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There is no shortage of free things to do in the city.

The following list are some of the festivals available throughout the city with no admission charge.

North York
Movies Under the Stars
Downsview Park presents free movies Friday nights at 9 p.m. Bring your blankets or lawn chairs. Concession stand available on site.
Aug. 15 – Shrek the Third
Aug. 22 – Surf’s Up
Aug. 29 – To be announced
Downsview Park, 35 Carl Hall Rd.
www.downsviewpark.ca

Sunday Serenades
Free swing, big band and jazz groups bring music to Mel Lastman Square.
Aug. 10 - Simon Maxwell
Aug. 17 - George Lake Big Band
Aug. 24 - Skylark
7:30 to 9 p.m.
Mel Lastman Square, 5100 Yonge St.
www.toronto.ca/special_events/serenades/index.htm

*******Pan in the Park
A Caribbean pan music festival featuring steel drum band performances, Caribbean rhythm and folk dancers, drummers and singers and traditional food vendors.

Aug. 10
Downsview Park, 35 Carl Hall Rd.
www.downsviewpark.ca

*********Hispanic Fiesta
The 27th annual festival features local and international Hispanic performers that cover the 20 countries that speak Spanish, in addition to food and a look at Hispanic culture.

Aug. 29 to Sept. 1
Mel Lastman Square, 5100 Yonge St.
www.hispanicfiesta.com

*******EcoSavvy Festival
The festival offers people a chance to discover local sustainable businesses, learn from knowledgeable speakers about green and enjoy local organic food and live entertainment.

Aug. 16
11 a.m. to 9 p.m.
Mel Lastman Square, 5100 Yonge St.
www.enlightenedevents.ca/ecosavvyfestival

Family Fun Summer Festival
Enjoy free games and activities for the kids at 6 p.m. with various concerts at 7 p.m.

Aug. 21 - Music group to be announced
Earl Bales Park, 4169 Bathurst St.
416-395-7873

Tuesday Night Live, Concert in Park
Come to Earl Bales Park for concerts in various music styles.
7 p.m.
Aug. 12 - Casa Blanca orchestra
Aug. 19 - Renne Barba, sorpano
Aug. 26 - Ashkanez Festival 2008.
As this is the largest concert of the season, tickets must be ordered in advance. On the day of the event, people can pick up tickets at the box office at noon. There will be limited rush tickets available at 6 p.m. There are two tickets available per person. The rain location is at Best David B’nai Israel Beth Am on Bathurst Street.
Earl Bales Park, 4169 Bathurst St.
416-395-7873

Hindu Heritage Festival
Enjoy a celebration of Hindu culture, presented by the Hindu Federation.
Aug. 10
11 a.m. to 5 p.m.
Black Creek Pioneer Village, 1000 Murray Ross Pkwy.
Free with admission
www.blackcreek.ca/whatson

Community Concert Series
Every Saturday and Sunday throughout the summer, community arts groups will perform on the Event Pavilion stage at Black Creek Pioneer Village.
July and August weekends, excluding special event days
1 p.m.
Black Creek Pioneer Village, 1000 Murray Ross Pkwy.
Free with admission
www.blackcreek.ca/whatson

Black Creek Brews Fest
Discover and enjoy locally produced craft beer, food, drink and music.
Sept. 6 and 7
11 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.
Black Creek Pioneer Village, 1000 Murray Ross Pkwy.
Free with admission for members, $13 for adults, $12 for seniors and students and $9 for children
www.blackcreek.ca/whatson

Weekend to End Breast Cancer
The sixth annual Weekend to End Breast Cancer event, benefitting Princess Margaret Hospital is a 60-kilometre walk to raise funds for breast cancer research and care in Toronto. Participants spend the night at Downsview Park.
Sept. 6 and 7
Downsview Park, 35 Carl Hall Rd.
www.downsviewpark.ca

Pioneer Festival
The 52nd annual Mennonite and Pennsylvania-German festival boasts a quilt auction and traditional foods. A guided horse-drawn wagon ride will take visitors through the North Property.
Sept. 20
10 a.m. to 5 p.m.
Black Creek Pioneer Village, 1000 Murray Ross Pkwy.
Free with admission
www.blackcreek.ca/whatson

