Sidney’s spirit is ready to shine on Canada Day

Published 9:00 am Tuesday, June 30, 2026

Sidney is ready to kick off 2026 Canada Day celebrations with a lineup of events highlighting community and Canada’s spirit. (Peninsula News Files)

Sidney is ready to kick off 2026 Canada Day celebrations with a lineup of events highlighting community and Canada’s spirit. (Peninsula News file photos)

Sidney is preparing to start its Canada Day celebrations, launching on June 30.

The event begins at 7:30 p.m. at Beacon Park and will feature an opening ceremony, live music from The Hit List, and a fireworks show at 10:15 p.m. at Sidney waterfront. Food trucks will also be lined up at Eastview Park.

On July 1, community groups will come together, marking the beginning of the official Canada Day celebrations, with a pancake breakfast hosted by the Sidney Lions Club, followed by a Canada Day parade and Family Fun Fair organized by Peninsula Celebrations.

The pancake breakfast will run from 8 to 10 a.m. at the Mary Winspear Centre courtyard, where three pancakes, two sausages and a drink can be purchased for $10.

The Canada Day parade will start at 11:30 a.m. from Resthaven Drive and will turn onto Beacon Avenue. It will continue through the length of Beacon Avenue and turn onto Second Street, ending at Ocean Avenue.

Speaking to Peninsula News Review, promotions director of Peninsula Celebration Society, Keith Hickie, said that a lot of preparations are going on for the events.

The theme of this year’s parade is ‘love, honour and respect’, he revealed.

The 100th anniversary of the Canadian Legion 37 is also one of the biggest celebrations at the event. The legion, alongside the 676 Kittyhawk Royal Canadian Air Cadet Squadron, will be a part of the parade this year.

The Canada Day celebrations are all about celebrating the community and bringing them together, he said.

“In line with the FIFA World Cup, we’re promoting a Kicking It Canada World Cup celebration. So we have a whole bunch of soccer-themed items that are going on. We’re going to have the Pacific FC attend.”

Some of their members will be there putting on demos and a meet-and-greet for kids, as well as the Peninsula FC and Pacific FC. There will also be a photo booth at the event to make the day more memorable for the community.

In the meantime, a Family Fun Fair will be running from 12:30 to 4 p.m. at Iroquois Park. Hickie said over 40 groups will have tents set up, with an array of activities in store, from games, face painting, music and more.

Peninsula Celebration Society is inviting the community to participate in the costume contest held at the fair.

“And it’s about the Canadian spirit, of course, it being Canada Day. So we’re saying, come on down in your greatest Canadian garb that you can put together and join us for our costume contest.”

The Slegg Build a Boat Challenge will also take place from 12 to 5 p.m. at Beacon Park, where teams will design, build, and race handmade boats using limited materials.

Registration for the challenge closed on June 12. Boats will launch from Glass Beach at 4:45 p.m., depending on the tide. The challenge will mark the end of Canada Day celebrations in Sidney.

A bike valet will be available from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. at Iroquois Park.