The 10 Biggest Canadian Festivals in 2024: All You Need To Know

Picture this: thousands of people all gathered together, folk and modern music blaring, delicious food sizzling on grills, and the rhythms of drums galore. This is what festivals in Canada look like! The biggest festivals in Canada not only offer all that we mentioned but so much more. From the rugged Insular and Elias mountains on the left to the beautiful beaches on the west, Canadians know how to party! Know more about the country by getting to know the biggest festivals in Canada, where the celebrations are as diverse as its landscapes.

Join us as we dig deeper into the origins and ways of celebrating the best Canadian festivals. Maybe you are in the mood to ease into a jazzy mood with the Montreal Jazz Festival 2024, or maybe you would rather enjoy a dazzling night witnessing the Celebration of Light. We’ll let you decide for yourself; take a tour through the biggest Canadian festivals with us.

10 Best Canadian Festivals

Canadian festivals come in all shapes and sizes. The people celebrating have full flexibility on how to celebrate these events, be it by themselves, family-friendly, or a crazy night out with friends. Let’s dig in!

1. Montreal Jazz Festival 2024

Dates: 27 June - 6 July 2024

Location: Montreal, Canada

The Montreal Jazz Festival 2024 is perhaps the biggest Canadian music week that the city of Montreal stands witness to every month. Amazingly, the Montreal Jazz Festival holds the 2004 Guinness World Record for being the biggest jazz festival ever around the world, and that should be incentive enough for you to experience it at least once in your life. Every year, this larger-than-life, one of the biggest Canadian music festivals, attracts roughly 3,000 artists from more than 30 countries worldwide! On average, more than 2 million people attend the festival each year, while 300 or more accredited journalists cover all the happenings.

As one of the biggest music festivals in Canada, the Montreal Jazz Festival is truly celebrated by the whole city. If you’re a fan of music you must check out the top 10 music festivals in Canada! A big part of the city’s downtown is closed to traffic to let the performers and attendees enjoy the festivities freely that go on for free from noon to midnight. One can enjoy one of the biggest Canadian festivals, the Montreal Jazz Festival 2024 in a wide variety of locations. With artists performing in local jazz pubs, huge stadiums, cordoned-off streets, or even terraces, Montreal truly becomes a place to jazz your blues away!

2. Celebration of Light

Dates: 20 July - 27 July 2024

Location: Vancouver, Canada

The Celebration of Light is a sensory overload of rhythmic music, bright lights, and surreal fireworks, all working in tandem to create a core memory. This festival is essentially a fireworks competition usually held in Vancouver and now, recently, in British Columbia, too. This is one of the most well-known Canadian festivals and attracts thousands from all over the world to witness its beauty. The winner of the 2023 Celebration of Light was the Philippines. The sight at night in Vancouver during this festival is truly to behold.

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3. Canadian Tulip Festival

Dates: 15 May - 21 May 2024

Location: Ottawa and Quebec

One of the prettiest Canadian festivals, the Canadian Tulip Festival is annually hosted at the Commissioners Park in Ottawa. The vision of the Tulip Festival is to remind Canadians about the crucial role their troops played in the liberation of the Netherlands in 1945. The Festival is typically free and one can even purchase tulip bulbs to plant at their homes and maintain sustainability in Canada’s horticulture scene. Each year, the festival structures a theme, and the celebrations highlight its importance. The theme of 2021 for one of the best Canadian festivals was “Liberation 75+1 and Rembrandt & Dutch Masters”.

Now that you know about the Tulip festival in Canada, why not explore other things to experience in Canada? Check out the 20 things to do in Canada for a reference for your next visit.

4. Winterlude

Dates: 2 Feb 2024 - 19 Feb 2024

Location: Ottawa

The fact that Canada’s national sport is Ice Hockey, it is not surprising that the country of Canada values all ice-related activities. The three-week-long festival is a celebration of ice sports, ice art, and folk music. People from all over the country gather at the Rideau Canal Skateway, the largest ice skating rink, to witness hundreds frolicking. This is one of the biggest Canadian festivals where people go to see beautiful ice sculptures in a picturesque setting. Think Frozen, but in real life (don’t be surprised if you run into Elsa).

