haida heritage centre at kay llnagaay

Although the building itself is a show piece, the contents lack in appropriate information and display. I was expecting to be wowed when I stepped inside but this didn’t happen. Instead I got a sense that there was some whining going on here about all the injustices towards the Haida, especially evident in the video they showed. A lot of wasted space with the displays scattered about. The most informative part was in the oldest part of the building and featured an interesting display of the natural history of the area, although somewhat neglected and unkept. Most of the art displayed at the Center is by the very best and most famous Haida artists, including Bill Reid, Robert Davidson and Charles Edenshaw to name a few. These treasures include totems and other carvings, exquisitely carved to the highest degree of perfection. These are indeed impressive and I was expecting to see more for sale at the gift shop. Another disappointment. However, if you want to see impressive Haida art for sale, take a short drive to the gallery of carver Ben Davidson called All About U Arts. In addition to art, the staff at this gallery is very knowledgeable in Haida history and adept at story telling. Really worth the stop! And finally, there is a cafeteria at the Centre which we didn’t try but the menu looked interesting. We thought the entrance fee of $16 per person was a bit steep for what was there.

We fell in love with Haida Gwaii in 2013 and had to come back in 2014. The Haida Heritage Center and Museum is a gem of a small museum with creative exhibits and new things going on all the time. We were welcomed by Elsie Burton who works at the Museum (and formerly worked for Canada Parks) She is so kind and helpful! Her knowledge of Haida Gwaii and its history made both of our visits infinitely more interesting and fun. There were amazing demonstrations of Haida weaving while we were there; I met legendary Haida weaver Evelyn Vanderhoop who explained Chilkat weaving, and Lisa Hageman Yahgulanaas, who explained Raven's Tail weaving. Another woman showed me how she prepared cedar root to make baskets. We had a delightful gourmet lunch in the café. The creative chef prepares delicious lunches from fresh local ingredients. Definitely plan to stay for lunch, or at least a snack. Don't miss this wonderful place, and introduce yourself to the dedicated people who work here--their knowledge and passion for Haida history and culture will make your visit even more memorable!

The Heritage Centre is designed to face the ocean as a Haida Village would have done and has totem poles and a fine canoe outside as well as a carving shed. The collection inside deserves careful exploration. It is well laid out and includes drawers of material that can be opened and examined in addition to the more obvious displays. We were privileged to see a special temporary presentation of clothing and hats which, on its own, was worth the price of admission. We also had lunch in the centre -- a cafe with an imaginative menu of freshly prepared soups and other dishes.

The centre provides an excellent history of the Haida people and of Haida Gwaii. There are always a lot of Haida people there who were friendly and welcoming. The cafe's food was excellent and offered spectacular views. The gift shop had authentic and unusual items at very reasonable prices.

This is a place to visit with your mind and your heart. The exibits are gripping in their forms, conveying millenia of skillful arts and crafts.I visited this modern centre that was enveloped by mist and clouds adding to the mystical aura of the west coast.Take your time and admire this impressive cultural gem.

The Haida Heritage Centre at Kay Linagaay is a must see attraction on the Haida Gwaii Islands. There are 6 beautiful totem poles erected outside and the wonderful guide we had gave us lovely stories about each totem pole. There are three traditional Haida canoes in a shed, each painted in striking colours. The Haida culture museum is very well organized and is a perfect place to become immersed in Haida culture. The staff are very friendly and helpful. Plan to spend at least 2 hours - you will not regret the time.

Definitely visit this place if you're visiting Haida Gwaii! Excellent exhibition space, daily tours and a great place to eat.

I had a wonderful time at this museum. I actually went back for a second day, because there is so much to do there, The building and grounds are attractive and the setting on the ocean is impressive, There are many spots where you can see the ocean, watch people swim in a cove-like area,There was an exhibit there when I went which I heard is temporary. It was amazing and contained many incredible pieces. I hope the museum can be as good when this exhibition leaves. The permanent collection in the second room is very good as is the room with the video, timeline, and interactive station. The natural history section of the museum had some good exhibits as well.There were 2 tours when I was there, One was about totem poles and the other was about weaving. They were both informative and enjoyable,In addition, the staff is very helpful and professional. They seem very proud and passionate about the museum, The bistro on site is incredible. The gift shop had many books that I may have gotten if I had not been concerned about having to travel with it.I do have some suggestions. (1) Don't neglect the natural history part of the museum, There are parts of it that seemed neglected.. (2) Utilize the room that has elevated seating around an open space. Get dancers or some other type of entertainment. (3) Provide a shuttle to take people out to the shed where the totem poles are worked on. (4) Make better use of the predominantly unused side of the museum. (5) Provide stools so people don't kill their backs looking in drawers.People, visit this museum, You'll love it.

