Festivals and Events

The annual Guelph Santa Claus Parade rolls through historic Downtown Guelph as part of the Spirit of the Season festival. It starts Saturday, December 5, 2026 at 5:30 PM, right after the Santa Run at 5:00 PM. Watching from the street is free; the route will be posted on the parade website in November.

The Mayor and Council's Tree Lighting opens Spirit of the Season in Downtown Guelph, with live entertainment starting at 6:00 PM in Market Square. It takes place Friday, December 4, 2026, the same evening the outdoor Christmas Marketplace opens on Carden Street. Spirit of the Season is a free festival presented by the Downtown Guelph Business Association.

Ring in the season with songs, stories and jingly fun for children aged 6 and under, with caregivers staying in the room. It takes place Wednesday, December 23, 2026 from 10:30 AM to 11:00 AM at the Kingston Frontenac Public Library Central Branch. Free drop in program, no registration.

A cozy winter evening of puppetry for children aged 6 and under at the Isabel Turner Branch of the Kingston Frontenac Public Library. The show runs Tuesday, December 22, 2026 from 6:30 PM to 7:00 PM. It is a free drop in program, with admission on a first come, first served basis.

Young musicians of the VSO School of Music perform in a free student recital at Pyatt Hall, the school's intimate concert hall on Seymour Street beside the Orpheum in downtown Vancouver. It takes place on Friday, November 20, 2026, in two sessions, at 6:00 PM and 7:30 PM. Free admission.

Meet Santa at Springer Market Square in downtown Kingston, share your wish list and take a photo with your own phone or camera. Santa is there on Saturdays December 5, 12 and 19, 2026 from 11:00 AM to 1:00 PM, and a horse-drawn wagon gives rides from 11:00 AM to 2:00 PM. The visits, photos and wagon rides are all free.

Kingston's Nighttime Santa Parade fills Princess Street with floats, live music and colourful characters, running from Bath Road to Ontario Street. It starts Saturday, November 21, 2026 at 5:00 PM, and Santa and Mrs. Claus then light the tree in Springer Market Square at about 7:00 PM. Watching the parade and the tree lighting is free, right on the street and in the square.

Langford's Royal Canadian Legion Branch 91 holds its Remembrance Day parade and ceremony on Wednesday, November 11, 2026. The parade leaves the Legion at 10:40 AM and the ceremony at the cenotaph in Veterans Memorial Park on Aldwynd Road begins at 11:00 AM with two minutes of silence. Free and open to all; everyone is also welcome at the Legion afterwards for lunch, Highland dancers and live music from 1:30 PM.

Important: free, but you need a free ticket to get in. Montreal's plant based holiday market brings local businesses, makers and food vendors together, with vegan treats to taste or take home, handmade gifts, home products and prize draws. Saturday December 5 and Sunday December 6, 2026, 10:30 AM to 5:30 PM, a two minute walk from Place-des-Arts metro.

More than 100 local artisans, different each weekend, bring handmade gifts for every budget to the historic Verdun Auditorium for the Collectif Créatif MTL holiday market. Saturdays and Sundays, December 5 and 6 and December 12 and 13, 2026, 10:00 AM to 5:00 PM, near De l'Église metro. Free entry; purchases are optional.

Local makers set up in the grand Salle des Pas Perdus of historic Windsor Station for a three day pop up holiday market by Collectif Créatif MTL. Thursday November 26 to Saturday November 28, 2026, opening at 11:00 AM on Thursday and closing at 7:00 PM on Saturday. Entry is free and open to everyone; purchases are optional.

Over 100 Montreal and Quebec makers sell locally made gifts at the Collectif Créatif MTL holiday market, held in a century old converted industrial building in the Angus district, with different artisans each weekend. Saturdays and Sundays, November 14 and 15 and November 21 and 22, 2026, 10:00 AM to 5:00 PM. Free entry; purchases are optional. The market supports Le Phare, Enfants et familles.