Canmore and Banff are such special mountain towns! If there’s one thing Bow Valley locals love, it’s a fun community event. Take a look at some of the exciting opportunities to gather and experience new things that happen in our mountain towns throughout the year. *Please check event websites for COVID related updates.
Summer
Canmore Folk Festival
Canmore Mountain Market (Thursdays, 10-6 until Oct 7, 2021)
The Canmore Mountain Market has been a tradition in Canmore for over 20 years! Visitors and locals are treated to an excellent selection of locally and regionally produced items including fresh fruits and vegetables, meats, jams, coffee, and baked goods. The Market also offers unique crafts, clothing, jewelry, and other artisanal products.
Canmore Canada Day (July 1 – Postponed for 2021, check the Town of Canmore website for alternate Canada Day celebrations)
Canmore’s Canada Day is one of the most popular events of the year! Festivities traditionally include a parade, live music, a pancake breakfast and fireworks.
Plaid Goat Mountain Bike Festival (July 3-4 2021)
Plaid Goat Mountain Bike Fest is a three-day festival held in the beautiful mountain town of Canmore, AB offering a buffet of for-fun activities. The event is a large-scale demo and expo that has a low entry cost and offers different ways to celebrate riding the Rockies
Calgary Stampede (July)
Much more than a ten-day long celebration with midway rides and bucking broncos, the Calgary Stampede is a gathering place that hosts, educates, and entertains visitors from around the world. Their purpose is to preserve and celebrate western heritage, culture, and community spirit.
Canmore Folk Festival (August – Postponed for 2021)
This 3-day music festival takes place Heritage Day long weekend in August. The festival features 30+ individual acts or performers, a family-friendly site, a free downtown concert on festival Friday evening, a kids’ area jammed with crafts, puppets, music, storytelling and a climbing wall. The venue is Centennial Park in downtown Canmore. Surrounded on all sides by the majestic Rocky Mountains, the backdrop of breathtaking scenery merely enhances the incredible music pouring forth from four stages all weekend long.
Canmore Highland Festival (September 4-5 2021)
Canmore Highland Games celebrates Celtic culture! One of Canmore’s signature summer events, sample over 90 local and international wines and scotches from some of the world’s most celebrated producers including micro-breweries! Craft vendors from across the country offer a wide array of specialized Celtic products. Join in for a full slate of events comprising the Highland Games – pancake breakfast, highland dancing, piping and drumming, heavy sports, tug of war, sheepdogs, clan tents, Celtic vendors, Scotch tasting, traditional food and beverages, food trucks, beer garden, massed bands and more.
Autumn
Banff Pride
Banff Marathon (September 12, 2021)
The Banff Marathon, Half Marathon & 10K will offer runners of all abilities the chance to participate in this truly special event. Imagine yourself on a journey that flows from Banff Central Park, runs past Vermilion Lakes, up the Bow Valley Parkway and loops to finish in beautiful downtown Banff. It is the running adventure of a lifetime. The scenery is breathtaking and you will experience many different interpretive, geographical, wilderness and historical stages on your trek. (Banff Marathon)
Banff Pride (October 3-10 2021)
“Taste the rainbow as you enjoy colourful cocktails and pride-themed desserts. Book in for a drag brunch, and discover lots of other exciting events on offer. We are looking forward to more fun in 2021, all in the name of recognizing and celebrating diversity in our community.” (Banff Lake Louise Tourism)
Banff Film Festival (October 30- November 7 2021)
The Banff Mountain Film and Book Festival takes place each fall in Banff, Alberta. Don’t miss nine epic days filled with stories of remote journeys, ground-breaking expeditions, and cutting-edge adventures told through the eyes of adventurers, authors, photographers, and filmmakers from around the globe.
Winter
Ice Magic in Lake Louise
Banff Lake Louise Snow Days (January 19-30, 2022)
Unleash your inner child to relish the pure joy of winter at the Banff and Lake Louise SnowDays celebration. In January, the streets of downtown Banff are transformed into larger-than-life winter galleries by our SnowDays Snow Sculptures.
Ice Magic in Lake Louise (January 19-30, 2022)
Ice Magic is a world-class ice carving event. Watch talented ice artists from around the world create ice carvings for a competition, or marvel at the finished sculptures over nine days.
Canmore Winter Carnival (February)
Canmore winters are fun and full of magic. Every February we come together as a community to celebrate the best parts of our unique winter lifestyle. A weekend of indoor and outdoor events and experiences. Every year is a little different! Activities have included: ice carving competitions, kids’ ice carving, beaver tails eating competitions, the always entertaining pooch parade, log sawing and the amazing Snowy Owl Sled Dog Tours Kid N’ Mutt races.
Masters World Cup of Cross-Country Skiing (March 3-11, 2022)
Hosted by the world-class Canmore Nordic Centre, masters cross-country skiers will gather from around the world to participate in seven days of racing and cultural experiences.
Spring
location: The Canmore Nordic Center, Alberta, Canada
Canmore Uncorked Festival (May)
Canmore Uncorked is an annual 12-day food and drink festival that celebrates the remarkable dining experiences in Canmore, Alberta. The Festival consists of daily set-price menus and other culinary experiences at over 40 locations, as well as a series of signature events including the Long Table Dinner.
TransRockies (June 25-26, 2022)
Rundle’s Revenge is a two-day fun-fest that includes mountain biking and trail running. No, it’s not a duathlon. Rundle’s Revenge is so much more than that! Where duathlons combine the two events into one day, Rundle’s Revenge gives you a full day for each event.