Canada has a long tradition of hosting festivals and events throughout the year. The industry adds over $33 billion to the country's tourism economy and provides jobs for more than 229,000 people in areas like business events, trade fairs, festivals, and meetings. Popular festivals include the summer's Montreal Jazz Festival and Calgary Stampede, Winterlude in Ottawa-Gatineau during the winter, and nationwide celebrations for Canada Day. Other notable festivals include the Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF), Vancouver Pride Parade and Just For Laughs comedy festival.
The following list includes festivals of diverse types, among them regional festivals, commerce festivals, fairs, food festivals, arts festivals, and recurring festivals on holidays.
Sublists by locale
Province or territory
- List of festivals in Alberta (Calgary, Edmonton, Lethbridge)
- List of festivals in British Columbia (Vancouver)
- List of festivals in Manitoba (Winnipeg)
- List of festivals in Ontario (Ottawa, Toronto)
- List of festivals in Prince Edward Island
- List of festivals in Quebec (Montreal)
- List of festivals in Saskatchewan
Atlantic Canada
{|class="wikitable sortable sticky-header" style=text-align:left" style="margin:1em auto;"
!Festival
!Location
!Province
!Note
|-
|Animation Festival of Halifax
|Halifax
|NS
|
|-
|Atlantic Book Awards & Festival
|varies
|All
|
|-
|Atlantic Jewish Film Festival
|Halifax
|NS
|
|-
|Atlantic Theatre Festival
|Wolfville
|NS
|
|-
|Bonavista Film Festival
|Bonavista
|NL
|
|-
|Boxwood Festival & Workshop
|Lunenburg
|NS
|
|-
|Cape Breton International Drum Festival
|Cape Breton
|NS
|
|-
|Cavendish Beach Music Festival
|Cavendish
|PEI
|
|-
|Celtic Colours
|Cape Breton Island
|NS
|
|-
|Charlottetown Festival
|Charlottetown
|PEI
|musical theatre festival
|-
|Charlottetown Film Festival
|Charlottetown
|PEI
|
|-
|Corner Brook Pride Film Festival
|Corner Brook
|NL
|LGBT film festival
|-
|Devour! The Food Film Fest
|Wolfville
|NS
|
|-
|Dutch Mason Blues Festival
|Truro
|NS
|in August
|-
|Emerging Lens Film Festival
|Halifax
|NS
|
|-
|Evolve Festival
|Jailletville
|NB
|originally taking place near Antigonish, NS
|-
|Festival Antigonish Summer Theatre
|Antigonish
|NS
|
|-
|FIN Atlantic Film Festival
|Halifax
|NS
|
|-
|Great Outdoors Comedy Festival
|Varies
|
|Outdoor comedy festival produced by Trixstar LIVE
|-
|Halifax Black Film Festival
|Halifax
|NS
|
|-
|Halifax Busker Festival
|Halifax
|NS
|
|-
|Halifax Comedy Festival
|Halifax
|NS
|
|-
|Halifax Fringe Festival
|Halifax
|NS
|
|-
|Halifax Independent Filmmakers Festival
|Halifax
|NS
|
|-
|Halifax Jazz Festival
|Halifax
|NS
|
|-
|Halifax Pop Explosion
|Halifax
|NS
|
|-
|Halifax Pride
|Halifax
|NS
|
|-
|Hangashore Folk Festival
|Corner Brook
|NL
|
|-
|Hellifax Horror Film Festival
|Halifax
|NS
|
|-
|Island Fringe Festival
|Charlottetown
|PEI
|
|-
|Lunenburg Doc Fest
|Lunenburg
|NS
|
|-
|Nova Scotia Gaelic Mod
|Cape Breton Island
|NS
|
|-
|OUTeast Film Festival
|Halifax
|NS
|
|-
|Stan Rogers Folk Festival
|Canso
|NS
|
|-
|Stoked for the Holidays
|Sydney
|NS
|
|-
|Virgin Festival
|Halifax
|NS
|
|-
|
|Halifax
|NS
|
|-
|Exploits Valley Salmon Festival
|Grand Falls-Windsor
|NL
|
|-
|Festival 500
|St. John's
|NL
|
|-
|March Hare
|Corner Brook
|NL
|
|-
|MusicNL
|
|NL
|
|-
|Nickel Film Festival
|
|NL
|
|-
|Shakespeare by the Sea, Halifax
|Halifax
|NS
|
|-
|Shakespeare by the Sea, Newfoundland
|St. John's
|NL
|
|-
|Sheelah's Day
|
|NL
|
|-
|St. John's International Women's Film Festival
|St. John's
|NL
|
|-
|Tuckamore Festival
|St. John's
|NL
|
|-
|Wreckhouse International Jazz & Blues Festival
|St. John's
|NL
|early July
|-
|YC Newfoundland
|
|NL
|
|-
|Acadian World Congress
|
|varies
|
|-
|Blues d'la Baie
|Petit-Rocher
|NB
|
|-
|Festival international du cinéma francophone en Acadie
|Moncton
|NB
|
|-
|Foire Brayonne
|Edmundston
|NB
|
|-
|Frye Festival
|Moncton
|NB
|
|-
|Harvest Jazz & Blues Festival
|Fredericton
|NB
|
|-
