Eastern Ontario Weekend Festival Guide
August 21–23, 2026 — What’s On This Weekend
Seven festivals, from downtown Ottawa out to the Ottawa Valley, Prince Edward County and Port Hope — pick your day, check the weather, and go.
🎪 7 festivals
🆓 3 free
👨👩👧 6 family-friendly
🍽️ 🎵 🏴 Food · music · culture
☀️ Weekend Weather
These festivals spread across the province, so here’s the forecast for all three zones (°C).
💡 Friday and Saturday are the picks for outdoor events — warm and mostly dry everywhere. Sunday turns wet, especially around Ottawa (75% chance of showers), so save indoor plans (BIGLAKE’s concert hall) or a covered market day for then. Forecasts are approximate — check locally before you head out.
📋 This Weekend at a Glance
Tap any festival to jump straight to its details.
🇬🇷
Ottawa GreekFest
Aug 20–23 · Hellenic Event Centre, Ottawa (Barrhaven) · Free
Indian Food Festival of Ottawa
Aug 21–23 · Clarke Fields Park, Nepean · Free
Ottawa Palestinian Festival
Aug 21–23 · Lansdowne Park, Ottawa · Free
Nostalgia Music Festival
Aug 19–23 · LeBreton Flats, Ottawa · From $63/day
North Lanark Highland Games
Sat Aug 22 only · Almonte Fairgrounds · $20, kids free
BIGLAKE Festival: CLASSICS
Aug 21–29 · Wellington Music Hall, Prince Edward County · Ticketed
Port Hope Salmon Festival
Runs to Oct 12 (early season now) · Port Hope Fish Ladder · $20, kids free
⚠️ Three different free cultural festivals run in Ottawa this same weekend — they’re separate events at separate venues, so don’t mix them up: GreekFest (Greek, at the Hellenic Event Centre in Barrhaven), the Indian Food Festival (at Clarke Fields Park, Nepean), and the Palestinian Festival (at Lansdowne Park). Good news: all three are free, so you can easily hop between them.
🔍 Find Your Kind of Festival
Tap a filter to narrow the list below.
All (7)
🆓 Free
👧 Kid-Friendly
🎵 Music
🍔 Food
🎭 Culture
📍 In Ottawa
🚗 Day Trip
Showing all 7 festivals
🎪 This Weekend’s Festivals
🎭 CULTURE
🍴 GREEK FOOD
🆓 FREE
👨👩👧 FAMILY DAY SUN
📍 Barrhaven, Ottawa
Ottawa GreekFest 2026
50th anniversary · This weekend (leg 2): Thu Aug 20 – Sun Aug 23
GreekFest hits its 50th year, and this is the second of its two August long weekends — so if you missed the first, this is your last chance. The Hellenic Community of Ottawa fills the Hellenic Event Centre with live bouzouki and Greek pop, professional dancers, the legendary crowd-pleasing Zorba Show, and volunteer-cooked souvlaki, lamb on the spit, spanakopita and baklava. Free to get in; you just pay for food and wine.
This Weekend’s Hours
📅 Thu Aug 20: 5:00 – 10:00 PM
📅 Fri Aug 21: 5:00 – 11:00 PM
📅 Sat Aug 22: 12:00 PM – 11:00 PM
📅 Sun Aug 23 — Family Day: 12:00 PM – 10:00 PM (kids’ activities)
↔️ Not the same as: the Indian Food Festival (Nepean) or Palestinian Festival (Lansdowne). This is the Greek one, in Barrhaven.
🍛 INDIAN FOOD
🆓 FREE
👧 KIDS ZONE
📍 Nepean
Indian Food Festival of Ottawa 2026
Fri Aug 21 – Sun Aug 23 · Clarke Fields Park
Ottawa’s biggest Indian food party — 15,000+ visitors last year — brings 100+ food vendors covering Mumbai street food, Punjabi curries, South Indian dosas, Bengali sweets and plenty of veg and vegan options. Add 35+ live performances (Bharatanatyam, Kathak, Bhangra, Bollywood DJ sets), a full marketplace, and a free passport stamp game that turns your eating into a prize draw. Free admission, free parking, level and stroller-friendly grounds.
