Have you ever lived in a city your entire life but drew a blank when people asked you what there was to do in your city? I have, I have lived in Ottawa for 28 out of my 33 years of life. I used to consider it a boring city and I had no idea why people would visit. I then decided I would learn my city through the eyes of a visitor. My family and I would explore Ottawa, Ontario as if we had never been here before. I am now finding so many fun and interesting things to do.
Recently I learned about Pirate Adventures. It is an interactive pirate-theatre cruise set in a real pirate ship on Mooney’s Bay! How flipping cool is that? Tobei was injured with a torn ligament and little Brother was cranky the day I was scheduled to sail with Pirate Adventures. This was not going to deter me. I called up my bestie Lissa and had her and her son join us for our day of Pirate Adventures.
It is suggested to arrive half an hour before your sail time. Being the timing queen that I am we arrived a little too early at Pirate Adventures. So we took some time to explore the gift shop. If you got a pirate fanatic in your life then this is a gold mine. I was amazed at all the pirate themed stuff they had in the gift shop. Lucky for me Big Brother is not huge on souvenirs.
About 20 minutes after we arrived The Grey Ghost (the name of the ship) pulled in from it’s previous cruise and it was our turn to start the adventure. We were met by Pearl and since I forget the other pirates name lets call him Jack for the sake of this blog post. Jack and Pearl decided we humans were not good enough to sail aboard The Grey Ghost, only pirates we allowed on board. So out came the face paint and the costumes as they transformed us into Pirates. We even got cool pirate names. The crew was ready to sail!
My favourite part about Pirate Adventures is how interactive it is. There is no set script and the entire sail is improvised. Makes for a hilarious time as the crew feed off the guests and can cause some pretty funny moments. Such as when I joked they should make Lissa walk the plank. Next thing you know they have her up on her feet and asking if they should make her walk the plank. Her son did not agree with me and Lissa was saved.
The beginning of our journey started with first learning the boring stuff… safety. Tt was anything but boring. Even the safety brief was filled with improv and hilarity. If you didn’t know any better you would not think it was a safety brief. We then got introduced to the captain. Told about The Grey Ghost and then learned all about being pirates. Including how to dance like a pirate.
We got through pirate training just in time. We were nearing the treasure and we were under attack by Pirate Pete. The experienced pirates on board ended up in a sword fight and then a dance off with Pirate Pete. No way we were letting Pirate Pete taking over our ship. We got Pirate Pete overboard and we had won… or at least we thought we did. Pirate Pete was not going away that easy so the crew manned the cannons and we got rid of Pirate Pete once and for all.
We turned around from our celebration and right there beside The Grey Ghost was the big x marking the spot of our buried treasure. Who knew pirates treasure was so heavy. It took the entire crew to pull the treasure chest out of the water. Everyone gathered as we celebrated our great find and got ready to open the treasure chest to see what our great finds were.
Inside the chest were little keepsakes that the kids could choose from to bring home with them to remember their day. Both our kids chose gold coins. Lissa’s son even thought of the brothers back home and asked for an extra coin for each of their brothers. With our treasure in hand and belly pains from laughing so hard our pirate adventure was over and we headed home with memories of a great adventure.
About Pirate Adventures
Pirate Adventures is located on the Rideau, a unique, unforgettable experience for the entire family. Pirate Adventures sails along the Rideau Canal (by Mooney’s Bay Beach), Canada’s newest World Heritage site. Join the band of pirates for family outings, birthday parties, field trips and exciting adventures. Bring your crew of one of forty three and imerse yourself in the world of a pirate and live the unforgettable experience of Pirate Adventures.
Schedule
Pirate Adventures sails 7 days a week as long as there is enough interest. Because of this it is highly suggested that you call ahead and make a reservation.
Sail times are 10am, 11:30am, 1pm, 2:30pm, and 4pm.
Price
$22.00*per person
$20.00* per person for groups of 10 or more (group rate is regardless of age)
$12.00* per child 2 and under
*don’t forget the governments piece of the pie. Prices are before tax.
Planning a special birthday. Pirate Adventures offers 4 different birthday party packages that you can choose from. They even include invitations and a special tent area just for your party guests to gather before and after the sail.
Pirate Adventures is Online!
Website: www.pirateadventures.ca
Twitter: @OttawaPirates
E-Mail: brock@pirateadventuresottawa.com
You can also reach Pirate Adventures by phone at 613-859-5199
*Disclaimer: I was provided with tickets for my party to visit Pirate Adventures. As always all opinions are 100% my own.*
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