Every trip in Canada takes place on Indigenous land. The city you fly into, the park you hike, the highway you drive, all of it is the traditional territory of First Nations, Inuit or Metis peoples, many of whom have lived there for thousands of years and live there still. In recent years, more visitors have wanted to engage with that reality rather than step around it, and more Indigenous communities have opened their doors through tourism that they own and lead. This guide is about how to do that well: with respect, with curiosity, and without the small missteps that leave a bad impression on both sides.
Start with who is there
Canada is home to hundreds of distinct nations, with their own languages, governance, ceremonies and protocols. A practice that is welcome in one community may be inappropriate in another, and the single most common mistake visitors make is to treat Indigenous cultures as one thing. Before you go, find out whose territory you will be on. Maps of traditional territories and treaty areas are easy to find, and many towns and parks publish the names of the local nations. Knowing that you are on the land of a specific people, and being able to say so, is the beginning of respect.
Terms change and some older ones have become offensive. In Canada, First Nations, Inuit and Metis are the three broad groups recognized in law, and Indigenous is the general term most commonly used today. Where you can, use the name a nation uses for itself.
Choose Indigenous-led experiences
The best way to visit a community with respect is to go as a guest of someone from it. Indigenous-owned and operated tourism has grown enormously: cultural centres, guided walks and paddles, fishing and hunting camps, bush and tundra tours, lodges, culinary experiences, art studios and museums. When the guide is a member of the community, the story is told by the people it belongs to, the money stays in the community, and you will be told clearly what is appropriate and what is not.
Look for businesses that are Indigenous-owned, not merely Indigenous-themed. National and provincial Indigenous tourism associations maintain directories of members, and many cultural centres are run directly by a nation. Ask who owns the operation and who will be guiding. A company that cannot answer is telling you something. Expect these experiences to cost what other guided experiences cost; bargaining is not the tone to set.
Photographs: ask first, always
Photography is where good intentions most often go wrong. The rule is simple: ask before you photograph a person, and accept the answer. That applies to elders, children, dancers at a gathering and a fisher on a dock. In many communities it also applies to certain places and objects. Ceremonies, sacred sites, burial grounds and some artwork may not be photographed at all, and there may be no sign to tell you so. If you are with a guide, ask them. If you are not, and you are unsure, do not take the picture. A photograph is never worth the offence.
At events, listen for announcements. Drum groups, dancers in regalia and specific parts of a ceremony are often off limits to cameras, and announcers will say so. Regalia is not a costume; it is personal, often sacred and sometimes inherited, and touching it without permission is a serious breach. Drones are unwelcome almost everywhere and prohibited outright at most gatherings.
Protocols at cultural sites and on the land
Many cultural sites, from rock art to fishing weirs to village sites, are open to visitors under conditions set by the community. Follow the guidance offered: stay on marked routes, do not touch, do not move or take anything, do not leave anything, and follow any instructions about offerings or quiet. A closure for ceremonies or seasonal reasons is not a suggestion. Where a community asks that visitors register or hire a local guide to enter a site, do so.
If you are invited to a ceremony, feast or community event, arrive with humility. Dress modestly, follow the lead of your hosts on when to sit and stand, do not step across the centre of a circle or in front of drummers, and do not leave in the middle of a prayer or a song. If you are offered food or a gift, accept it graciously. A small gift in return, such as tobacco offered respectfully where that is the custom, or something from your home, is often appreciated, but ask your host or guide what is appropriate before assuming.
Pow wows and public gatherings
Pow wows are among the most accessible ways to experience living culture, and many are open to everyone. They are celebrations, competitions and reunions at once. A few points of etiquette make you a welcome spectator rather than an awkward one.
- Stand for the grand entry, for flag and honour songs and whenever the announcer asks; remove hats.
- Do not enter the dance arena unless invited; some intertribal dances welcome all, and the announcer will say so.
- Bring your own chair and sit behind the dancers’ seating, which is reserved.
- Alcohol and drugs are prohibited; most gatherings are strictly dry.
- Buy from the vendors, applaud the dancers, and stay for the giveaways and feast if you are invited to.
Land acknowledgements and buying authentic art
You will hear land acknowledgements at the start of events, on public transit and in museums, statements naming the territory and its people. A visitor need not make one. But listening to them and understanding what they mean is a courtesy, and if you write or post about your trip, naming the territory you visited is a fine way to carry the practice home.
Art is the way many visitors take a piece of the experience with them, and it is where the most money is at stake. Mass-produced imitations of Indigenous designs, often made overseas, are sold in tourist shops everywhere, and buying them takes income from the artists whose work is being copied. Look for the artist’s name, nation and community on a tag or a signature; buy from artist-run galleries, cultural centres, cooperatives and the artists themselves at markets and gatherings. Authentic work costs more, and it should. Some materials, including certain furs, ivory and feathers, cannot be exported to some countries even when legally sold here, so ask about paperwork before you buy anything made from wildlife.
Above all, go as a guest. Ask questions with genuine interest, listen more than you speak, and accept that not everything is for visitors. The welcome extended by Indigenous communities across this country is generous, and it grows when it is met with respect.