List of festivals and events
Here are just a few of the many festivals and events that happen in New Brunswick during the course of a year, for more go here (which takes you to our Canadian site).
Harvest Jazz and Blues Festival
Fredericton: You can sing the blues, but you’ll never feel them when you’re in the groove at the Harvest Jazz and Blues Festival.
Fredericton’s annual celebration is an all-singing, all-dancing, all-enjoyment opportunity you don’t want to miss. Get lost in the music of up to 125 performers and over 350 artists from around the world, performing across 23 different stages, over 6 days. Plus you can go behind the scenes for an intimate dinner with a headlining artist, have backstage access, or take workshops with chances to jam, chat and learn.
World Pond Hockey Championships
If hockey is our most popular national game, then nobody does a better
job of making us feel like Canadians than the people of Plaster Rock.
Every year, this community brings together 120 teams from around the
world to compete for the "World Pond Hockey Championship."
All games are outdoors on a lake which is home to 24 ice surfaces, meaning that many teams can play simultaneously.
Nothing
like this exists anywhere else in the world. It serves as a celebration
of Canadian culture – not just our love of hockey, but our love of
hockey on the ponds, lakes and rivers of our childhood.
Atlantic International Balloon Fiesta
Sussex: A hot-air balloon festival that is the only one of its kind in the Maritimes. Balloons launch twice each day, weather permitting, and are a glorious sight.
New Brunswick Highland Games Festival
Fredericton: Experience Scottish culture through music, games, food and drink on the beautiful grounds of Government House.
A
fun-filled family weekend packed with bagpipes, highland dancing,
Celtic music, Gaelic language, workshops and, of course, the
best-tasting Scottish treats! Caber-tossing and other traditional
sporting events, children's games and genealogy.
St.Stephen: This festival celebrates our chocolate history, as we are Canada's
Chocolate Town. Seven days of celebration for everyone in the family!
Some
of the events are chocolate-themed brunches and lunches, the
chocolate-chip cookie-decorating contest, the hand-dipping contest,
candy treasure hunts, and the Taste of Chocolate. As always, the
festival’s fun-loving mascots, the Great Chocolate Mousse and his lovely
wife, Tiffany, will be on hand to join the festivities.
Shediac: The lowly lobster gets the biggest tribute at this premier event. Come
to the Lobster Capital of the World for five days of fantastic seafood
and world-class entertainment!
Started in 1949, the Shediac
Lobster Festival draws visitors from all over the world to feast on
succulent lobster and soak up Acadian and Maritime culture.
And
what would a lobster festival be without a lobster-eating contest? Every
night, 10 volunteers are chosen from the crowd. Their challenge? To
break down and eat three lobsters with their bare hands as fast as they
can. Come and try your luck at the annual Shediac Lobster Festival...
fun for all ages.
Petit-Rocher: The Dory Boat Festival (Festival des Rameurs) offers many activities, such as a major rowing competition that challenges rowers in a 36-km (22-mi.) race on Chaleur Bay.
Caraquet: The largest annual celebration of Acadian culture is bigger and better
than ever this year. The program is jam-packed, including a spectacular
musical-fireworks show and many other artistic events. The crowds flock
to the warm and welcoming atmosphere of Caraquet!
Over 200
artists – singers, musicians, actors, dancers, writers and more – from
Acadia and the francophone world, will present their talent. More than
ever, the "Gala de la chanson" provides many highly talented Acadian artists with a prestigious springboard.
Lamèque International Baroque Music Festival
Lameque: The whole Island of Lamèque takes on a festive atmosphere during the
Lamèque International Baroque Music Festival. The public is invited to
evenings rich in musical discoveries where, as always, a mix of
internationally renowned artists interprets all styles from the vast
spectrum of early music: popular music.
This
event is the oldest Baroque music festival in Canada and is devoted to
the period between 1600 and 1760, respecting the aesthetics of the
Baroque era through the use of period instruments or replicas.
Miramichi: This is Canada's longest-standing folk festival. You will join a celebration of song and dance featuring authentic traditional and contemporary folk music. From story songs passed on by lumberjacks of old, to modern-day troubadours singing their own compositions, this event has a unique flavour. There are open-air concerts, noon luncheons with live music and much more.
Chaleur Bay International Chamber Music Festival
Dalhousie: The Baie des Chaleurs (Chaleur Bay) International Chamber Music Festival offers a series of concerts by high-calibre musicians and vocalists from New Brunswick, Canada and abroad.