Hours
📅 Fri Aug 21: 4:00 – 10:00 PM (opening night, Kerala drums, DJ sets)
📅 Sat Aug 22: 12:00 – 10:00 PM (busiest 1–7 PM)
📅 Sun Aug 23: 12:00 – 6:00 PM (quieter, great for families)
🥘 Street food
🥙 Dosa & chaat
🌱 Veg & vegan
🛍 Marketplace
🎭 CULTURE
🍽️ PALESTINIAN FOOD
🆓 FREE
📍 Lansdowne Park
Ottawa Palestinian Festival 2026
Fri Aug 21 – Sun Aug 23 · Returning with renewed leadership
Running since 2014 and back in 2026 at Lansdowne Park, this is three days of live music, traditional dabkeh dancing, and authentic Palestinian food — shawarma, kebabs, musakhan (the national dish), kunafa and Palestinian coffee. The Jerusalem Bazaar brings 16+ artisan vendors selling embroidery, fashion, books and handmade goods. Free admission, all ages, right in central Ottawa.
Festival Days
📅 Fri Aug 21: Opening evening — food, bazaar, welcome, live entertainment
📅 Sat Aug 22: Main day — full music, dabkeh, showcases, peak energy
📅 Sun Aug 23: Family & closing day
↔️ Not the same as: GreekFest (Barrhaven) or the Indian Food Festival (Nepean). This is the Palestinian festival, at Lansdowne. Exact daily times are still to be announced — confirm on the official site.
🎸 MUSIC
🕺 70s / 80s / 90s
👧 KIDS 12 & UNDER FREE
📍 LeBreton Flats
Nostalgia Music Festival 2026
Wed Aug 19 – Sun Aug 23 · This weekend: Fri / Sat / Sun
A five-day tribute-band celebration at LeBreton Flats with 13+ professional acts recreating the biggest names of the 70s, 80s and 90s — Black Dog (Led Zeppelin), Floydium (Pink Floyd), Classic Elton, Abbamania, Madonna X, Sound of Sting and more. Big screens, pro lighting, full-service bars, sit-down areas and a VIP option. The OTrain stops a 3-minute walk away, so transit is the easy way in.
This Weekend
📅 Fri Aug 21: Black Dog, Floydium, Still Rock N Roll & more · $63 day pass
📅 Sat Aug 22: Expanded lineup, peak atmosphere · $78 day pass
📅 Sun Aug 23: Closing day · $78 day pass
Full festival pass (all 5 days) $155 · VIP $305 · kids 12 & under free with a ticketed adult
🏴 SCOTTISH CULTURE
📅 SAT AUG 22 ONLY
👧 KIDS 11 & UNDER FREE
📍 Almonte · ~45 min W of Ottawa
North Lanark Highland Games 2026
41st annual · Saturday only · Gates 8:00 AM on the Mississippi River
One of the friendliest — and prettiest — Highland games on the Ontario circuit, set on the riverbank at Almonte Fairgrounds. Expect 20+ pipe bands, 100+ Highland dancers, and heavyweight athletes tossing cabers and hammers, plus clan tents, Scottish vendors, a Mini-Highland Games for kids, a beer garden and an evening ceilidh. About 3,000 people on spacious grounds, so it rarely feels crowded.
Saturday Aug 22 — Day Timeline
⏰ 8:00 AM: Gates open · vendors, family areas, kids’ mini-games
⏰ 1:00 PM: Opening ceremonies & parade
⏰ 1:00 – 5:30 PM: Heavy events, Highland dance, pipe bands
⏰ 5:30 PM: Final Massed Bands · then evening ceilidh in the beer garden
🎟️ General admission $20 (early bird $15), kids 11 & under free. Free near-site parking with a free shuttle, or $15 on-site (no in-and-out).
🎻 CLASSICAL MUSIC
🎟️ TICKETED
🏛️ Indoor concert hall
📍 Prince Edward County
BIGLAKE Festival 2026: CLASSICS
Aug 21–29 · Opening weekend of a nine-day series in Wellington
A world-class chamber music festival that turns the intimate Wellington Music Hall into a concert venue of international calibre. Founded by conductors Elissa Lee and Johannes Debus, the 2026 CLASSICS theme runs ten concerts over nine days — Bach, Beethoven, Haydn, Schumann, Brahms and Vivaldi. This is the opening weekend, and a perfect pairing with a Prince Edward County wine-country escape.
