Doon Heritage Village — Local services in Kitchener

An inexpensive AND very informative & complete (in my opinion) display of the early times / growth / development of the Berlin /Kitchener-Doon-Waterloo region. I’ve grown up here, 50+ years of living in the region. I still learned so much. Perfect for families - a few animals for kids to see - and really well run. Staff are stationed through-out the village (& museum), dressed in period costume. They give demonstrations eg smithing & metal works … and they talk with you as if you’ve come to the village for supplies (eg. shopping from a nearby farm in need of a tailor or maybe new linens). Lots of fun … a full afternoon is needed (for an idea of the region’s history). Or spend a full day to see it all. Restaurant & bathrooms etc. are fair priced & clean. I would go again re: take friends that my be visiting....

I had the privilege of coming to Doon in the 1990’s with my manager Linda Underhill as we were attending a Living History Conference in the area. The site was just being built up and houses were still being moved onto their foundations, however, Mennonite Brothers and Sisters were occupying one home and welcomed me warmly inside to see quilting being done and small children whispered “ do you want to see where the hobos sleep?” and we snuck up to the attic to find a pallet, plate, and fork waiting for a visitor. Plans for Doon was explained to us as we toured. Big plans for the Park! The day l spent at Doon had been a highlight for me. I love doing first-person interpretation and to see things in such a large scale, I wanted to stay and participate. Doon looks like a fabulous place to spend a day for the...

Been here a few times as a kid, the experience was roughly the same as I remember - which isn’t a bad thing. All the staff were friendly and the new museum building is fun to tour through although for myself, the highlight is definitely the village. With that said however a lot of buildings were closed, it would be convenient to know which were open that day, or have signs posted out front instead of being slightly unsure. I think it was a staffing issue as I only saw maybe 4 in costume walking the village. It is a smaller village so more access to the buildings I feel is essential. What was open was great and I loved “stepping back”...