FESTIVAL
NEWS

OTTAWA, February 24, 2026 — Ottawa Tourism, in partnership with the City of Ottawa, is pleased to announce the recipients of the Major Festivals Fund, a new investment totaling $1 million designed to support Ottawa’s most tourism-generating festivals and events and strengthen the city’s position as a premier destination for large-scale cultural and sporting experiences.   The Major Festivals Fund supports events that operate on a significant scale and play a demonstrable role

Ottawa Tourism is launching the Nightlife Tourism Development Fund to support tourism businesses and organizations in creating high-quality nightlife experiences. The Fund aligns with the City’s Nightlife Economy Action Plan by helping bring new and engaging nightlife offerings to life. This application-based program aims to support activations occurring between 6:00pm-6:00am that are designed to attract visitors and enhance Ottawa’s nighttime appeal. Priority consideration

Board of Governors Algonquin College 1385 Woodroffe Ave. Ottawa, ON K2G 1V8   RE: Open Letter - Future of Music Industry Arts Program, Algonquin College Dear Members of the Board of Governors, As recently reported in the first economic impact of the live music sector, the industry and its related activities are significant and growing contributors to Canada’s economy, culture, and workforce, generating $10.92 billion in GDP , supporting over 101,000 jobs , and driving $3.7 bi

Nuit Blanche Ottawa will make its long-awaited return on Saturday, September 26, 2026, under the theme Where Innovation Meets Art . For this new edition, the ByWard Market will be transformed into a vast, free, immersive nighttime art experience, bringing together local, national, and international artists.  Produced by Les Forains, Nuit Blanche Ottawa invites the public to experience an entire night dedicated to contemporary art, where innovation, creativity, and civic enga

The Ottawa Jazz Festival seeks candidates to fill three vacancies on its Board of Directors. Having just celebrated its 45th year, the festival is a significant event that contributes to the city’s vibrancy by bringing world-class music to Ottawa’s downtown. The ideal candidate will participate in the renewal of the jazz festival, deploying leadership skills, fundraising experience, networking abilities, organizational proficiency, and a passion for live music. Candidates wit

From: Ottawa Tourism To kick of Ottawa’s 200 th anniversary as a partner of the City of Ottawa in the development of programming, Ottawa Tourism is announcing funding support for fourteen projects through its 200 th Tourism Animation Fund. The purpose of the program is to catalyze the development of quality products and experiences by tourism businesses and organizations that will stimulate increased overnight visitation and visitor spending and support private sector inve

A year’s worth of innovative programming and collaborations were unveiled today at the official launch event to celebrate Ottawa’s 200 th  anniversary.   Mayor Mark Sutcliffe welcomed an extensive list of guests representing the City’s collaboration with heritage, cultural, Indigenous and community organizations. Each brought their own announcement highlighting how 2026 will see investments that reflect Ottawa’s progress, creativity and diversity. The City has launched three

Ottawa, ON — The Ottawa Children’s Festival de la jeunesse (OCF) today announced that Catherine O’Grady will retire at the end of December 2025 after twenty-five years of visionary leadership as the Festival’s head. O’Grady’s tenure has been marked by artistic excellence, strong community partnerships, and a steadfast commitment to accessibility and inclusion for young audiences and their families. Under O’Grady’s guidance, OCF has welcomed generations of children, educators,

Building on the success of its 2024 pilot program, the Canadian Live Music Association ( CLMA) is pleased to announce the second edition of  Setting the Stage , a micro-grant mentorship and performance program supported by RBC .   Setting the Stage is open to independent live music venues, concert promoters, festivals,  and/or others whose core business is hosting and/or promoting live music shows of artists and musicians for audiences. Applicants must be members of the CLMA

The Ottawa Music Industry Coalition (OMIC) is looking for passionate, curious, and community-minded jury members from Ottawa, across Canada, and around the world to help select the nominees for the 2026 Capital Music Awards ! Whether you’re an artist, industry professional, educator, producer, presenter, journalist, volunteer, or simply someone who cares deeply about music,  we encourage you to apply . This jury is meant to represent the diversity of our music ecosystem, fr

Tara Shannon, Executive Director of Ottawa Festival Network speaking at the Ottawa Festival Summit. Subject to budget approval, the City of Ottawa in partnership with Ottawa Tourism will launch a two-year pilot program to increase financial support to Ottawa’s larger, tourism-generating festivals. The Major Festivals Fund will provide an additional $1 million per year to festivals with the largest tourism and economic impact. Mayor Sutcliffe announced the new fund today at Ci

Ottawa Festival Network is happy to share the following announcement from the Tourism and Culture Division, Ministry of Tourism, Culture and Gaming that the Experience Ontario 2026 program is now accepting applications. OFN Members can access funding application support resources by visiting the Resource Hub in the OFN Member Portal. For questions and support on your Experience Ontario application specifically, please utilize the resources linked below. We are pleased to anno

After the federal government announced it's budget yesterday, there are important funding allocations to the festival and events sector. OFN's advocacy partners at the federal level, Festivals and Major Events Canada (FAME), has summarized the relevant budget items in the following statement. The budget can be found here (pages 170 and 171). Festivals and Major Events Canada (FAME) is greatly relieved that the federal government has announced, in its budget, that the additio

Building on the success of its 2024 pilot program, the  Canadian Live Music Association (CLMA)  is pleased to announce the second edition of  Setting the Stage , a micro-grant mentorship and performance program  supported by RBC .   Setting the Stage  is  open to independent live music venues, concert promoters, festivals,  and/or others whose core business is hosting and/or promoting live music shows of artists and musicians for audiences.  Applicants must be members of the

Canada’s live music ecosystem — made up of venues, festivals, promoters, production companies, and countless creative professionals — works together to support the careers of Canadian artists, attract visitors from around the world, and power a major segment of the national economy. It is a vital industry that connects communities, creates jobs, and helps define who we are as a country.   The Canadian Live Music Association (CLMA) enthusiastically welcomes the federal governm

Ottawa Tourism is launching the 200th Tourism Animation Fund. This one-time program supports tourism businesses and organizations in...

Les Forains are proud to announce the official launch of Nuit Blanche Ottawa , a unique artistic and cultural event that will be held in...

Ottawa, ON — September 2025  – Saunders Farm is proud to announce the return of its world-renowned Haunting Season , highlighted by the...

As a successful summer season wraps up, Ottawa Tourism and Outaouais Tourism report strong tourism results on both sides of the river.  ...

The City of Ottawa Nightlife Office has launched the Ottawa at Night website to help build awareness for the city’s nightlife, to...