Festivals
Edmonton calls itself the festival city and, unusually for a civic slogan, it holds up. The summer calendar is dense enough that between late June and early September there is almost always something running.
The two worth planning around
The Fringe, mid-August in Old Strathcona. One of the largest fringe theatre festivals anywhere, eleven days, hundreds of shows, and a street festival wrapped around it. Book accommodation months out.
Folk Music Festival, early August in Gallagher Park on the valley slope. Sold out most years, tickets go in the spring, and the hillside setting does a great deal of the work.
The rest of the year
| When | What | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Late January | Winter light and ice festivals | Genuinely cold, genuinely good |
| June | Jazz, street performers | Downtown and Churchill Square |
| Early July | Street performers, taste events | Family-heavy, free to wander |
| Early August | Folk Music Festival | Tickets in spring or not at all |
| Mid-August | The Fringe | The busiest fortnight of the year |
| Late August | Heritage days, food and culture pavilions | In Hawrelak Park, easy and cheap |
| December | Markets and lights | Smaller than you'd expect, still pleasant |
Practical
Festival dates move by a week or two each year and a few events have been reorganised recently — check the organisers before booking flights around one. Hotel prices in Old Strathcona roughly double during the Fringe. Parking near festival sites is best described as theoretical; the LRT and a twenty-minute walk are the realistic plan.