Everything happening outside HRM that's still worth your weekend. These don't show up in the main listings — this is where they live, sorted by how long you'll be in the car.
Submit an out-of-town event →Everything still ahead of you this season, grouped by how long you'll be in the car. Drive times are from downtown Halifax.
Established 1765. Livestock shows, 4-H, giant pumpkin weigh-off, midway, truck pulls, demolition derby, horse racing and live country music. Runs September 18-20 and September 25-27, 2026.
Runs Wednesday to Sunday with multiple departures from downtown Wolfville, stopping at participating wineries for tastings and short tours. Ongoing seasonal service; end date is approximate.
Fridays 8:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. opposite the Anglican church on the waterfront. The market’s own domain is no longer live; Facebook is the current source. Placeholder single date.
34th year of the Valley Harvest Marathon, starting and finishing in Wolfville over Thanksgiving weekend.
16th anniversary edition, themed Devour! The Sea: films, chef dinners, tastings and workshops across Wolfville.
Saturdays 9 a.m. to 1 p.m., May to October, at 178 St. George Street. Wednesday 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. in summer. Placeholder single date; make recurring or check the site for the season-end date.
Successor to the Windsor Pumpkin Regatta. Friday evening witches dance on the waterfront; Saturday 10 a.m. pumpkin and squash weigh-off, then two regatta races (Returning Rowers and Amateurs), pumpkin carving, timber show and the Guild Hall Market.
17th annual festival in Amherst (not Truro). Related: the Maritime Spinners Retreat in Truro on October 16, 2026.
Two-hour walking tours in period cloaks with lanterns, produced with Dead Reckoning Theatre Company and built around Helen Creighton’s Maritime folklore. Max 12 per tour, advance tickets required. 2026 dates not yet posted; October dates are a placeholder.
52 concerts and hundreds of community cultural experiences in communities across Cape Breton Island, timed to peak fall colours on the Cabot Trail.
The 300 km loop through Cape Breton Highlands National Park, with 26 marked hikes strung along it. Colour turns earlier on the south coast and moves north.
Day trip = home the same night without leaving early. Overnight = book a bed, or plan on a very long day. Everything on this page is outside Halifax Regional Municipality — if it's in town, it's in the main listings.
The big summer road trips have all run for 2026. They come back on roughly the same weekend every year — here's what to hold space for, so you're not finding out about it the week it happens.
93rd festival ran May 27 to June 1, 2026. The 94th is expected late May 2027.
Battle re-enactments and musket fire at Fort Point Lighthouse, an encampment, grand parade, rum run, artisan market and fireworks.
Running since 1934: lobster boat races, parades, antique car show, midway, lobster dinners and fireworks on the waterfront.
The oldest continuously running Highland Games outside Scotland: piping, drumming, highland dance and heavy events at Columbus Field.
Nine days of maritime food, culture and community events across Yarmouth, running since 1979.
Canada's Songwriter Festival — four days of folk and roots on the edge of the Atlantic, plus a Roadshow the week before.
Nova Scotia's longest-running music festival: four days of folk across waterfront venues and the bandstand in a UNESCO old town.
Four days on the Digby waterfront: grand parade, scallop-shucking competition, woodsmen competition, live music and fireworks.
Parks Canada and the Royal Astronomical Society run telescopes, Mi'kmaw sky stories and night walks at the province's only Dark Sky Preserve.
Atlantic Canada's largest keelboat regatta, hosted by Chester Yacht Club since 1856 — four days of racing in Mahone Bay.
Three routes that string several of the above into one trip, so the driving isn't the point of the day.