5. Quebec Winter Carnival

Dates: 25 Jan - 11 Feb 2024

Location: Quebec

The Quebec Winter Carnival is one of the biggest Canadian festivals, which has been celebrated for over 65 years now. The major attractions of this festival are the nighttime and daytime street parades led by the festival’s mascot, Bonhomme Carnaval. This annual festival is celebrated solely in Quebec (who would have thought?!) and is the largest winter festival in the Western Hemisphere! The opening and closing ceremony of the Quebec Winter Carnival takes place at the Ice Palace in front of thousands of attendees, Bonhomme, and the mayor. Take a stroll through the streets of Quebec during the Carnival and have the time of your life playing in the snow, dancing in the parades, and singing to your heart’s content!

6. The Ex

Dates: 16 Aug - 2 September 2024 

Location: Toronto

Before you get mad at us, this Canadian festival is not a celebration of your ex. The name is short for The Canadian National Exhibition, which is an 18-day-long celebration of Canada’s advancements in technology, culture, agriculture, and diversity. One of the best Canadian festivals, The Ex, takes place at Lake Ontario and concludes at Labor Day each year. The first Canadian Ex took place in 1879 and, since then, has been one of the major attractions for tourists and residents alike. It is a great showcase of local businesses, stores, and more!

7. Pride Toronto

Dates: 28 June - 30 June 2024

Location: Toronto

This event is a stunning display of community, diversity, and harmony of the LGBT community, not just in Canada but the whole world. The event culminates as the best and one of the biggest Canadian festivals and is a sight to behold. The movement began in 1981 as a sign of protest against the infamous bathhouse raids and, since then, has become a symbol of equality and love for all. It is one of the biggest pride parades in the entire world, celebrated annually, also making it one of the biggest Canadian festivals. It’s not just a festival but a public display of pride for those who wish to live life on their own terms.

8. Folkorama

Dates: 4 August - 17 August 2024

Location: Winnipeg

Canada has been in the limelight multiple times for its timeless multiculturalism and harmony amongst its diverse communities. Folkorama is one of the Canadian festivals that reiterate its multicultural sentiments. Canadian citizens with ethnicities and origins outside of Canada participate in this enthralling event, showcasing the best their culture has to offer. Each culture has its assigned pavilion, and one can witness more than 40 pavilions at play in the duration of this festival. Bask in the electric performances on display by these pavilions, along with mouth-watering cuisine during one of the best Canadian festivals.

9. Toronto International Film Festival

Dates: 5 September - 15 September 2024

Location: Toronto

Every movie enthusiast’s dream is to be the first to witness cinema greats at a film festival. Well, if you live in Canada, the Toronto International Film Festival is one of the biggest Canadian festivals that one can attend. Ranking close to the big boys such as Cannes and Sundance, the Toronto Film Festival is a major hub for film-enjoyers and filmmakers alike. Critical successes such as American Beauty (1999), The Big Chill (1983), and I Am Love (2009) all debuted at the Toronto Film Festival.

10. K-Day

Dates: 19 July - 28 July 2024

Location: Edmonton

Contrary to popular belief, K-Days has no connection to Korean dramas or culture. This annual ten-day festival takes place in Edmonton. Also known as the Edmonton Exhibition or Klondike Days, this extravaganza attracted around 600,000-800,000 visitors every year. Filled with great good, adventure joyrides, and music, K-Days is definitely one of the most memorable Canadian festivals. 

Now that you are all caught up with all Canadian festivals you can experience the next in the country, we hope you have the best time in the Great White North. If you’re someone who wishes to study in Canada soon, equip yourself with the knowledge of our guide on intakes in Canada.