Etobicoke
********Lakeshore Mardi Gras
Enjoy entertainment, vendors and more.
until Aug. 10
Colonel Samuel Smith Park, Lakeshore Boulevard West and Kipling Avenue
www.lakeshoremardigras.ca

Corn Roast, Market and Heritage Fair
Montgomery’s Inn offers a bake sale, farmers market, country and western music and displays. Bring lawn chairs and marshmallows.
Sept. 4
5 to 8 p.m.
Montgomery’s Inn, 4709 Dundas St. W. at Islington Avenue
Free parking. Call 416-394-8113
 
Midtown Toronto
Cabbagetown Fall Festival
Cabbagetown comes alive with this festival with entertainment, fashion shows, a film festival and more.
Sept. 13 and 14
Parliament and Prospect streets
www.cabbagetowntoronto.com/festival/index.shtml

Word on the Street
Queen’s Park will transform into a book lover’s paradise with a marketplace of more than 250 book, magazine and literacy exhibits, readings by more than 170 Canadian authors, poets, storytellers, and performers, and a myriad of workshops for aspiring writers.
Sept. 28
11 a.m. to 6 p.m.
Queen’s Park
www.thewordonthestreet.ca


BEACH/RIVERDALE
The Laugh Out Loud Summer Reading Club presents Silly Stories and Goofy Games on Tuesday, Aug. 12 at 2 p.m.
This free event will take place at the Beaches Library, 2161 Queen St. E.
Call 416-393-7703 for more information.
This event is recommended for children ages four and older.

The Neighbourhood Unitarian Universalist Congregation, 79 Hiawatha Rd., will host a soul-painting event on Sunday, Aug. 17 from 10:30 a.m. to noon.
This event is free but donations are accepted.
Call Ida at 416-275-0565 for details.

The Laugh Out Loud Summer Reading Club will hold its wrap-up party Tuesday, Aug. 19 at the Beaches Library, 2161 Queen St. E.
This event kicks off at 2 p.m. and will feature U-Who, the Clown and Oreo, the Bunny.
Call 416-393-7703 for information.
This event is recommended for children ages four and up.

*********The sights and sounds of all things South Asian will be front and centre at Gerrard Street East’s Festival of South Asia.
This free event is set to take place Saturday, Aug. 24 and Sunday, Aug. 25.
The festival of food, music and dance will take place along the Little India Bazaar, which runs on Gerrard Street East between Coxwell and Greenwood avenues.
Visit www.festivalofsouthasia.com for details.


Bloor West Village
*******Junction Arts Festival
The festival includes an art exhibit, performing artists, kids zone and more.
Sept. 3 to 7
www.junctionartsfest.com

Toronto Ukrainian Festival
One of the premier Ukrainian festivals in North America, the Toronto Ukrainian Festival offers food, vendors, entertainment and more.
Sept. 12 to 14
www.ukrainianfestival.com

Roncesvalles Polish Festival
Celebrate Polish culture and Roncesvalles Village during the festival, which usually attracts about 100,000 people.
Sept. 13 and 14
www.roncesvallesvillage.ca


Parkdale
Rainwater Harvesting Celebration and Garden Potluck
Celebrate the installation of the HOPE Garden Rainwater Harvesting System.
Aug. 13
An information session and celebration begins at 6 p.m.
Potluck takes place at 7 p.m.
Masaryk-Cowan Park, 220 Cowan Avenue

Fourth annual Parkdale Youth Festival
A day of family entertainment to raise awareness for various Parkdale youth service organizations.
Saturday Aug. 23 from 2 to 10 p.m.
Masaryk-Cowan Park, 220 Cowan Ave.

First annual Queer West Youth Film and Video Fest
********A truly independent film festival for queer youth with both local and international filmmakers on the roster. Donations accepted. 
Saturday, Aug. 23
Doors at 8 p.m. show 9 to 11 p.m.
Good Catch General Store, 1556 Queen St. W.
For more information call 416-551-1709 or visit www.goodcatch.ca

******Fourteenth annual GWN Dragon Boat Challenge
Toronto’s premier dragon boat event at Marilyn Bell Park. More than 5,000 participants compete. There is also a kid’s zone.
Sept. 6 and 7
Western Beaches Watercourse at Marilyn Bell Park (Lakeshore, just west of the Exhibition)
Call 416 962-8899.
 

