Cultures · the festival year
Ottawa's community festivals, 2027, month by month.
Lebanese, Greek, Italian, Ukrainian, African, Franco-Ontarian and multicultural festivals: who runs each one, when it falls and where it was held last time.
Eleven festivals · May to November
In short
Ottawa's community festivals run from May to November. The Tulip Festival opens in May; Italian Week and the Festival franco-ontarien fill June; the Ottawa Lebanese Festival takes five days in mid-July at St. Elias; GreekFest, the African and the Ukrainian festivals fill August; Kanata and Capital Cultures come in September; the World Multicultural Festival ends the year indoors.
The season, on one line.
Six stops from spring to the first snow. September is where Capital Cultures sits.
May to November
- MayTulips at Dow's LakeThe city's spring opener.
- JuneItalian Week · Franco-Ontarian · 27 JuneThree in one month, and Canadian Multiculturalism Day.
- JulyLebanese festival at St. EliasFive days in mid-July.
- AugustGreekFest · African · UkrainianThe fullest month of the year.
- SeptemberKanata · Capital CulturesMany communities, one field.
- Oct–NovWorld Multicultural FestivalThe season ends indoors.
Eleven festivals, and who runs them.
Each row gives the last edition's dates as the organiser published them; the 2027 dates go in the day the organiser publishes them.
| Month | Festival | Where | Last edition | Who and what |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| May | Canadian Tulip Festival | Commissioners Park, Dow's Lake | 8–18 May 2026 · free | keeps the Dutch royal gift of tulips |
| June | Italian Week | Little Italy, Preston Street | 11–21 June 2026 | run by Italian Week Ottawa |
| June | Festival franco-ontarien | Ottawa | 11–13 June 2026 · ticketed | the Franco-Ontarian festival |
| June | Canadian Multiculturalism Day · Capital Cultures Day in 2027 | Ottawa | 27 June, every year | named by Canadian Heritage |
| July | Ottawa Lebanese Festival · Lebanese Ottawa | St. Elias Cathedral grounds, 750 Ridgewood Avenue | 15–19 July 2026 · free entry in the daytime | run by the St. Elias parish |
| August | Ottawa GreekFest | Hellenic Community centre, 1315 Prince of Wales Drive | 13–16 and 20–23 August 2026 · free | run by the Hellenic Community of Ottawa |
| August | Ottawa African Festival | Britannia Beach | 28–30 August 2026 | the 17th edition in 2026 |
| August | Capital Ukrainian Festival · Ukrainian Ottawa | Ottawa | late August | run by the community itself |
| September | Kanata Multicultural Dance, Music and Food Festival | 100 Charlie Rogers Place, Kanata | 12–13 September 2026 · free | dance, music and food |
| September | Capital Cultures · the festival | Ottawa | September 2027 · free entry | every community runs its own pavilion |
| October–November | World Multicultural Festival | indoors, one day | October or November in recent editions | many cultures under one roof |
Dates and places from tulipfestival.ca, italianweekottawa.ca, ffo.ca, ottawalebanesefestival.com and ottawagreekfest.ca; the African, Kanata and World Multicultural rows from the Ottawa Festival Network calendar and Ottawa Tourism; 27 June from Canadian Heritage.
Where Capital Cultures fits in that year.
Most of these weekends belong to one community. Capital Cultures puts many of them on one field.
Capital Cultures is a free two-day multicultural festival in Ottawa, Ontario, in September 2027, where each community runs its own pavilion and keeps what its counter takes. A community that already runs its own summer festival keeps it; the pavilion is a second weekend, later in the year, beside its neighbours.
Who can apply
An Ontario non-profit whose board mostly lives in the Ottawa region. What a pavilion gets.
How it works
The application takes about ten minutes; the office screens it, the programming committee meets you, and two officers sign the agreement. Host a pavilion.
When
September 2027, in Ottawa. A person answers every application and every message within ten working days.
Cost
The pavilion fee is $0, and every dollar the counter takes stays with the community. Entry is free for visitors. The agreement.
How a festival gets onto this page.
Organisers write in; the row goes up with their dates and their link.
Send the festival's name, the month, the place and the organiser's own page with the form on the cultures index. A row needs a date the organiser has published. For the holidays your community keeps rather than its festival, see Ottawa's cultural calendar; for heritage months, heritage months in Canada.
Short answers
What people ask about Ottawa's community festivals, answered from the table above.
Seven questions
When is the Ottawa Lebanese Festival (Leb Fest)?
In mid-July, over five days, on the grounds of St. Elias Cathedral at 750 Ridgewood Avenue. The 2026 edition ran 15–19 July, with free entry in the daytime. It belongs to the St. Elias parish. Lebanese Ottawa.
What is the World Multicultural Festival in Ottawa?
A one-day indoor festival held in October or November in recent editions, run by its own non-profit. Capital Cultures is a different festival: a free two-day multicultural festival in September 2027, where each community runs its own pavilion. About Capital Cultures.
Which multicultural festivals are in Ottawa in 2027?
Canadian Multiculturalism Day on 27 June, marked in 2027 by Capital Cultures Day; the Kanata Multicultural Dance, Music and Food Festival in September; Capital Cultures in September 2027; the World Multicultural Festival in the autumn. Single-community festivals fill May to August.
When is Ottawa GreekFest?
In August, over two long weekends, at the Hellenic Community centre, 1315 Prince of Wales Drive, with free admission. In 2026 it ran 13–16 and 20–23 August.
When is Italian Week in Ottawa?
In June, in Little Italy on Preston Street. The 2026 edition ran 11–21 June. Italian Heritage Month falls in the same month. Heritage months in Canada.
Are the 2027 dates out?
Each organiser publishes its own on its site. This page gives the last edition's dates and the month each festival keeps, and a row changes the day an organiser publishes the new dates.
How does my community's festival get listed here?
Write with the form on the cultures index: the festival's name, month, place and the organiser's page. A person answers every application and every message within ten working days.