List of festivals in Calgary


The following is an incomplete list of annual festivals and cultural events in Calgary and the Calgary Region, in the province of Alberta, Canada.
This list includes festivals of diverse types, such as regional festivals, commerce festivals, fairs, food festivals, arts festivals, religious festivals, folk festivals, and recurring festivals on holidays.

List of festivals in Calgary

FestivalOccurrenceLocationDescription
Calgary Stampede 5-14, 2024Calgary“The Greatest Outdoor Show on Earth.”
Cowboys Music FestivalJuly 4-15, 2024Calgary: Stampede Park
Badlands Music FestivalJuly 6-14, 2024Calgary
Fiestaval Latino Festival 19-21, 2024Calgary: Olympic Plaza
Calgary Folk Music Festival July 25-28, 2024Calgary: Prince’s Island Parkfolk music festival
Calgary International Blues FestivalJuly 28- Aug 3, 2025Calgary: The Confluenceblues music festival
CSIO Spruce Meadows 'Masters' TournamentCalgary: Spruce Meadowsequestrian show jumping tournament
Festival of Chariots Calgaryreligious Hindu festival
High River International Food FestivalHigh Riverfood festival
Inglewood SunfestCalgary: Inglewoodstreet fair
InspirefestCalgaryfestival for Alberta-based music, artists, artisans, horticulture, and vendors
Roundup MusicFestCalgarymusic festival co-produced by 51 North Productions and Live Nation Entertainment
ShadyGrove Bluegrass FestivalSundrebluegrass music festival
Shakespeare by the Bow - CalgaryShakespeare festival presented by Theatre Calgary
Chasing Summer Music FestivalAug 3 & 4, 2024Calgary: Max Bell Centremusic festival presented by Live Nation Entertainment
Afrikadey! Film FestivalCalgary
Afrikadey! Music FestivalCalgary
Caesar WeekCalgaryweek-long festival celebrating caesar cocktails
Calgary Dragon Boat Race & FestivalCalgary
Calgary Fringe FestivalCalgaryfringe theatre festival
Calgary Japanese Festival “”Calgary
Calgary PrideCalgaryLGBTQ+ Pride parade and festival
CarifestCalgaryCaribbean cultural festival
Chinatown Street FestivalCalgaryChinese cultural festival in Chinatown
Expo LatinoCalgaryLatino cultural festival
GlobalFestCalgaryconsists of OneWorld Festival and International Fireworks Festival
AugustCalgary: Prince's Island ParkOutdoor comedy festival presented by
GuitarFestWestCalgary: Mount Royal Universityweek-long classical guitar festival
Heritage Day Festival Calgary
International Reggae FestivalCalgary
Marda GrasCalgary: Marda Loopstreet festival
Mountain View International Festival of Song and Chamber MusicCalgary
When Words CollideCalgaryfestival for commercial and literary fiction
Tabestoon Festival CalgaryIranian arts and culture festival, organized by the Persian Gulf Foundation
Taste of Calgary Calgaryfood and drink festival
ArtemberAirdrieart festival
BeakerheadCalgarycelebration of art, science and engineering
Barbecue on the BowCalgaryculinary festival and barbecue competition
BrazilFestCalgary
Calgary Corporate Challenge September GamesCalgary2-week corporate team-building event that features various competitions "focusing on teamwork and networking"
Calgary Highland Games CalgaryCeltic sports, music and dance
Canmore Highland Games CanmoreCeltic sports, music and dance
Cochrane Lions Labour Day Rodeo Cochranerodeo
Heritage Park Railway DaysHeritage Park
Calgary Arab Film FestivalCalgary
Calgary International Film Festival / Calgary
Calgary Tattoo & Arts FestivalCalgary
Canadian Breast Cancer Foundation "CIBC Run for the Cure"Calgary
Rocky Mountain Wine and Food FestivalCalgary
Wordfest: Calgary International Writers' FestivalCalgary
Calgary Justice Film Festival Calgaryenvironmental and social justice film festival
CUFF.Docs Documentary Film FestivalCalgaryNon-fiction film festival presented by the Calgary Underground Film Festival
Otafest AuroraCalgaryanime convention, smaller version of Otafest in the spring/summer
Airdrie Festival Of LightsAirdrieRides, Christmas lights, refreshments
Emerging ArtismCalgary
Once Upon A ChristmasCalgary
Zoolights / Wilder Institute/Calgary Zoo6-week Christmas/holiday festival
Calgary3-week international festival of live art produced by One Yellow Rabbit
International Festival of Animated ObjectsCalgary
Chinook Blast 2-19, 2024CalgaryTourism Calgary's winter festival
Picture this…film festivalCalgarypostponed since 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic, as of 2022
Artifact Small Format Film Festival Calgarycelluloid-based film festival
Gluten Free ExpoCalgary
MTT FestCalgary
Rodeo RoyalCalgary
Calgary Comic and Entertainment ExpoCalgary
Calgary Beer FestivalCalgary
Calgary International Spoken Word FestivalCalgary
Calgary Maple Festival des SucresCalgary
Calgary Underground Film Festival Calgary
Vaisakhi MelaCalgaryPunjabi spring harvest festival
FunnyFest Calgary Comedy Festival + Calgary
Calgary International Children's FestivalCalgary
Fairy Tales Queer Film FestivalCalgary
Heritage Park Festival of QuiltsCalgary: Heritage Park
Lilac FestivalCalgary: Beltline + Missionstreet festival
OtafestCalgaryanime convention
Puppet Power: Festival of IdeasCalgary
Calgary Greek FestivalCalgary
Commuter Challenge Week Calgary
Ignite! Theatre-Arts FestivalCalgary
Light & Motion Prop Arts and Circus FestivalCalgary
MEC BikefestCalgary
MEC PaddlefestCalgary
Sled Island Music and Arts FestivalCalgaryindependent music and arts festival
Calgary Ukrainian FestivalCalgary, Acadia Recreation ComplexUkrainian culture and heritage

Most attended festivals

Calgary Stampede

The city of Calgary is famous for the Calgary Stampede, a large agricultural fair and rodeo held every July. The Stampede officially bills itself as "The Greatest Outdoor Show on Earth". It features an internationally recognized rodeo competition, a midway, stage shows, agricultural competitions, chuckwagon races, First Nations exhibitions, and pancake breakfasts around the city. It is among the largest and most well known festivals in Canada. The event has a year history. In 2005, attendance at the 10-day rodeo and exhibition totaled 1,242,928, which set a new record. Attendance at the Stampede Parade, which takes place downtown on opening day, is usually somewhere between 300,000 and 400,000. During Stampede Week, many of the city's residents dress in country attire, and many businesses decorate their stores and offices in western style.

Lilac Festival

The Lilac Festival is an annual street festival held in Calgary, Alberta. In 2005 it had an estimated 120,000 attendance. The festival takes place along the 13 blocks of 4th Street in the Beltline and Mission neighborhoods.

Sun and Salsa Festival

The Sun and Salsa Festival is an annual festival put on in the Kensington Business Revitalization Zone of Calgary. Attendance of the festival has grown to around 100,000 in 2010.

Former festivals

This is a list of festivals that no longer exist, have been on a prolonged hiatus, or festivals that were once held in Calgary but have since moved to elsewhere.