I have lots of money-saving tips in this week’s “heads up” post, including the scoop on a free paddling event on the Rideau Canal, free movie screenings and big savings on Interzip Rogers. For music fans, there’s the release of the Festival of Small Halls lineup, news of a music festival near Westport and an upcoming 80s concert at Lansdowne Park. I even tell you how you could win a VIP visit to a grain elevator rooftop.
Festival of Small Halls expands
The Festival of Small Halls is the little event that grew! This fall, it will be presenting concerts in (mostly) wee venues for two whole months, from October 4 to December 7. The huge roster of artists includes Sarah Harmer (see video above), Ron Sexsmith, Harry Manx and many more. Host communities in Eastern Ontario include Almonte, Russell, Spencerville, Winchester, Cornwall and Delta. Tickets are available now.
Tickets are also available for the festival’s summer dinner series at the National Arts Centre. The Chef’s Table (July 11 to 27) will see top chefs creating farm-to-table menus for the NAC’s canalside restaurant, 1 Elgin. As diners enjoy their meal, they’ll be entertained by live musical performances.
See movies outdoors, for free
Starting later this month and continuing until October, Capital Pop-Up Cinema will once again be screening free outdoor movies in surprising locations around the city. You might find yourself watching The Rocky Horror Picture Show at the Saintlo Ottawa Jail Hostel (Friday, June 21), Home Alone on Sparks Street (Friday, July 26) or, intriguingly, The Creature from the Black Lagoon at Beechwood Cemetery (Saturday, October 5). No tickets are necessary, dogs are welcome, and you can bring your own seating or rent lawn chairs when you get there (arrive early if you plan to rent, as quantities are limited).
Interzip Rogers cuts prices in half
Yep, you read that right. Interzip Rogers has slashed the ticket prices for its zipline trips over the Ottawa River. They now start at $19.99—a 50 percent drop over the fee in previous years. The zipline is scheduled to open for the season on Saturday, June 8, and tickets are available now.
Enter to win a VIP roof visit in Johnstown
The Port of Johnstown—just east of Prescott on the St. Lawrence River—is hosting an open house on Saturday, June 22, with live entertainment, bouncy castles and general family fun. But here’s an insider tip: If you email the organizers by Friday, June 7, you’ll be entered in a draw for VIP access to the grain elevator roof.
Lock & Paddle is coming to the Rideau Canal in July
If you follow me on Facebook, you might have seen the post I shared a few weeks ago about the Lock & Paddle event at the Peterborough Lift Locks last year. (See the video above for a taste of the event.) More than 600 people participated to smush 403 canoes and kayaks into the locks.
Does that sound like the sort of event that would float your boat, as it were? Then you’re in luck, as Parks Canada is expanding this free event to the Rideau Canal in Ottawa and the Lachine Canal in Montreal this year (the Peterborough event will also take place). It’s all happening on Parks Day—Saturday, July 20—and you can find out more in Vanessa Chiasson’s fun piece in Cottage Life.
Tickets are available for a music festival near Westport
Wintergreen Studios, an eco-friendly retreat centre in South Frontenac, is hosting a Full Moon Festival on Saturday, June 22. Five musical acts, including Lynn Miles and Jamie Campbell, will entertain attendees. All tickets include the concerts, beverages and a light dinner. You can come just for the festival ($65 per person), or stay overnight and get breakfast the next morning as well ($195 per person). Attendance will be capped at 60 people. Wintergreen Studios is about a 20-minute drive southwest of Westport, so about an hour and 45 minutes southwest of Ottawa.
Speaking of music…
The lineup of The 80s Club, a four-act concert coming to the Arena at TD Place on Tuesday, November 26, catapulted me right back to my days in residence at Carleton University. If the prospect of seeing Honeymoon Suite, A Flock of Seagulls, Men Without Hats and Spoons has you reaching for your leg warmers and humming “Arias and Symphonies,” you’ll be pleased to know that tickets are on sale now.
P.S.: What, exactly, is going on in the Men Without Hats video for “Safety Dance” above? Why is a band from Montreal staging what looks like a medieval flash mob in an English village? Why does the video end with a rapid series of photos of Second World War bombers and rockets? And, most importantly, were we all delusional in the ’80s? I have so many questions.
Looking for more tips on things to see and do in and around Ottawa? Subscribe to my free weekly newsletter or order a copy of my book, Ottawa Road Trips: Your 100-km Getaway Guide.
As the owner of Ottawa Road Trips, I acknowledge that I live on, work in and travel through the unceded, unsurrendered territory of the Algonquin Anishinaabeg Nation. I am grateful to have the opportunity to be present on this land. Ottawa Road Trips supports Water First, a non-profit organization that helps address water challenges in Indigenous communities in Canada through education, training and meaningful collaboration.
