtroom where students explore how cases move from investigation to verdict (never both at once…we save the drama for the screen). No gavel required….just a curious mind!

SAFE FOR LIFE EXHIBITS

The Heart of What We Do

Crime prevention and safety are the heartbeats of the Calgary Police Discovery Centre. Our Safe for Life exhibits bring our mission to life through immersive spaces exploring cyber safety, drugs, gangs, and healthy relationships.

Visited by thousands of students each year, these exhibits create space for real conversations about real-life issues. Youth and visitors explore scenarios, ask honest questions, and gain practical tools to make smart, confident choices.

Because understanding today’s risks, and how to navigate them, is one of the most powerful ways to shape a safer tomorrow.