Toronto holiday market gearing up for biggest year yet

One of the city’s favourite winter markets is coming back this year, and it’s going to be bigger and better than ever.

Despite the fact that summerlike weather may have stuck around later than usual this year, the festive season is right around the corner, and with that comes a whole host of winter markets and holiday events in Toronto and beyond.

While the Distillery District’s Winter Village tends to get a lot of the glory when it comes to holiday experiences in Toronto, there are plenty of other contenders to keep the cheerful vibes up all December long, and Evergreen Brick Works’ annual winter market is among the move loved.

Every Sunday in December, the market will see Toronto’s converted brick factory turned venue and nature conservatory transforming into a winter market offering goodies (of both the edible and non-edible variety) from more than 60 local vendors.

This year, though, Evergreen is taking things up several notches with the introduction of a number of new elements that’ll elevate the event from a run-of-the-mill craft and farmers’ market to a can’t-miss holiday event.

You’ll be able to take a break from shopping in the brand-new Winter Garden, sipping seasonal drinks and playing lawn games or cozying up around a fire pit where you and your crew have the opportunity to toast s’mores and take a load off among Insta-worthy surroundings.

The market is also offering gift-wrapping for the first time ever this year, so you don’t have to worry about your new purchases getting discovered when you get home.

There will also be pasta-making workshops (at an additional fee of $17.50 per person), where you can create festive red and green bowtie noodles and bring them home for a cheerful meal.

The real star of the show at this year’s event, though, is their new immersive holiday light experience, where the CRH Gallery will display a stunning array of wintery scenes, like snowy mountains and the Northern Lights, all using projection technology. This element also takes place indoors, which proves a great option to get in from the cold — if this winter ever gets cold, that is.

On top of all of that, you can also expect a host of food vendors, like Tito Toronto, Magic Oven, Fathima’s Kitchen and TC Tibetan MoMo (to name only a few) on site for a quick bite.

They’ve also added an additional weekend to this year’s festivities, so that the city will have additional opportunities to get in the fun, with markets running Dec. 1, 8, 15 and 22.

Admission to the market is “Pay What You Can,” so anyone can have the chance to get in on the festive fun, but Evergreen recommends a donation of $5, which goes back into all of the free community programming the centre holds year-round.

The Winter Market is taking place at Evergreen Brick Works, 550 Bayview Ave., on December 1, 8, 15 and 22, 2024 from 11:00 a.m. tp 5 p.m.