OTTAWA ANNOUNCES WINTERLUDE DATES,
EVENTS, LOCATIONS AND RIDEAU CANAL SKATING
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Canada's capital celebrates its annual winter festival from February 2 to 18 this year.
Where will you find Winterlude events? In Ottawa and Gatineau, events take place in Confederation Park's Casino du Lac-Leamy Crystal Garden; Jacques-Cartier Park's Snowflake Kingdom; the Rideau Canal Skateway; and the American Express Snowbowl, located above the Skateway, near Rideau Street.
Free Winterlude events and entertainment
Most events are free, including skating on the Rideau Canal Skateway. Measuring 7.8-kilometres-long, it's the world's largest naturally frozen skating rink, according to the Guinness World Records. The NCC Ice Safety Committee tests the ice in the Rideau Canal. It must be 25 to 30 centimeters thick to be safe for skating.
Other free things to do include a large kids' snow playground, outdoor concerts, ice sculpture competitions and the American Express Winterlude Kick-Off on February 2, at 7:00 pm.
Entertainers include Randy Bachman and Josée Lajoie. An original song, written by Jay Knutson, will be performed on the Six String Nation Guitar (a guitar built with pieces of Pierre Trudeau's canoe paddle, Paul Henderson's hockey stick and other historically significant wood). Fireworks will also pay tribute to Ottawa's 150th anniversary.
Jason Collett, Amy Millan, Apostle of Hustle Les Respectables, Les Trois Accords and Young Galaxy perform on Friday and Saturday evenings at the American Express Snowbowl, an outdoor amphitheatre. Built over top the ice surface, the Snowbowl is open during the day and evening, even if the Rideau Canal Skateway is not open for skating. One night features Electro-Fashion, a runway fashion show of Canadian winter designs set to music by DJ Champion.
Snowflake Kingdom, at Jacques-Cartier Park in Gatineau, is a playground with huge snow slides and a giant labyrinth made of snow for kids and families.
Ice and snow sculptures
This year's theme for Winterlude's National Snow Sculpture Competition is “Dance all day, then shovel away!” Visitors can view the snow sculptures, beginning February 10 and 11, the second weekend of Winterlude. Thirteen teams of sculptors from each Canadian province and territory will depict past winters and show how our ancestors overcame winter hardships and had fun in their provinces and territories.
This year's Winterlude theme for Confederation Park is International Polar Year. Ice sculptures depicting the Arctic Tundra and Antarctica will greet visitors to Casino du Lac-Leamy's Crystal Garden in Gatineau.
On February 2, 3 and 4, during the first weekend of Winterlude, visitors to Confederation Park can watch the Casino du Lac-Leamy Crystal Garden 20th International Ice-Carving Competition. Carvers compete to create ice sculptures in a Polar Elements theme from one block of ice. The world's master ice carvers will sculpt 25 blocks of ice during the second weekend of Winterlude, protected by a large tent.
Veterans Affairs Canada enables visitors to learn more about Canadian veterans and view a 26-tonne ice-carving reproduction of the Vimy Ridge Memorial.
Outside Ottawa City Hall, a Sun Life Ice Café celebrates the 175th anniversary of the Rideau Canal with ice sculptures and activities organized by Parks Canada.
Winterlude hotel packages
Packages for couples and family getaways are available online from Ottawa Tourism. The Spa Escape package, which begins at $170 a person, includes two nights' accommodation for two adults; spa services at Holtz Spa or Au Naturel Spa; admission for two to the National Gallery of Canada, Canadian Museum of Civilization or Canadian War Museum; Casino du Lac-Leamy cash certificates worth up to $20; and a Rideau Centre Visitor Values coupon booklet for shopping,
The Winterlude Family Fun package, which begins at just $155 for a family of four (maximum two adults), includes two nights' accommodation; family admission to the National Gallery of Canada, Canadian Museum of Civilization or Canadian War Museum; and a Rideau Centre Visitor Values coupon booklet for shopping. Visitors, who pay with a VISA card, receive a Winterlude tuque or headband (two per booking, while supplies last).
More things to see and do in Ottawa:
Tulip Festival
Ottawa Attractions
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