My husband & I recently vacationed on Haida Gwaii, Graham Island. Whlst there we toured the Haida Heritage Museum. We were so impressed. A beautiful building, beautiful site, interesting contents and world class displays of everything Haida Gwaii. Culture, history, natural History and much more. We can highly recommend making this attraction a Must See when travelling to Haida Gwaii

Within the Haida Heritage centre is a wonderful museum of human and natural history of the Haida going back thousands of years. New exhibits in a class A Museum are well worth the trip, as is the gift shop and the Bistro for local, imaginatively prepared lunches and good fair trade coffee overlooking the waters and totem poles. (open year round when I was there)

No visit to beautiful Haida Gwaii area would be complete without a visit to this amazing museum/art gallery and cultural centre. Situated a short drive from Queen Charlotte, the Centre not only shows the long and fascinating history of the Haida people plus a lot of information about their customs and traditions and their commitment to their land. You don't just visit this place; you become immersed in it and you come away a better informed person. By the way, plan your visit to be there at lunchtime. The Kay Bistro serves wonderful meals, many of which are created from local produce from land and sea. The fact that all the Centre staff plus the local Parks Canada employees all go there every day tells you something about how good it is! An unforgettable place.

You must visit this Heritage Center! What an amazing experience - although the day was rainy - which resulted in us forgoing the outside tours - we had plenty of time to admire the displays. Some of the displays that included a description /verbal recording (via old style phone) were out of service - so that was disappointing - but other than that - I was a beautiful experience.

Let me start by confirming what other reviews keep confirming.....this is a beautiful building in a beautiful setting. If you have never been exposed to Northwest native art or culture this will serve as a great introduction. So if you've decided to rob a bank to visit Haida Gwaii, by all means go to see your tax dollars at work while you're there.However......if you're a British Columbian who has made the least effort to expose him/herself to First Nations heritage, there is nothing here that should be a revelation to you.Yes of course there is a very nice collection of totem poles, argillite carvings, traditional masks and historical displays. But.....they need to do a lot of work to make the museum anything like world-class. Many of the artifacts have their label askew or falling down, or are mysteriously unlabeled. For example there is a big tray of dirt in one of the main exhibit halls, sitting on a cheap old folding table. On the other hand, in the middle of the floor stands a detailed explanation of a fascinating mask. Wow, great.....where's the mask? A staff member miraculously appeared. We were able to slow her down long enough to ask our question. Turns out......the mask had never in fact been hung, and there were no plans to do so!Overall, the lighting makes it hard to see some of the exhibits. For example, some argillite totem poles for which there is no room in the display cases, have been placed haphazardly into drawers on a black cloth background. Black on black in dim light. Just as well they didn't bother with labels for those.Speaking of drawers, they are a fine idea the curators here have copied from other museums. However the drawers are not actually labeled, so you may not even know which ones have something in them. After some initial success, we found we were opening empty drawer after empty drawer. After encountering a drawer occupied with Windex and dirty rags, we decided we'd had enough pulling.There are some beautiful canoes on display at one end of the complex, but at least one of them is exposed to the sun and clearly splitting. They have a huge area available; why not protect this poor boat?There is an awesome diorama of a traditional native village at the canoe end of the complex. But the diorama is jammed up against a wall bearing a hagiography of Bill Reid. So you can't read half of what was written about Reid.The place doesn't seem to have been vacuumed since it opened.All of the above is inexcusable, considering this facility's massive endowment of tax dollars. The Haida people could well argue those millions are a tiny down-payment in reparations for what has been stolen from them over the past 150 years. Fair enough. But then whoever was responsible for this project shouldn't have over-reached as they clearly have. They should have done a world-class job in a smaller space, instead of a mediocre job in a huge space.My biggest single disappointment is, there is practically no gold jewelry to be seen. I know that's my own fault for expecting to see much of it.....gold isn't really a traditional medium for Haida artists, and they only really got into doing it because there is such a huge demand from rich white folks. Still, I was staggered by the most stunning display of this material at the Vancouver Art Gallery a few years back and would have loved to view more of it in Skidegate.And now, a little more info because not everybody is going to visit in July or August. The Haida Heritage Centre's website may lead you to believe the "Eating House" (sorry, it's just a cafeteria, albeit with a great view) is open any time. Well, not in our September experience. In fact, injury is added to insult because you can see delicious-smelling soup being prepared behind the closed metal screen, and you can't buy any of it. Apparently the food is meant for staff or maybe for the students being taught culture (we think) in classrooms down the hall. So, for heaven's sake, have a good lunch in Queen Charlotte first, before you go out to the museum. It's a pain in the neck to drive there for opening time, fantasizing that you might spend every hour from 10 till 5 marveling at all the marvels. Only to find that you have to spend 35 cents per km on your rental car to have to go back to Queen Charlotte to have an intermission in the middle of your visit, so you don't starve.We were told numerous times that lots of lectures and hands-on demos are held during the summer. Well, that's great if you can go in July or August, but the place was dead as a doornail while we were there. We imagined a Haida carver or painter or two might at least be observed doing their work in the vast, fabulous studios through whose windows we peered forlornly. No such luck. Lights off, no one around.So in sum, if you've never been to a decent museum, you'll be enthralled by this place. Hopefully there will be some improvements before you go yourself. It certainly wouldn't be worth it for us to go back.

It is nice to be encouraged to use the artifacts. It help to make sense of them and appreciate the Haida culture.Tour guide very knowledgeable.

Awesome history of Haida Gawii Beautiful day. Awesome workers. Friendly. The history is very interesting. Totems pole are full of history. Awesome place to visit.