#FIRSTLOOK: WINTERFEST AT HARBOURFRONT CENTRE 2025

Harbourfront Centre invites you to welcome the season with Winterfest at Harbourfront Centre, a campus-wide celebration transforming the waterfront into a vibrant winter playground. From enchanting live arts experiences and family pantomimes to fire-and-ice circus performances, social dance nights, comedy, festive workshops, and even singing sheep, Winterfest brings together the spirit of community, creativity, and play. 

On November 28, 2025 the Harbourfront Centre’s expanded rink will be open to the public, alongside two attractions: the Harbourfront Express and the Winter Wooden Maze. This marks the first major milestone in a multi-year recreational partnership with Canadian Tire Jumpstart Charities (Jumpstart), expanding access to barrier-free community recreation for youth and families on Toronto’s waterfront.

EVENT:

Winterfest at Harbourfront Centre Tree Lighting Ceremony

DATE:

Friday, November 28, 2025

TIME:

Tree Lighting at 7:00 p.m.

LOCATION:

Harbourfront Centre Public Square

Winterfest at Harbourfront Centre 2025 transforms Toronto’s waterfront into a vibrant winter playground, inviting visitors to experience the magic of the season across our full campus. With live arts experiences, family pantomimes, fire-and-ice circus performances, social dance nights, comedy, hands-on workshops and even singing sheep, the festival celebrates community, creativity and play.

This year, the festival stretches across both the East and West campus, blending indoor and outdoor programming for families, arts lovers, skaters and holiday explorers. Central to the experience is skating on our newly expanded Canadian Tire Jumpstart Charities Rink, which anchors the season with more space, more access and more opportunities for people to gather on the water.

Everything builds toward a New Year’s Eve finale with fireworks supported by the City of Toronto, along with a live CBC broadcast to ring in 2026.

Programming Overview

Winterfest offers free campus-wide admission, with select performances available by ticket. Visitors can explore indoor and outdoor programming designed for families, arts lovers, skaters, and holiday seekers.

Campus Experiences

Winter Maze
Harbourfront Express train ride
Light tunnel and campus lighting
Seasonal décor and festive installations
Hot chocolate and winter treats
Outdoor skating on the expanded rink (free access)
DJ Skate Nights (Saturdays)
New Year’s Eve celebration with live music and fireworks
Live Performances and Entertainment

Steven Taetz
The Baker Street Victorian Carollers
Amanda Martinez (Spanish Christmas carols)
The Arsenals: Happy Ska’lidays
The Alpine Merry Sheep Choir
Roving performers and musical pop-ups across campus
Winter Solstice storytelling by the fire
Theatre, Comedy, and Cabaret

Torrent Productions: Jack and the Beans Talk – A Merry Magical Pantomime
Trixx and Friends Comedy Night
The Naughty List Holiday Drag and Cabaret (18+)
Workshops, Markets, and Creative Programming

Skate by the Lake (November 28 to March 1)
Adaptive skate options
The Holiday Hop: Social Dance Series
Arts & Culture Highlights

Ticketed theatre and dance programming
Seasonal performances across music, comedy, and multi-arts
Programming designed to bring warmth and connection to the winter season
Campus Activations and Outdoor Experiences

Winter Maze
Harbourfront Express Train
Light Tunnel
Vendor Lane
Hot chocolate trailers
Holiday Tree Warming Zone
Food, Beverage, and Market Vendors

A curated lineup of seasonal vendors will animate the campus, including:

WVRST
Sweetie Pie
Jacket Potatoes
Panchos Bakery
High on Chai
Craft & Design Holiday Market (Dec 6–7)

Harbourfront Centre’s renowned Artists-in-Residence present a curated marketplace featuring:

Jewellery, ceramics, home décor, textiles, and locally crafted gifts
More than fifteen emerging artists, including:
Emma Bickers
Keenan O’Toole
Khadija Aziz
Tracey-Mae Chambers
Jiho Choi
Ellinor Nelson-Hachey
And more
This market celebrates the Centre’s 51-year legacy as a national leader in craft and design.

Winterfest 2025 is made possible through the support of our partners, artists, staff, volunteers, and the broader community who help bring the waterfront to life each season. With expanded skating, creative programming, family experiences, and a spectacular New Year’s Eve celebration, the festival offers something for every visitor. Harbourfront Centre welcomes everyone to join us this winter and be part of a vibrant, inclusive community celebration.

ABOUT HARBOURFRONT CENTRE

Harbourfront Centre is Toronto’s waterfront community campus for arts, culture, learning, and recreation. Spanning a 10-acre campus at the heart of Toronto’s central waterfront, it is a registered, charitable not-for-profit cultural organization that offers year-round programs and events accessible to all audiences. Whether hailing from across the street or around the globe, Harbourfront Centre offers memorable and meaningful experiences for all who visit.

As a legacy institution serving Toronto for more than 50 years, Harbourfront Centre is uniquely positioned at the intersection of creativity and community. We are still here, a place where artists, audiences, and ideas converge. Our prime location offers a rare expanse of green space in the downtown core, with multiple outdoor venues along a natural waterfront setting. There is no other space like it in the city.

As a non-profit, Harbourfront Centre is committed to cultural and community engagement. Much of programming is free, helping ensure that arts, culture and recreation remain inclusive and accessible to all. With public funding from the City of Toronto, the Government of Ontario, and the Government of Canada, we serve as a vital cultural and economic driver. We are a hub for Canadian creativity, innovation, and identity.

Each year, we welcome more than 6.3 million visitors and present over 500 performances and exhibitions. We showcase the work of 1,900 artists annually, more than 1,500 of whom are Canadian, across our theatres, galleries, outdoor stages, studios, and public spaces.

We invest over 1 million dollars annually in artist fees, providing essential support to Canadian creators and makers. Our Artist-in-Residency program at the Craft & Design Studio is the only one of its kind in Canada, offering a platform that cannot be found elsewhere in the country. Together with our Performing Arts residencies, we provide mentorship, studio space, and development opportunities for emerging and mid-career artists.

Our world-class multicultural festivals span the globe, from the Middle East to Asia, Africa to Europe, and across the Americas. We are proud to be a welcoming home for new immigrants, where every community can find a piece of home through art, food, and culture. Especially now, as conversations around global migration intensify, we remain committed to creating space for belonging, dialogue, and joy.

Open seven days a week, fifty-two weeks a year, Harbourfront Centre is a year-round space for connection, collaboration, and celebration.

Learn more at www.harbourfrontcentre.com