Food & DrinkApr
Elmira Maple Syrup Festival
A Guinness World Record single-day festival that turns a small Mennonite-country town into the largest maple syrup celebration on Earth.
When
2026: April 11, 2026
2025: April 5, 2025
Where
Downtown Elmira
Area
Elmira, Woolwich Township
Cost
Mostly Free · Free to attend; pancake breakfast, food and syrup sold individually
Format
outdoor
Attendance
60K+ visitors
Running Since
1965 (61 years)
Family Friendly
Yes
VT Insider Tip
Arrive as early as the 7 a.m. start — parking in a small town built for a few thousand people, not 60,000+ visitors, fills up fast, and shuttle lots are the more reliable option once the main streets are full.
About
Elmira Maple Syrup Festival has run since 1965 and holds the Guinness World Record for the largest single-day maple syrup festival anywhere, once drawing more than 66,000 people to a town with a fraction of that population. Unlike everything else on this list, it happens in a single day — downtown Elmira, in Waterloo Region's Mennonite country, closes its streets for pancake breakfasts, sausage-on-a-stick, quilts, farm demonstrations, and syrup straight from the source.
What to Expect
A dense, single-day street festival through downtown Elmira: pancake and sausage breakfasts, maple syrup tastings and sales straight from local producers, craft and quilt vendors, and farm-country demonstrations, with a distinctly small-town, family-first atmosphere.
Pro Tips
This is a rain-or-shine, one-day-only event — there's no second date if the weather is bad. Bring cash for the smaller vendor stalls, which move faster than card readers can keep up with the crowds.
Getting There
No GO Transit or rail option — take Highway 401 to Kitchener, then Highway 86 north to Elmira, about 1 hour 20 minutes from Toronto. Expect designated shuttle lots on festival day given limited in-town parking.