diff --git a/packages/core/src/components/app/app.tsx b/packages/core/src/components/app/app.tsx
index f0f759b402..0d8e838e84 100644
--- a/packages/core/src/components/app/app.tsx
+++ b/packages/core/src/components/app/app.tsx
@@ -104,7 +104,7 @@ export class App {
 
 export function findTopNavs(nav: NavContainer): NavContainer[] {
   let containers: NavContainer[] = [];
-  const childNavs = nav.getActiveChildNavs();
+  const childNavs = nav.getChildNavs();
   if (!childNavs || !childNavs.length) {
     containers.push(nav);
   } else {
diff --git a/packages/core/src/components/nav/nav-interfaces.ts b/packages/core/src/components/nav/nav-interfaces.ts
index 24f4b301b6..3b048761cc 100644
--- a/packages/core/src/components/nav/nav-interfaces.ts
+++ b/packages/core/src/components/nav/nav-interfaces.ts
@@ -22,11 +22,12 @@ export interface PublicNav {
   removeView(viewController: PublicViewController, opts?: NavOptions): Promise<any>;
   setPages(componentDataPairs: any[], opts?: NavOptions): Promise<any>;
 
-  getActive?(): PublicViewController;
-  getPrevious?(view?: PublicViewController): PublicViewController;
-  canGoBack?(): boolean;
-  canSwipeBack?(): boolean;
-  getFirstView?(): PublicViewController;
+  getActive(): PublicViewController;
+  getPrevious(view?: PublicViewController): PublicViewController;
+  canGoBack(): boolean;
+  canSwipeBack(): boolean;
+  getFirstView(): PublicViewController;
+  getChildNavs(): PublicNav[];
 
   element?: HTMLElement;
 }
@@ -35,7 +36,7 @@ export interface NavContainer {
   id?: number;
   name?: string;
   parent?: Nav;
-  getActiveChildNavs?(): NavContainer[];
+  getChildNavs?(): NavContainer[];
   getAllChildNavs?(): NavContainer[];
   getType?(): string;
   getSecondaryIdentifier?(): string;
diff --git a/packages/core/src/components/nav/nav.tsx b/packages/core/src/components/nav/nav.tsx
index d17e8b0e2b..a261fce85b 100644
--- a/packages/core/src/components/nav/nav.tsx
+++ b/packages/core/src/components/nav/nav.tsx
@@ -6,6 +6,7 @@ import {
   ComponentDataPair,
   Config,
   FrameworkDelegate,
+  NavContainer,
   NavOptions,
   NavResult,
   NavState,
@@ -60,7 +61,7 @@ const queueMap = new Map<number, TransitionInstruction[]>();
   tag: 'ion-nav',
   styleUrl: 'nav.scss'
 })
-export class Nav implements PublicNav {
+export class Nav implements PublicNav, NavContainer {
 
   @Element() element: HTMLElement;
   @Event() navInit: EventEmitter;
@@ -217,6 +218,11 @@ export class Nav implements PublicNav {
     return this.routes;
   }
 
+  @Method()
+  getChildNavs(): PublicNav[] {
+    return this.childNavs || [];
+  }
+
   render() {
     return <slot></slot>;
   }
diff --git a/packages/core/src/components/nav/readme.md b/packages/core/src/components/nav/readme.md
index b133c0449e..9cae47d43e 100644
--- a/packages/core/src/components/nav/readme.md
+++ b/packages/core/src/components/nav/readme.md
@@ -58,6 +58,9 @@ any
 #### getActive()
 
 
+#### getChildNavs()
+
+
 #### getFirstView()