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TOP EXECUTIVE CONTACT INFORMATION:
Darrel Nadeau
dnadeau@heho.ca
204.237.7692
NUMBER OF YEARS FESTIVAL
OR EVENT HAS BEEN PRODUCED:
Started in 1970, 48 years
EVENT DATES:
10 days in mid-February
PRIMARY TARGET AUDIENCE:
Attends to different audience at different
venues and times, which includes young adults,
adults, children, seniors, especially French
speakers and people whom identify as Metis
RECURRENCE CYCLE:
Annually
ESTIMATED COMBINED
AGGREGATE ATTENDANCE:
In 2017, total attendance was 102,000 people
Festival du Voyageur
Western Canada's largest winter festival celebrates
Manitoba's Francophonie roots. Activities include an
international snow sculpting symposium; live music,
dancing and jigging; authentic French Canadian cuisine;
outdoor family playground; historical interpretation of
the fur trade-era inside the walls of Fort Gibraltar, a
recreated Northwest Company fort and more. Festival
du Voyageur is a kitchen party not to be missed that
bonds the traditions of the past with the vitality of the
Franco-Manitobain community of today.
The very first Festival du Voyageur took place in 1970,
within the context of the official celebrations of Manitoba's
centenary. Today, Festival du Voyageur employs 13 full-
time permanent staff members who work all year to assure
the festival's continued success. In 2011, a study revealed
that Festival du Voyageur had an economic impact of $12.9
million, while the company hires more than 200 employees at
the festival's peak. In 2018, Festival du Voyageur announced
free admission for children 12 and under to make it more
affordable for young families to attend.
