Winterlude

Winterlude
An ice sculpture bearing the Winterlude logo.
GenreWinter festival
BeginsJanuary 31, 2025 (2025-01-31)
EndsFebruary 17, 2025 (2025-02-17)
FrequencyAnnually
VenueConfederation Park
Jacques Cartier Park
Rideau Canal Skateway
Location(s)Ottawa, Ontario
Gatineau, Quebec
CountryCanada
Inaugurated1979 (1979)
Previous eventFebruary 2 - 19, 2024
Next eventJanuary 31 - February 17, 2025
Organised byCanadian Heritage
WebsiteWinterlude
People ice skating on the Rideau Canal in Ottawa, January 2005.

Winterlude is an annual winter festival held in Ottawa, Ontario and Gatineau, Quebec (collectively known as the National Capital Region).

Winterlude is run by the Department of Canadian Heritage and was started in 1979. The event is one of Ottawa's most important tourist draws, attracting hundreds of thousands of visitors each year. In 2007, it set a new attendance record of an estimated 1.6 million visits to one of the four Winterlude sites, and that record still stands as of 2024.[1] BizBash has recognized Winterlude as one of the top 100 annual attractions in Canada and the United States[2]

  1. ^ "2007: 1.6 million visitors attend Winterlude". Canadian Heritage. 22 November 2018. Retrieved 10 January 2024.
  2. ^ "StackPath". 6 November 2021. Retrieved 30 January 2022.