Winter Festivals in Edmonton, Alberta

Dec 8, 2011
Robin Schroffel

An Edmonton Winter Festival - Mack Male

The fun doesn't stop in Alberta's capital simply because it's cold outside. Have a blast at these fun Edmonton winter festivals.

When the sub-zero temperatures roll around, Festival City keeps right on celebrating. Edmonton is host to a number of winter festivals that give visitors and residents alike a reason to stop hibernating and get outside.

Metropolis Winter Festival - December 31, 2011 to February 20, 2012

Edmonton's newest festival, held at downtown's Churchill Square, aims to celebrate the city's cold climate. It features four temporary structures designed by local architects and created using cold-weather construction techniques. These structures - including a children's pavilion, a community centre, and a Taste of Winter food pavilion - will be heated to approximately 10 degrees. The children's pavilion will contain a giant slide, and the community centre will stage a different event each weekend, including fashion and art shows. The Taste of Winter event will feature delicacies from some of Edmonton's top restaurants.

Deep Freeze Byzantine Winter Festival - January 7, 2012 to January 8, 2012

Alberta Avenue's weekend-long Deep Freeze Byzantine Winter Festival brings together the neighbourhood's diverse communities to celebrate the season. Enjoy traditional French-Canadian treats like tourtière and tarte au sucre, and don't miss the iced maple taffy, served on a stick. Spend Saturday night dancing up a storm to instrumental surf music at the Surf's Up! dance, before returning the next day for some old-style suckling pig on a bun or traditional Ukrainian foods. All the while, there will be games and events going on along the street, as well as artisan markets happening in various buildings.

Ice on Whyte Festival - January 12, 2012 to January 22, 2012

What would winter be without an ice carving festival? Ice on Whyte, held in Old Strathcona, is Edmonton's iciest festival offering. It features snow carvings by international artists, an ice slide, and - yes - a heated cafe with live music and storytelling serving up hot chocolate. This year is a special one, as 10 ice and snow carvers are coming from China to assist with the artworks.

Silver Skate Festival - February 17, 2012 to February 20, 2012

Held at Hawrelak Park, the Silver Skate Festival - a free event - features snow sculptures, figure skating demonstrations, an ice slide, horse-drawn sleigh rides, roving performers and more. There's also room for some serious sporting, including a winter triathlon open to everyone, as well as speed skating marathons and a traditional Dutch speed skating race.

Edmonton Winter Things to Do

Attending winter festivals is a great way to stave off cabin fever during a long Edmonton winter. Take the opportunity to enjoy one of these seasonal events, alone, with a friend or the entire family.