Festivals and special dates
Three hundred and sixty-four un-birthdays a year. These are the other days.
Shediac keeps a full calendar for a small town. Three of these festivals are ours. The rest belong to the town, or to all of Acadie, and we’re nearly as proud of those. Festival weekends fill the house first, so reserve your room when you buy your tickets.
Tickets for our three go on sale at 10am on October 29th, 2026, each on its own site. One ticket covers all three: the 3-Festival Passport, sold on the Faire’s site.
The Shediac Winter Carnival
Late January into February
For more than 45 winters, Shediac has declined to hibernate. The Carnival brings skating, snowshoeing, winter cycling, community breakfasts, music, film screenings, and fireworks. In 2026, it ran from January 30th to February 8th. The house stays open all winter.
The Shediac Mascarade
May 28th to 30th, 2027
The only wrong answer is your real name.
Our spring festival is set between 1811 and 1865, the decades in which Shediac was built. Regency to Victorian: masks, manners, and a Masked Ball on Saturday night. Friday evening is the Sand Follies at Parlee Beach, included with any ticket; Saturday and Sunday belong to the Neptune grounds. This is the first edition, which is always the one people later claim they attended.
The Shediac Lobster Festival
July 3rd to 11th, 2027
Since 1949, Shediac has given a stretch of July to the animal it later honoured with a 90-tonne sculpture. The festival bills itself as New Brunswick’s oldest summer tradition, and its tastiest; we’ve never found grounds to argue. Lobster-eating contests, concerts, races, and culinary showdowns. The town fills, and so do we: reserve early.
Acadian National Day
August 15th
The Fête nationale de l’Acadie. The tricolour with its gold star goes up everywhere, and Acadians take to the streets with pots, pans, horns, and anything else that rings: the Tintamarre. A joyful noise with a long memory. Five days later, the Faire opens.
The Shediac Renaissance Faire
August 20th to 22nd, 2027
Any century. Any tongue. The stranger drinks first.
Our first Faire, in 2026, sold out almost a month before the gates opened: about 7,000 admissions and 65 artisans and merchants. The second runs three days. Friday evening is the Gathering of the Realms at Parlee Beach, included with any ticket. Then the Neptune grounds fill with knights and duels, live music, feasting, magic, and merchants. Saturday runs until midnight.
Hom'Art
September 9th to 12th, 2027
Since 2021, Shediac has spent a long September weekend handing its streets to artists: street performers, chalk art, live performances, music, dancing in the open air, a speed-painting contest, and the Shediac Art Market. Say the name in French and you’ll hear the lobster.
Afterland
October 1st to 3rd, 2027
As long as the Lobster stands, so do we.
The year is 2285. The world ended, and it turned out to be survivable. Our autumn festival is music and machines: rat rods and hot rods, screenings at the drive-in, and fires at the edge of the sand. Friday’s First Fire is at Parlee Beach, included with any ticket. It’s loud, it’s dark, and it closes the season the way the end of the world should: together.
The whole Wonderland, in one place: shediacwonderland.ca.
Le Griffon
426 Main Street, Shediac, NB E4P 2G4
info@legriffon.ca
Check-in from 4 to 9pm · Open year-round · Free parking