What's on in Charlottetown, Canada through the year

Peak crowds — Christmas Day closures, Winter / Christmas break in Canada

Nothing new starts in January.

Still on: Winter quiet (15 Nov – 15 Apr), Christmas Day closures (24 Dec – 1 Jan)

Quiet — one of its worst months for weather

Nothing new starts in February.

Still on: Winter quiet (15 Nov – 15 Apr)

Busy — March break / semaine de relâche in Canada

Nothing new starts in March.

Still on: Winter quiet (15 Nov – 15 Apr)

Shoulder season — an ordinary month

Nothing new starts in April.

Still on: Winter quiet (15 Nov – 15 Apr)

Shoulder season — an ordinary month

Nothing new starts in May.

Busy — Summer break in Canada, school holidays in 2 of the markets that fill it

• Festival

  Charlottetown Festival

  25 Jun – 26 SepArts festivalBook early

  The Confederation Centre's summer theatre season, running from late June into late September, built around the Anne of Green Gables musical that has played here since the 1960s. Matinees sell out before the evening shows do. Source ↗

Peak crowds — Canada Day, Summer break in Canada

• Holiday

  Canada Day

  1 JulNational holidayClosuresCrowded

  1 July is a statutory holiday across the country, moved to 2 July when it falls on a Sunday. Banks, government offices and many shops close, towns put on daytime concerts and parades with fireworks after dark, and hotels and ferries fill when it makes a long weekend. Source ↗

Still on: Charlottetown Festival (25 Jun – 26 Sep)

Peak crowds — Old Home Week, Summer break in Canada

• Festival

  Old Home Week

  14–22 AugMajor festivalCrowdedBook early

  The island's agricultural fair takes over the exhibition grounds for nine days in the middle of August: livestock classes, a midway, and the Gold Cup and Saucer harness race that half the province turns out for. Source ↗

Still on: Charlottetown Festival (25 Jun – 26 Sep)

Peak crowds — Cruise ship calls, Summer break in Canada

• Season

  Cruise ship calls

  1 Sep – 31 Oct · usuallyCruise seasonCrowded

  The port takes most of its calls in September and October, when the Canada and New England itineraries come through — around three dozen ships in two months into a city of forty thousand. Victoria Row is quiet again by five. Source ↗

• Festival

  Fall Flavours

  24 Sep – 10 OctHarvestBook early

  Three weeks of shellfish suppers, kitchen parties and chef dinners staged across the island, with Charlottetown the base most people book. The signature events go early; the small ones in the fishing villages are the better ticket. Source ↗

Still on: Charlottetown Festival (25 Jun – 26 Sep)

Busy — Cruise ship calls

Nothing new starts in October.

Still on: Cruise ship calls (1 Sep – 31 Oct (usually)), Fall Flavours (24 Sep – 10 Oct)

Shoulder season — an ordinary month

• Season

  Winter quiet

  15 Nov – 15 AprOff-season shutdownClosures

  The tour boats, the festival stages and a good share of the waterfront restaurants shut once the ships stop coming, and the island goes back to its own company. Rooms are cheap and the Confederation Centre still programmes.

Peak crowds — Christmas Day closures, Winter / Christmas break in Canada

• Holiday

  Christmas Day closures

  24 Dec – 1 JanChristmas & New YearClosures

  Christmas Day is a statutory holiday nationwide: most shops, museums and many restaurants close and transit runs a holiday schedule. Boxing Day brings sales crowds to the malls where it is kept, and 1 January is another quiet, mostly closed day. Source ↗

Still on: Winter quiet (15 Nov – 15 Apr)