Scarborough
Sunday Serenades Concert Series.
The Scarborough Civic Centre Rotunda comes alive with various music.
Sundays until December
2 to 4 p.m.
Scarborough Civic Centre, 150 Borough Dr.
Aug. 10 - Toronto Starlight Orchestra
Aug. 17 - Sheraton Cadwell Orchestra
Aug. 24 - Oscar Kay Orchestra
Aug. 31 - Labour Day, no concert
Sept. 7 - Swing Shift Band
Sept. 14 - Dave Parsons
Sept. 21 - Royal Swing Band
Sept. 28 - Cathedral Bluffs Orchestra
www.toronto.ca/parks/scarborough-civic-centre-concerts.htm

East York
******Dog Days of Summer
Enjoy an afternoon of doggie fun with contests, games, vendors and more. Register your dog for the CKC Canine Good Neighbour test ($25 fee).
Sunday, Aug. 24
noon to 4 p.m.
Todmorden Mills, 67 Pottery Rd.
Free admission and parking.

ANNEX/DOWNTOWN
The Tollkeeper’s Cottage is presented here, but with an asterisk. It’s Toronto’s newest museum, located right in newly renamed Tollkeeper’s Park on the northwest corner of Davenport Road and Bathurst Street.
It’s housed in a building, circa mid-19th century, that, as the name suggests, was used by the tollkeeper and his family, and almost in the exact location where it now stands.
An asterisk is behind this entry, however, because at this point admission is by “voluntary contribution.” The volunteer grassroots Community History Project, which has and continues to contribute untold volunteer hours toward this project, would appreciate any contribution to help cover their costs.
www.tollkeeperscottage.ca

The best baseball ticket in town is the free one at Christie Pits where the Toronto Maple Leafs of the Intercounty Baseball League play their home games. The regular season is now over, though, so to catch them in action for the rest of this summer you’ll have to hope they go far in the post season, which they did last season, winning the league title.
www.theibl.ca or to www.leafsbaseball.com

Yonge-Dundas Square is the heart of downtown and especially in the summer has a lot going on.
Free events include:
* Tuesday night Romantic Reels at 9 p.m.: Torontonians voted last year for the most romantic movies and this summer, the Top 9 movies are being presented. Remaining films include Titanic (Aug. 12), The Notebook (Aug. 19) and Casablanca (Aug. 26).
* Mondo Muziko A-GO-GO! This spicy concert series will put the fiesta in your Friday night, 8 to 10 p.m. through to Sept. 19.
* Arts At The Heart: runs Friday (5 to 10 p.m.), Saturday (11 a.m. to 10 p.m.), Sunday and all holidays (noon to 7 p.m.) until Oct. 26. A fabulously eclectic marketplace featuring unique work from local artists, artisans and designers.
www.ydsquare.ca.

The Gardiner Museum, 111 Queen’s Park, offers an intimate look at one of the world’s oldest and most universal forms of art and material culture – ceramics.
While admission is charged to this museum for all persons 13 and over, there is weekly free admission for everyone on Fridays from 4 to 9 p.m.
www.gardinermuseum.on.ca

The Royal Ontario Museum, 100 Queen’s Park, offers free admission Wednesdays from 4:30 to 5:30 p.m. except for specially ticketed exhibitions. (There is also discounted admission Friday evenings from 4:30 to 9:30 p.m.)
www.rom.on.ca