This Weekend’s Concerts
📅 Fri Aug 21, 7:30 PM: Kerson Leong — Opening Night (violin recital)
📅 Sat Aug 22, 7:30 PM: Philip Chiu — Up Close (piano recital)
📅 Sun Aug 23, 5:30 PM: The Goldberg Variations — Bach Then and Now (Ilya Poletaev)
🎫 Individual concert tickets and festival passes at biglakearts.tickit.ca. Wellington is ~1.5 hrs from Ottawa and ~2 hrs from Toronto — book lodging early during festival week. Indoor venue, so Sunday’s rain won’t touch it.
🐟 NATURE
👨👩👧 ALL AGES
🍂 RUNS TO OCT 12
📍 Port Hope
Port Hope Salmon Festival 2026
Open daily 8 AM–11 PM · Aug 21–23 is early season
Not a weekend-only event — this one runs from mid-August to Thanksgiving, tracking the annual Pacific salmon migration up the Ganaraska River. At the Port Hope Fish Ladder you stand just feet from Chinook and Coho salmon as they leap upstream. It’s an easy day trip if you’re near the GTA (about 45 minutes east of Toronto), paired with charming, walkable downtown Port Hope.
🐟 Timing note: This weekend (late August) is early season — salmon are just starting to gather below the dam. Numbers are lower than peak, but it’s quieter and great for photography. Peak is late September to early October. If you want the full leaping spectacle, this is a preview, not the main show.
🎟️ $20 for ages 12+, kids 11 & under free. Fish Ladder open 8 AM–11 PM daily. Wear sturdy shoes — the riverbank is uneven and can be slippery. No dogs in the conservation area.
🗂️ Find By Vibe
🆓 Free
Ottawa GreekFest — Barrhaven
Indian Food Festival — Nepean
Palestinian Festival — Lansdowne
👨👩👧 Best for Families
GreekFest — Family Day Sunday
Indian Food Festival — Kids Zone
Highland Games — Mini-Games, kids 11 free
Salmon Festival — kids 11 free
🎵 For Music Lovers
Nostalgia — 70s/80s/90s tribute bands, Ottawa
BIGLAKE — world-class classical, Prince Edward County
🍽️ For Food & Culture
Indian Food Festival — 100+ vendors
GreekFest — souvlaki, lamb, baklava
Palestinian Festival — musakhan, kunafa, bazaar
Highland Games — Scottish food & beer garden
📍 Quick Directions
One tap for driving directions to each venue.
In Ottawa
🇬🇷
Ottawa GreekFest
Hellenic Event Centre, 1315 Prince of Wales Dr, Barrhaven
Indian Food Festival
Clarke Fields Park, 93 Houlahan St, Nepean
Palestinian Festival
Lansdowne Park, 1525 Princess Patricia Way
Nostalgia Music Festival
LeBreton Flats Park, 1 Vimy Place (OTrain 3-min walk)
Day Trips
🏴
North Lanark Highland Games
Almonte Fairgrounds, 195 Water St • ~45 min W of Ottawa
BIGLAKE Festival
Wellington Music Hall, 42 West St • ~1.5 hrs from Ottawa, ~2 hrs from Toronto
Port Hope Salmon Festival
Fish Ladder, 2 McKibbon St • ~45 min E of Toronto
🚗 Road-trip logic: If you’re based in Ottawa, four of these are in the city (GreekFest, Indian Food, Palestinian, Nostalgia) — you can genuinely bounce between the three free cultural festivals in an afternoon, then add Almonte as a short Saturday day trip. If you’re coming from the GTA, pair Port Hope (near the 401) with a longer run into Prince Edward County for BIGLAKE and wine country — those two sit closest together in the southeast.
🗓️ Day-by-Day Planner
A quick cheat sheet for the weekend.
🐟 Any day: the Port Hope Salmon Festival is open daily 8 AM–11 PM — but late August is early season, so treat it as a scenic bonus rather than the peak run (that’s late Sept–early Oct).
Details may change — always confirm each festival’s official website before heading out. Weather is approximate and drawn from Ottawa, Prince Edward County and Port Hope anchor points; local conditions may vary.