Edmonton - Canada's Festival City Travel Guide

Edmonton, which traces its roots back to 1795, began as a fur-trading outpost. Just over 100 years later, during the 1897 Klondike Gold Rush prospectors boosted Edmonton’s fortune as they stopped in Edmonton for supplies en route to the Yukon. Many would also make Edmonton their permanent home increasing the population to six times its previous size.

 

Today, Edmonton is home to 782,439 residents, and with its neighbouring communities comprises a metropolitan region that is home to 1.03 million residents. It's the capital of the province of Alberta, Canada’s sixth-largest city, and has the longest stretch of urban parkland in North America, which is 22 times larger than New York’s Central Park and eight times larger than Vancouver’s Stanley Park.

 

Edmonton hosts more than 30 festivals throughout the year that celebrate arts, culture and sports. Throughout the summer festivals are held for blues, bluegrass, folk, jazz and symphonic music. Winter festivals focus on ice sculptures, skiing and skating. In-between, there’s something for everyone. From the Canadian Finals Rodeo to the Freewill Shakespeare Festival – and five distinct arts festivals that focus on art, design, storytelling and film – you’ll find it all in Edmonton, Canada’s Festival City!

Edmonton is also one of Canada’s sunniest cities with about 2,300 hours of sunshine per year. In June, the city enjoys up to 17 hours of daylight per day.