For more than 30 years, Harbourfront Centre, 235 Queens Quay W., has been on the cutting edge of all that is current and creative, bringing together the best in both Canadian culture and the rich mosaic of cultures from within our country and around the world.
* Visit the Toronto Music Garden, a reflection in landscape of Bach’s First Suite for Unaccompanied Cello. It’s designed by internationally renowned cellist Yo Yo Ma and landscape designer Julie Moir Messervy, in collaboration with landscape architects from the City of Toronto’s parks and recreation department.
* The annual Summer Music in the Garden series and tours are produced by Harbourfront Centre in partnership with City of Toronto parks forestry and recreation, with the support of Toronto culture, and Margaret and Jim Fleck. Concerts are Thursdays at 7 p.m. and Sundays at 4 p.m. (weather permitting) and are about one hour in length. Bench seating is available, but limited, so please feel free to bring a lawn chair. Shade is limited so bring a hat or umbrella and sunscreen. Call for the most up-to-date concert rain dates.
* Enjoy Tuesday night Fido Free Flicks through to Aug. 12.
* Also check out summer festivals at Harbourfront. Upcoming ones include South Asia Calling (Aug. 8 to 10), Hot and Spicy Food Festival (Aug. 15 to 17), Taiwanfest: World in an Island (Aug. 22 to 24) and Ashkenaz Festival (Aug. 28 to Sept. 1).
www.harbourfrontcentre.com

**********Ashkenaz Festival
Canada’s largest festival of Yiddish and Jewish culture with more than 60 acts, including world-leading Klezmer and Jewish-fusion artists. Concerts, theatre, visual art exhibits, hands-on dance, music and craft workshops, and the Ashkenax Parade. Most events are free, but there are some ticketed events.
Aug. 26 - Sept. 1
Harbourfront Centre, 235 Queens Quay W.
For more information, visit www.ashkenazfestival.com or call 416-979-9901.


The annual Buskerfest Festival runs Aug. 21 to 24 on Front Street, between Church and Jarvis streets, adjacent to the St. Lawrence Market. Welcome to a sometimes wacky world of highly skilled and entertaining street performers.
www.torontobuskerfest.com

The 2008 edition of the Canadian International Air Show will take place over Lake Ontario at the waterfront grounds of the Canadian National Exhibition. It can be best viewed from the CNE grounds, Ontario Place (admission required for both of these) and many other free lakefront sites with a view of the water in front of Marilyn Bell Park in west Toronto. It runs over the Labour Day Weekend, Aug. 30 to Sept. 1 from 1 to 4 p.m. each day.
www.cias.org

**********The Inside Out Tour of Queen’s Park is a summertime experience that highlights both the interior and exterior of the Legislative Building. This free one-hour tour begins with a half-hour stroll of the grounds, followed by a half-hour tour of the legislative building.
Outside, learn about the history of the Queen’s Park site and the many statues and monuments located throughout the park.
Inside, discover the legislative chamber and main floor hallways.
Tours depart at 3 p.m. from the main lobby of the legislative building daily through to Labour Day.
Regular tours are free and are offered frequently throughout the year. The schedule changes on a daily basis in order to accommodate groups that have booked in advance. Visitors are welcome to join a booked tour or take a general 1/2-hour public tour. Please contact interparliamentary and public relations (416-325-7500) on the day that you wish to visit to confirm a tour schedule.
www.ontla.on.ca

The City of Toronto Archives, at 255 Spadina Rd., has the things history is made of: original photographs, maps, letters, government papers, council minutes, city directories – and the list goes on. The documents aren’t just about downtown Toronto; it also has records from the local townships, villages, boroughs and neighbourhoods that make up our modern city. The oldest item is a map from 1792; the most recent acquisition is a DVD of last month’s council meeting. It boasts 1.2 million photographs; millions of pages of textual records, from diaries to speeches to articles; more than 5,000 maps; and more. It’s all about Toronto. And you can see it here and for free.
www.toronto.ca/archives

There is a tendency to take libraries for granted, but they are free, they are cool, and they’re loaded with free books, magazines, CDs and videos. It’s also worth a scan of the Toronto library’s website as they have special points of interest such as the Toronto Reference Library (789 Yonge St.).
Also of interest, at the Lillian H. Smith branch, 239 College St., there is a non-circulating Merril Collection of Science Fiction, Speculation and Fantasy (Reference) as well as the Osborne Collection of Early Children’s Books.
Metro Hall at 55 John St. hosts the Urban Affairs Library for city employees and anyone else with an interest in municipal and urban affairs.
www.torontopubliclibrary.ca

Indulge your senses every Thursday at Metro Square (55 John St.) with a farmers market, food vendors and musical performances. Upcoming performers include Eugene Smith (Aug. 7), Chris Cotton and Cale Hawkins (Aug. 14), Mohamed Diaby, presented by GuluWalk (Aug. 21), Swamperella (Aug. 28) and Danny Brooks (Sept. 4).

