The Royal Canadian Regiment Museum is a military museum located in a former barracks in London, Ontario. While the museum is one of the oldest in Canada, its interactive displays are compelling and current, making it one of Canada’s hidden gems.
Organized chronologically from the 1885 Northwest Rebellion to the current war in Afghanistan, the Royal Canadian Regiment Museum houses thousands of artifacts related to the major wars in which Canadian troops participated. After walking through memorial rooms on the first floor, visitors can continue on to the second floor galleries. Interactive posters, descriptions, and a virtual reality experience provide context for the artifacts on display, which include photographs, medals, uniforms, weapons, art, and primary documents.
The Royal Canadian Regiment Museum is ideal for fans of military history.
The museum’s website offers virtual tours of eight rooms and spaces, including the Quiet Room, the World War I Gallery, and the Infantry Gallery.
Groups of eight people or more can book a guided tour; the museum encourages booking at least three weeks in advance.
The museum is accessible to wheelchair users.
The Royal Canadian Regiment Museum is about 125 miles (200 kilometers) from Toronto, Niagara Falls, and Detroit. Take Route 401 or 403 West or Route 22 East to Oxford Street in downtown London, just north of McMahen Park.
The museum is open from 10am to 4pm Tuesday through Friday, to 8pm Thursday, and from 12pm to 4pm on weekends. While busiest in the afternoon, the museum never feels overly crowded—though consider going on a weekend to avoid school tours.
One of the museum’s highlights is its virtual reality (VR) experience, where you can use a VR headset to observe what it looked like to be in the trenches during World War I. The experience places you directly at Vimy Ridge, the first WWI battle in which all four Canadian troop divisions fought as a single formation.