Winter

25+ Things to for FREE in January for Edmonton Families

By Raising Edmonton / January 1, 2020

Skate, Sleigh Rides and More on New Year’s Day

Find local, family-friendly New Year’s Eve events for the kids, and the whole family. There are a few events happening around town, and you can find the full list.

Snow Tubing for Free Every Sunday

This one’s a bit of a drive out of town, but you can bring your own helmets and pack a lunch to make it a free activity for the whole family. Every Sunday during the winter, families can snow tube for free at Tawatinaw Valley, just an hour outside of Edmonton.

Free Community Movie Afternoon – January 2

Enjoy the holiday break with a FREE family friendly movie afternoon at the Hazeldean Hall. Doors open at 2:15pm, movie starts at 2:30pm. Snacks will be available for purchase. Bring your friends!

Everybody Gets to Play Day – January 3

Dress warmly and embrace winter as you enjoy fun, family friendly activities outside at this free event in Strathcona County.

Skate for Free all day at West Edmonton Mall – January 4

Skate for free, all day, at the Ice Palace at West Edmonton Mall. Don’t freeze outside when you can skate indoors and enjoy special guests!

Make a Melted Snowman Canvsas – January 4 

Buy the canvas, and we’ll provide the supplies to decorate it at this fun Michaels Makebreak Event. The event is free, but you can buy an inexpensive canvas to take part!

Horse Drawn Sleigh Rides in Secord – Jan 11

The Secord Community League invites you to join the Horse-Drawn Sleigh Rides Community Event. Join us at the David Thomas King school parking lot for an afternoon of hot chocolate, outdoor winter activities, games and horse-drawn sleigh rides from Dick Laurin’s Hay and Sleigh Rides.

Swing & Skate – January 5, 12, 19, 26

Join us for eight swingin’ Sundays in January and February from 1:00 – 4:00 pm while enjoying free live music from local bands and dance lessons with Sugar Swing Ballroom. All ages are welcome and no experience is required! Drop in any time. Be sure to wear comfortable clothing that you can move around in.

Learn to Cook Outside and Ski at Winter Greenshack

It’s easy to get outside during the winter months when there is programming at the local playgrounds to entice kids to move around.

For the months of January and February, we are offering a Winter How To at the Green Shack Program! Get active this winter and learn to kicksled, snowshoe, cook outdoors and so much more!

Free Home Depot Kids Workshop – January 11

If you are looking for a fun activity to do with the family, we’ve got a great workshop for kids that will teach them about building. Kids can learn how to build their very own mini Hockey Game.

Deep Freeze Festival – January 11, 12

Deep Freeze Byzantine Winter Festival is a free family event uniting Ukrainian, Franco-Albertan, Franco-African, First Nations, Chinese, Latin American, and Acadian/East Coast communities to taste, share and experience the Olde New Year. Deep Freeze 2020: Under the Frozen Sea features a variety of free activities, including live music, world cuisine, dance, wagon rides, ice games, storytelling, giant ice slide, maker workshops, fireworks, an artisan market and gallery, and much more. For more information please visit deepfreezefest.ca. 

Free SWIM at Emerald Hills Leisure Centre – January 19

Kids under 8Y must be within arm’s reach of someone 14Y+ at all times in the water. Ratio of supervision is 1:3. Kids pool, whirlpool and steam room open during all recreational swims. This free swim is courtesy of Pasta Pantry.Free recreation opportunity

Ice on Whyte – January 23

Ice on Whyte opens January 23 and it’s not free (but it’s almost free) way to explore winter with the kids while you drop in and catch ice carving live, or visit during the festival to see the completed projects. There’s even a kid zone!

Skating and Ice Castles at Hawrelak Park 

Just because the ice castles are speedy to enter, doesn’t mean that you can’t enjoy them! For the first few years of our boys’ life, they didn’t realize that you could actually go in the ice castles. Instead, bring your skates and view the castle from the ice – it’s just as magical and won’t cost you fifty bucks to bring the kids through.

Free DRAGON Minifigure Build at the LEGO Store  – January 23

LEGO Lunar New Year Dragon Building Event. Sign ups start on January 6 and there is limited space available. Intended for kids ages 6-14.

South West Ski Fest – January 24

Join us for a day of winter fun.
New to cross-country skiing? Try out cross country skis and snowshoes for free. The River Valley Program Team will be there with enough skis to outfit 1000 people over the 4 hour time period.
Got your own skis? Ski to the festival with friends. Explore more than 10km of SkiLocal trails. Help your friends and family learn how to kick and glide. There’s chili and hot chocolate to warm up!

Lunar New Year Celebration at Kingsway Mall – Jan 26

Presented by the Edmonton Chinese Community, start your Lunar New Year off with a bang at Kingsway Mall with Lion Dancing, Year of the Rat craft-making, traditional music ensembles and so much more!

Free Admission to the Alberta Aviation Museum – January 30

Get free admission to the Alberta Aviation Museum on the evening of January 30, as part of the free admission program with Servus. It’s your chance to explore the museum without the admission fee – and a great night to bring the kids!

Makercade at the Library – All Month 

Enjoy playing Minecraft? Love Roblox? Do you have an itch to build and create great new things? Let’s play some video games! Explore a variety of new gaming titles and develop incredible new building, making, and creating skills.

Flying Canoe Volant – January 30

In the spirit of a great winter city, the Flying Canoë Volant is a creative and interactive cultural event designed to celebrate local history and everything that is great about a long winter’s night. Inspired by the legend of The Flying Canoe and French Canadian, First Nations and Métis traditions, this event celebrate Edmonton’s beautiful Mill Creek Ravine and the newly-established French Quarter.

Make Cabane a Sucre

Leave the container of snow outside while you boil the syrup in a saucepan (as much as you think you’ll need, probably 2-3 tablespoons per person). Though you could do it by eye, you’re better off to use a candy thermometer.

Boiling the syrup, it should read 238 °F when you take it off of the burner. Remove the pan from the heat and pour it onto the snow into strips, giving kids popsicle sticks to ‘roll up’ the taffy on to the stick so they can eat it.

Hit up a Toboggan Hill 

Grab the sleds and head out to the toboggan hill. It’s your chance to enjoy the mild winter and enjoy some of the best views of the city at hills like Gallagher Hill, or a fast slide down the hill and trails to explore after at Whitemud Ravine. Need other tobogganing inspiration? Check our directory of the best places to toboggan in Edmonton, right here.

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