Shrimp Magnet Proudly Presents The Man in the Moon through to Sept. 1, daily at 11 a.m., noon, 1 and 2 p.m., weather permitting at Lagoon Theatre, Centre Island. The show is a  30-minute interactive musical comedy for the whole family. Admission is free but of course you have to get to Centre Island.
www.toronto.ca/parks
   
Fresh Wednesdays, a farmers market, runs until Oct. 15 at Nathan Phillips Square at Queen and Bay streets. There are also free noon-hour concerts including:
Aug. 6 - Shawna Caspi (indie folk)
Aug. 13 - Tannis Slimmon (roots)
Aug. 20 - Carey West (singer songwriter)
Aug. 27 - Lindsay Ferguson (acoustic rock)

Tasty Thursday is presented by the City of Toronto through to Aug. 28 from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m., at Nathan Phillips Square at Queen and Bay streets. Toronto restaurants will barbecue meals with items for $5 or less.
In addition there will be free noon-hour concerts featuring blues, jazz, world, roots and reggae until Aug. 28.
Aug. 14 - Toronto Blues Society New Talent Search
Aug. 21 - Liam Titcomb (pop/rock/blues)
Aug. 28 - Chris Bottomley’s Brainfudge (funk)
www.toronto.ca/special_events/thursdays/index.htm

The Distillery District is the host to one of the largest and most unique festival lineups in the country. The summer months are filled with everything from music festivals to arts festivals, farmers markets to beer tasting events. Upcoming festivals include: Ontario Blacksmith Design Showcase (Aug. 8 to 10) and Visual Art  Fair over the Labour Day Weekend.
www.thedistillerydistrict.com

The Chinatown Business Improvement Area hosts its eighth annual Downtown Chinatown Festival Aug. 9 from 11 a.m. to 8 p.m. and Aug. 10 from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. on Dundas Street between Augusta Avenue and Beverley Street and Spadina Avenue between Sullivan and College street.
the festival includes multicultural street performers, sidewalk sale and the launch of the Chinatownlicious program, which goes until Sept. 1.

The University of Toronto hosts a number of free events at its Annex campus, including paintings by Kim Ondaatje, which ends Aug. 15; Stories, In Pieces, which goes until Aug. 24; and The street belongs to all of us exhibition, which runs until Oct. 5.
The campus stretches from Spadina Avenue to Bay Street between Bloor Street West and College Street.
www.utoronto.ca


For more information on events in the city
www.insidetoronto.com
www.torontotourism.com
Mel Lastman Square Hotline
416-395-7582



So you missed it .... catch these big events next year:
Canada Day celebrations
* Mel Lastman Square with musical performances and fireworks.
* Downview Park with music and fireworks.
* Queen’s Park with music, vendors and more.
* Fireworks at Woodbine Beach
* The Canada Dry Festival of Fire at Ontario Place
* Stan Wadlow Park with vendors, fireworks, music and more.

* Taste of the Danforth
More than 50 restaurants participating, entertainment and more
www.tasteofthedanforth.com

* Downtown Jazz Festival
Hundreds of musicians participate at various indoor and outdoor venues in the downtown core.
www.tojazz.com

* Beaches Jazz Festival
Hundreds of musicians participate at various locations in the Beaches.
www.beachesjazz.com

PRIDE Toronto
The city’s gay, lesbian, bisexual, transgender community come together for a week-long festival, culminating in the Pride Parade.
www.pridetoronto.com
Caribana
For close to two months starting in June, Toronto enjoys calypso, steel pan and elaborate masquerade costumes during the annual Toronto Caribbean Carnival (Caribana) Festival.
For close to two months starting in June, Toronto enjoys calypso, steel pan and elaborate masquerade costumes during the annual Toronto Caribbean Carnival (Caribana) Festival. The festivities come to a colourful close with the Caribana Parade.
www.caribana.com

* Rib fests
Scarborough Rib Fest hosted by the Rotary Club
Thomson Memorial Park
www.scarboroughribfest.com

Etobicoke Ribfest
Centennial Park