It’s a new year in the Niagara Region! We hope you enjoyed all the festivities to end 2025 and jump into 2026. This year already has lots to bring, and we’re just getting started.
The Icewine Festival
A new way to winter…Niagara’s coolest Festival returns January 2026!
Icewine Discovery Pass – January 16-18, 23-25, 30-Feb 1:
The Icewine Discovery Pass pairs world-class Icewines with spicy, savoury, or sweet bites from inspired local chefs — the perfect way to warm up your winter weekends.
NOTL Icewine Village – January 17-18, 24-25:
Stroll through the historic district, sip local Icewines, and cozy up by the fire with Muskoka chairs. Enjoy live ice carving, festive vibes, and free admission — or elevate your experience with VIP access.
Cool as Ice Gala – January 31:
Enjoy an all-inclusive evening of premium Niagara wine, Icewine cocktails and mocktails, locally-inspired culinary creations, live arts performances, and so much more at the Niagara Parks Power Station. Grab your tux or your gown and prepare to dance the night away!
Learn more about the festival here.
Photo from Tourism Niagara on the Lake
Winter Wonderland and Farmer’s Market in Welland
Who says farmers’ markets are only a warm-weather activity? The Welland Farmer’s Market is on every Saturday in January. Plus, on January 17, the market hosts a special Winter Wonderland featuring free hot chocolate and apple cider, a snowman-building contest, and winter pancakes at the cafe!
Pop in for the market, and head home with some tasty local goods.
Find Details About the Market.
Photo from Welland Farmer’s Market
Hit the Hot Chocolate Trail – It’s on Until February!
The Hot Chocolate Trail is still on!
Be sure to check out the Peppermint Hot Chocolate or Whisky Cream Hot Chocolate from our friends at the Moose & Squirrel in the DoubleTree Fallsview Resort and the Toasted Vanilla Smores Hot Chocolate or Billy Miner Hot Chocolate at The Keg on Fallsview Boulevard. You really can’t go wrong with any of the many options all along the trail!
Now until February 1, 2026
Photo from Niagara Falls Tourism
Skate at Wayne Gretzky Estates
This winter, head to Wayne Gretzky Estates for an authentic Canadiana experience – outdoor skating! Relax at the heated Whisky Bar Patio as they serve up wine and hot and sturdy cocktails paired with a warm winter-inspired menu. Plus, on Community Skate Days (every Monday), Niagara residents can enjoy free skating. All proceeds from skate rentals will be donated to neighbouring charities in Niagara-on-the-Lake.
December to early March (Weather dependent)
Find out more and go for a skate.
Photo from Wayne Gretzky Estates
black and blue: pottery and poetry by martina doom
black and blue is a project born through life’s most transformative experiences – love, loss, everything that comes in between and after. Written over two years, these poems explore the softness of what lingers underneath the surface when we’re left to sit with discomfort. Each sculpture is built by hand, coil by coil, and assembled in a spiral motion. This slow and intentional process mimics the pace of digesting our own behavioural patterns and attachment wounds.
Now until January 17, 2026, at Niagara Artists Centre
Photo from Niagara Artists Centre
