Ontario Festivals and Events
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Ontario Festivals and Events Offer Something For Everyone.

July:

Canada Day Celebrations - July - One of the biggest and most widely celebrated of all Ontario festivals. You'll find parties over the province. Celebrated with fireworks, concerts, cake. And beer... Lots of beer!

Beaches International Jazz Festival – July – Toronto

Toronto Outdoor Art Exhibition - July - Meet top artists and artisans in this high-calibre exhibition.

August:

Caribana Festival and Parade - August - Toronto

Canadian National Exhibition – Aug/Sept – Toronto

Canal Days Marine Heritage Festival – Port Colborne – August

Fergus Scottish Festival & Highland Games – August – Fergus - Don't forget your kilt!

Taste of the Danforth – August – Toronto. Greek food and music.

Winona Peach Festival – August – Winona

September:

Burlington Ribfest - Burlington - September - Labour Day Weekend. Canada's largest ribfest. Features free live concerts, crafts, kids' play area and of course the best ribs in Canada. Yum! Definitely have to return to this next year.

Labour Day weekend – the first Monday in September – All over the province. The last weekend of summer! Kids go back to school after this.

Mustard Festival - September - Hamilton - Sounds like a weird concept for a festival, but this is really Hamilton's jazz and blues fest. I've gone twice and enjoyed all of the FREE outdoor concerts, good food and art. The first weekend in September (Labour Day) so it's an end-of-summer tribute.

Niagara Grape and Wine Festival - Niagara Region. September - Celebrate the wine harvest with gala dinners, wine tasting events, and the annual parade.

Sweetwater Music Festival - September - Owen Sound - Chamber music

Toronto International Film Festival - September - Your chance to see the best and the most bizarre the world has to offer. From the Glam to the Gory and everything in between. And for those of you who follow the celebs, this is THE place to be in September. One of the more "glamorous" Ontario festivals and events.

Word on the Street literary festival – September – Toronto

October:

Thanksgiving – Celebrated all over the province. One popular Thanksgiving Festival takes place at Ball's Falls in Jordan (near St. Catharines), with crafts, music and food. NOTE for Americans: Canadians do Thanksgiving in October, not in November. And we just take one day off work usually, the Monday. But we have turkey and ham just like you do!

IFOA: International Festival of Authors - October - Toronto

Oktoberfest – The biggest Oktoberfest outside of Germany takes place in Kitchener Ontario with its strong Germanic community.

Hallowe'en – All over the province. October 31st. Kids and adult parties. Canada's Wonderland puts on a big fright show. Many communities host ghost story readings, ghost tours, and other spooky events.

November:

Canadian Aboriginal Festival and Powwow - November - This unique blockbuster event has been held in Toronto for many years but is coming to Hamilton in 2009 for the first time. I've attended before in Toronto and the music is fantastic and very affordable.

December:

Christmas festivals - December - Ontario communities celebrate Christmas in many different ways: with Christmas tree lighting ceremonies, coloured street lights, carolling in streets and malls, decorations of historic homes, Santa Claus parades (the biggest is in Toronto), parties, horse and buggy rides in the snow on farms. For a German Christmas, try the Christkindl Festival in Kitchener Ontario. It's an exciting season! Niagara Falls' Festival of Lights and Toronto's Cavalcade of Lights are spectacular.

Various Dates

Doors Open Ontario - Celebrated all over Ontario at different points of the year. One of my favourites! Great for Ontario history lovers. Each community opens the doors to heritage buildings that aren't normally open to the public. Includes "open house" and sometimes guided tours and lectures as well.

Powwows are held throughout the year, but many occur in summer. These are Aboriginal celebrations with dancing, music, food and arts and crafts. Several locations across the province. There's a big indoors one in November that has been held in Toronto for several years but starting in 2009 it will be held in Hamilton. For a review of a great outdoors one near Brantford on the Six Nations Reserve, see Grand River Champion of Champions Powwow

Studio Tours - Run at different times throughout the year, mostly spring, summer and fall. Tour the studios of Ontario artists and craftspeople. Talk to the artists, watch them at work, buy some art. Some examples: Ganaraska Studio Tour, Scugog Studio Tour, Rolling Hills Studio Tour, Haliburton County Studio Tour.

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