A major Toronto festival will not take place in 2026.
The Toronto Waterfront Festival announced it is taking a “pause” this year.
Organizers said the decision comes from a “perfect storm of circumstances,” including the fact they received no government grant funding for the first time in 16 years. They also said it has been harder to secure corporate sponsors, partly because of competition from events tied to the FIFA World Cup.
The festival usually celebrates Toronto’s waterfront with activities on land and water.
Organizers called the situation financially difficult, saying they are not able to run the event without public funding or enough sponsorship.
Despite the cancellation, they say the festival will return in 2027. They also plan to bring back the giant rubber duck, which last appeared in Toronto in 2017 and is expected to return for Canada’s 160th anniversary.
