Meetings & Conventions Message Map Diverse venues/tools to meet all needs
Attractions before/after
Green facilities, green city
For award-winning cuisine, top-notch service and amazing vistas, Shaw Conference Centre is built into Edmonton’s river valley and offers stunning views of its surroundings.
At 22 times New York City’s Central Park, Edmonton’s river valley is North America’s largest urban parkland with 160 km of trails for walking, biking, snowshoeing, segwaying, cross-country skiing, and more. Get close to the North Saskatchewan River with guided or independent canoe tours. West Edmonton Mall is North America’s largest entertainment and shopping centre and Alberta’s number-one tourist attraction, featuring over 800 stores and services, 100-plus dining options and 10 world-class attractions. Old Strathcona, a designated historic area and an arts district, hosts a popular year-round farmers’ market, eclectic shopping, eight theatre companies in four venues, and a thriving night life.
Edmonton is a global leader in recycling. Currently, 60 per cent of our solid waste is recycled or composted. By 2013, 90 per cent of residential waste will be diverted from the dump.
A cosmopolitan variety of restaurants and fine cuisine from more than 50 ethnic groups await you, many of which feature organic selections and regionally inspired and sourced menus.
As Canada’s festival city, Edmonton hosts more than 30 major festivals year-round that celebrate music, theatre, arts, sports, film, culture and winter.
FRESH is an innovative tool that offers meeting planners an edge in environmentally and socially responsible options in dining, shopping, accommodations, eventplanning and attractions.
Home to national league sports teams: Edmonton Oilers (hockey), Edmonton Eskimos (football), Rush (lacrosse), Oil Kings (junior hockey), Energy (basketball).
North America’s largest and longestrunning festival of its kind, the 31year-old Edmonton Fringe Theatre Festival attracted 680,000 visitors in 2012.
Shaw Conference Centre is a green facility certified by Building Owners and Managers Association. The centre works with planners to green their events, from start to finish.
Distinct neighbourhoods and shopping districts, each with its own flair, will tempt visitors looking for that special gift — including Old Strathcona, voted one of Canada’s five-best shopping districts.
The Edmonton Folk Festival is a four-day outdoor music extravaganza, attracting more than 90,000 music lovers. Situated in the scenic river valley, this annual festival sells out every year and is Canada’s largest folk music festival.
The magnificent Art Gallery of Alberta, with its marquee architecture echoing the North Saskatchewan River and the Northern Lights, houses 6,000 permanent pieces of art and features world-class, headlining exhibits.
Integrate the city’s river valley into your event-programming — North America’s largest urban green space with 160 km of trails for visitors and residents alike.
Our music scene offers everything from grand venues and the classics to the grassroots and Indie scene. We are alive with theatre, home to Canada’s largest training ground for artists and one of Canada’s most distinguished theatres.
The Edmonton International Street Performers Festival is Canada’s oldest celebration of street theatre, located in the heart of downtown Edmonton and attracted more than 260,000 visitors in 2012.
Edmonton Expo Centre, offering 522,000 square feet of contiguous space, is Canada’s largest facility of its kind west of Toronto. It hosts more than four million visitors annually through 2,500 events and programs. For a more intimate atmosphere, boutique hotels like the Union Bank Inn, Matrix1, Mettera2, Varscona, Selkirk and Fantasyland offer all the conveniences needed for a successful meeting.
Diversions: food, arts, shopping
1ranked
TripAdvisor 2012’s 7th trendiest hotel in Canada 2ranked TripAdvisor 2012’s 13th trendiest hotel in Canada
Diverse off-site venues range from historic Fort Edmonton Park and iconic Art Gallery of Alberta to the Edmonton Queen Riverboat and a replica of the Santa Maria in North America’s largest entertainment and shopping centre.
Updated September 20, 2012
Edmonton is Canada’s festival city
Edmonton has more than 13,000 guest rooms to pick from, with a wide sampling of major hotel brands, suite hotels, trendy boutique properties, motels and a backpackers hostel.
For outdoor options, take in Elk Island National Park, award-winning Ukrainian Cultural Heritage Village and Canada’s largest living history museum, Fort Edmonton Park.
Incorporate Edmonton’s vibrant festival theming as well as socially and environmentally responsible planning into your event with the following tools: - Edmonton Festival City in a Box program offers an interactive experience for participants and creates a long-lasting impression — showcasing some of Edmonton’s finest talents. - FRESH is a tourism industry initiative that offers residents and visitors environmentally and socially responsible options in dining, shopping, accommodations, event-planning and attractions. The “Edmonton Advantage” incentive program makes it easier for event planners to choose Edmonton as their next host city. Ask us how you can take advantage of the program.
The Edmonton attractions pass enables visitors to take in up to 15 Edmonton attractions over a year, saving users 60 per cent.
Edmonton was recognized by TripAdvisor as a top 10 familyfriendly Canadian destination in 2011. Edmonton is your gateway to Jasper National Park, the largest in the majestic Canadian Rockies, via road, air and VIA Rail’s famed crosscountry “The Canadian.” Luxurious mountain hotels and resorts with spectacular spa facilities await you.
Updated September 20, 2012
The downtown arts district, including the Citadel Theatre, Winspear Centre and the Art Gallery of Alberta, boasts performance venues and attract in-demand acts and performers from across Canada and around the world.
Canadian Finals Rodeo has been bringing top rodeo competitors together every fall since 1974 across Canada and the US, competing for a purse of $1.5 million. The Edmonton Indy, the only race of its kind in western Canada, is a challenging 3.6-km/2.3-mile, 13-turn course on an airport runway. Catch the big names competing for the top prize and take in citywide events during Race Week.