Things to do in Manotick
The village keeps a real calendar — anchored by a few institutions that have run for decades and filled in by the market, the mill, and the community associations. Dates below are confirmed for 2026 where organisers have published them.
Organising something in the village? Send the date, place and a line about it to hello@manotick.co and it goes on the calendar below. Community events only; nothing is charged for a listing.
The annual anchors
Dickinson Days is the signature weekend — the village festival named for the founder, organised by the Kiwanis Club of Manotick with the BIA as sponsor and partner. It lands on the first weekend of June, not late spring as it is often described; official listings for 2026 differ on whether it ran 4–7 or 5–7 June, so check with Kiwanis rather than trusting a second-hand date. Taste of Manotick brings the food scene onto Main Street as a licensed open-air street party run by the BIA in mid-September — 12 September in 2026. Shiverfest, run by the community association, breaks up February. The Manotick Backyard Ultra takes over the roads, bridges and river paths on the first Saturday of October — 3 October in 2026, starting 7am from 5546 Manotick Main Street, with a 5K and a family 1K alongside the last-runner-standing event and registration fees supporting CHEO. The ultra field sells out well ahead; the 5K and 1K usually do not. And Watson's Mill keeps its own season from mid-May to mid-October, with special events continuing into early December.
Markets — there are three, not one
The one most people mean is the Manotick Farmers' Market, Saturday mornings through the growing season in the Carriage Shed lot at 5524 Dickinson Street, directly across from the mill. Note that 5525 Dickinson is the mill itself and 5524 is the Carriage Shed — a distinction plenty of listings get wrong. Separately, The Lot Manotick runs Sundays 9am to 2pm at 5546 Manotick Main Street, and the Manotick South Market runs weekends at the Swan on the Rideau, 2730 River Road, on a published event calendar rather than a fixed season. Dates shift; confirm before driving out.
The year at a glance
The fixtures that come round every year, in calendar order. Exact dates are set by each organiser and shift by a week or two; the organiser link is the one to trust, and this table is updated when they publish. Missing something that recurs? Send it in.
| When | What | Where and who | |
|---|---|---|---|
| February | Shiverfest | Manotick Village and Community Association; village venues | Organiser |
| May to October | Watson's Mill season opens; farmers' market Saturdays from late spring | Dickinson Square, 5524 Dickinson St | Organiser |
| First weekend of June | Dickinson Days | Kiwanis Club of Manotick with the BIA; Dickinson Square and the mill | Organiser |
| July 1 | Canada Day | City and community programming; check the MVCA calendar | Organiser |
| Mid-September | Taste of Manotick — 12 September in 2026 | Manotick BIA; Manotick Main Street | Organiser |
| First Saturday of October | Manotick Backyard Ultra, 5K and family 1K — 3 October in 2026 | From 5546 Manotick Main St, 7am; registration supports CHEO | Organiser |
| November 11 | Remembrance Day | Manotick Remembrance Park and the cenotaph; Royal Canadian Legion Branch 314 | Organiser |
| Last weekend of November | Christmas in the Village and the Kiwanis Parade of Lights — 28–30 November in 2025; 2026 date to be confirmed | Parade from the arena along Main Street; tree lighting at the mill; craft markets | Organiser |
Staying current
The Manotick Village and Community Association and the Manotick BIA are the two reliable sources for current dates — both publish their calendars well ahead. The village paper is still going too: the Manotick Messenger ceased publication under its long-time owner in January 2025 and was revived by Ottawa publisher Your Community Voice, which now puts out a biweekly Manotick edition. Event timing shifts year to year; confirm with the organisers before planning around this page.
Common questions
What is Dickinson Days?
Manotick's annual village festival, named for founder Moss Kent Dickinson and organised by the Kiwanis Club of Manotick with the Manotick BIA as sponsor and partner. It falls on the first weekend of June, centred on the historic core and the mill. Published dates for a given year sometimes disagree between sources, so confirm with the organisers.
Is there a farmers' market in Manotick?
Three, in fact. The Manotick Farmers' Market runs Saturdays 9am to 2pm through the growing season, roughly June to October, in the Carriage Shed lot at 5524 Dickinson Street across from Watson's Mill. The Lot Manotick runs Sundays 9am to 2pm at 5546 Manotick Main Street, and the Manotick South Market runs weekends at the Swan on the Rideau on River Road, on a published event calendar rather than a fixed season. Season dates shift year to year — check before driving out.
When is Taste of Manotick?
Mid-September — 12 September in 2026. It's a licensed open-air street event on Manotick Main Street run by the Manotick BIA.
When is the Manotick Santa Claus parade?
The Kiwanis Parade of Lights runs on the Friday evening of Christmas in the Village, the last weekend of November — 28 November in 2025 — from the arena along Beaverwood, Maple and Main Street, with the tree lighting at Watson's Mill afterwards. Confirm the current year's date with the Kiwanis Club or the BIA.