|HubCap Comedy Festival
|Moncton
|NB
|
|-
|Indigenous Film Festival
|Fredericton
|NB
|
|-
|
|Bouctouche
|NB
|
|-
|New Brunswick Summer Music Festival
|Fredericton
|NB
|
|-
|Miramichi Folksong Festival
|Miramichi
|NB
|
|-
|Saint John Jewish Film Festival
|Saint John
|NB
|
|-
|SappyFest
|Sackville
|NB
|
|-
|Silver Wave Film Festival
|Fredericton
|NB
|
|}
Territories
{|class="wikitable sortable sticky-header" style=text-align:left" style="margin:1em auto;"
!Festival
!Location
!Territory
!Note
|-
|Dead North Film Festival
|Yellowknife
|NT
|
|-
|Folk on the Rocks
|Yellowknife
|NT
|
|-
|Great Northern Arts Festival
|
|NT
|
|-
|Rockin the Rocks
|
|NT
|
|-
|Yellowknife International Film Festival
|Yellowknife
|NT
|
|-
|Nunavut International Film Festival
|Iqaluit
|NU
|
|-
|Quviasukvik
|
|NU
|
|-
|Adäka Cultural Festival
|Whitehorse
|YT
|
|-
|Available Light Film Festival
|Whitehorse
|YT
|
|-
|Out North Queer Film Festival
|Whitehorse
|YT
|
|-
|Yukon International Storytelling Festival
|
|YT
|
|-
|Yukon Sourdough Rendezvous
|
|YT
|
|}
City
- List of festivals in Calgary
- List of festivals in Edmonton
- List of festivals in Lethbridge
- List of entertainment events in Greater Moncton
- List of festivals and parades in Montreal
- List of festivals in Ottawa
- List of festivals in Toronto
- List of festivals in Vancouver
- List of festivals in Winnipeg
Sublists by type
- List of film festivals in Canada
- List of music festivals in Canada
- List of jazz festivals#Canada
- List of Canadian blues festivals and venues
Festivals by size
Attendance
- L'International des Feux Loto-Québec (Montreal), 3 million
- Montreal International Jazz Festival (Montreal), 2.5 million
- Winterlude (Ottawa), 1.6 million
- Celebration of Light (Vancouver), 1.6 million
- Just For Laughs (Montreal), 1.5 million
- Festival d'été de Québec (Quebec City), 1.5 million
- Ottawa Bluesfest (Ottawa), 1.3 million
- Nuit Blanche Toronto, 1.2 million
- Canadian National Exhibition (Toronto), 1.3 million
- Calgary Stampede, 1.2 million
- Toronto Caribbean Carnival, 1.2 million
- Pride Toronto, 1.3 million
- Montréal En Lumière (Montreal), 0.9 million
- Pacific National Exhibition (Vancouver), 0.9 million
- K-Days (Edmonton), 0.8 million
- Toronto International Film Festival, 0.5 million
- Quebec Winter Carnival (Quebec City), 0.5 million
- Folklorama (Winnipeg), 0.4 million
- Carassauga (Mississauga), 0.3 million
- Festival du Voyageur (Winnipeg), 0.1 million
Economic impact
- Scotiabank Caribbean Carnival Toronto (Caribana), Toronto
- The Great India Festival, Ottawa, Ontario.
- Vaisakhi
- Vancouver Halloween Parade & Expo
- Winterlude, Ottawa
Dance festivals
- Canada Dance Festival
- Canadian Ballet Festival
- Festival TransAmériques
- Mondial des Cultures
- Thrill the World
- Vancouver International Dance Festival
Fairs and exhibitions
Film festivals
Food festivals
- Annapolis Valley Apple Blossom Festival, Annapolis Valley, Nova Scotia
- Brighton Applefest, Brighton, Ontario
- Canada's Largest Ribfest, Burlington, Ontario
- Eat! Vancouver, Vancouver, British Columbia
- Exploits Valley Salmon Festival, Exploits Valley, Newfoundland and Labrador
- Sun and Salsa Festival, Calgary, Alberta
- Taste of the Danforth, Toronto, Ontario
- A Taste of Edmonton, Edmonton, Alberta
Fringe festivals
- Atlantic Fringe Festival
- Calgary Fringe Festival
- Edmonton International Fringe Festival
- Island Fringe Festival
- Ottawa Fringe Festival
- Saskatoon Fringe Theatre Festival
- St-Ambroise Montreal Fringe Festival
- Vancouver Fringe Festival
- Winnipeg Fringe Theatre Festival
Literary festivals
- Banff Mountain Book Festival
- Blue Metropolis International Literary Festival
- Eden Mills Writers' Festival, Eden Mills, Ontario
- The Frye Festival, Moncton, New Brunswick
- Vancouver Writers Fest
- Winnipeg International Writers Festival
- The Word on the Street
Music festivals
See also
- Culture of Canada
- Tourism in Canada
- Public holidays in Canada