Winnipeg
Around Winnipeg
Photo: Ethan Sahagun · CC BY 4.0 · Wikimedia Commons
Metro area · Manitoba · 834k people
Winnipeg
“The Peg”, “Peg City”, “Winterpeg”
Prairie heart, river soul.
Winnipeg Jets Blue
Welcome to Winnipeg, where the rivers freeze and the community warms up. Whether you're here for the festivals or the friendly faces, you'll find a city that's proud of its prairie roots. Get ready to explore the Exchange, skate the river, and taste some honey dill.
Clubs for Winnipeg
No clubs for Winnipeg yet.
The room
One room for everyone around Winnipeg. It never closes; when it's busy it splits into tables. Once you're in, you stay until you leave.
Ask the neighbours
AllA good plumber, the best tacos, a lost cat: nobody has asked yet. Be the first.
Coming up
No events in the next month. Events made in the room show up here.
Marketplace
Things for sale, free and wanted, and rooms for rent, from people around Winnipeg. Sign in to sell something.
Things to do
- The Forks Meeting point at the rivers with food halls and skating trails
- Assiniboine Park Large park with zoo, gardens, and the Leaf conservatory
- Manitoba Legislative Building Beaux-Arts building with the Golden Boy statue
- Canadian Museum for Human Rights Striking architecture and exhibits on human rights
- Winnipeg Art Gallery Home to the world's largest public Inuit art collection
- Portage and Main Famous corner, often windy, with underground concourse
- Outdoors Skate the river trail at The Forks
- Outdoors Walk or bike the Assiniboine Riverwalk
- With kids Visit the Manitoba Children's Museum
- With kids Spend a day at Assiniboine Park Zoo
- Evenings Catch a concert at Canada Life Centre
- Evenings Explore bars and clubs on Osborne Street
- Locals love Craft breweries
- Locals love Farmers markets
Through the year
- Winnipeg Folk Festival July July, outdoor music festival at Birds Hill Park
- Winnipeg Fringe Theatre Festival July July, largest alternative theatre festival in North America
- Red River Exhibition June June, summer fair with rides, games, and concerts
- Manitoba Marathon June June, includes full, half, and relay races
- Winnipeg International Jazz Festival June June, performances at various venues downtown
Winnipeg has a continental climate with very cold winters and warm summers. The best time to be out is summer for festivals and winter for skating on the rivers. Best: Summer (June to September) is warm and sunny, ideal for festivals and outdoor activities. Winter is cold but offers unique skating and winter sports.
Talk like a local
- “The Peg”
- Nickname for Winnipeg
- “Bunny hug”
- A hoodie or sweatshirt
- “The Exchange”
- The historic district in downtown Winnipeg
- “River Trail”
- The frozen river skating path
Getaways
- Steinbach Explore the town and its markets
- Portage la Prairie See the historic fort and lake
- Kenora Enjoy Lake of the Woods and the Canadian Shield
- Brandon Check out the provincial fair and the Commonwealth Air Training Plan Museum
Local flavour
Teams
- Winnipeg Jets NHL
- Winnipeg Blue Bombers CFL
- Winnipeg Goldeyes American Association
- Manitoba Moose AHL
- Valour FC Canadian Premier League
Eat and drink
- Honey dill sauce A sweet and tangy dipping sauce for chicken fingers, ubiquitous in Winnipeg restaurants.
- Perogies
- Salisbury House Nips Tiny hamburgers from a local chain, a beloved comfort food since 1931.
- Smoked goldeye A local fish delicacy, traditionally smoked and served as a spread or on crackers.
Where people go
- River skating trails The Assiniboine and Red rivers freeze in winter, creating the world's longest skating trail at The Forks.
- Exchange District A historic warehouse district with early 20th-century architecture, now a cultural hub.
- Prairie parks and riverwalks Green spaces along the rivers and expansive parks like Assiniboine Park, offering a taste of the prairie landscape.
- Winter festivals Festivals like Festival du Voyageur and the warming huts at The Forks celebrate the city's winter identity.
Heritage and traditions
Winnipeg is proud of its rich multicultural heritage, from Ukrainian perogy festivals to French St. Boniface, and its resilient spirit that thrives despite harsh winters.
Say it like a local: “That's a beauty” — A great thing or event
Festivals
- Festival du Voyageur February Winter festival celebrating fur trade and Francophone culture
- Folklorama August Longest-running multicultural pavilion festival in the world
- Winnipeg International Children's Festival June Performing arts for young audiences
- Winnipeg Symphony Orchestra's New Music Festival January Contemporary classical music performances
- First Fridays in the Exchange First Friday of each month Monthly art crawl with gallery openings and performances
Landmarks with a story
- St. Boniface Cathedral French Catholic cathedral with a striking facade and historic cemetery
- Oseredok Ukrainian Cultural Centre Preserves Ukrainian heritage with artifacts and art
- Fort Gibraltar Reconstructed fur trade fort in Whittier Park
- Seven Oaks House Museum Oldest surviving house in Winnipeg, built in 1853
- Sts. Vladimir and Olga Ukrainian Catholic Cathedral A landmark of the Ukrainian community with onion domes
Food traditions
- Perogy dinners Ukrainian tradition of handmade perogies served with sour cream and onions
- Borscht and cabbage rolls Hearty Eastern European dishes common at community gatherings
- Fat Boy burgers A local burger style with chili and coleslaw on top
- Honey dill sauce A sweet and tangy dip for chicken fingers, a Winnipeg invention
- Smoked goldeye A prairie fish delicacy, often served as a spread
Music and arts
- Royal Winnipeg Ballet Oldest ballet company in Canada, known for innovative performances
- Winnipeg Symphony Orchestra Professional orchestra with a diverse repertoire
- Exchange District art galleries Contemporary and Indigenous art in historic warehouses
- Folk music scene Home to the Winnipeg Folk Festival and a vibrant singer-songwriter community
A little history
- 1738 Fort Rouge established as a French fur trading post
- 1812 Red River Settlement founded by Lord Selkirk
- 1869–70 Red River Resistance led by Louis Riel
- 1919 Winnipeg General Strike, a major labour event
- 1950 Red River Flood, a devastating natural disaster
Rivalries
- Blue Bombers vs. Saskatchewan Roughriders CFL rivalry with the neighbouring province
- Jets vs. Minnesota Wild NHL rivalry with the closest US team
- Goldeyes vs. Fargo-Moorhead RedHawks Independent baseball rivalry
- Bisons vs. Wesmen University sports rivalry in Winnipeg
- Game day Jets Whiteout
- Game day Banjo Bowl
- Outdoors Snowshoeing in Assiniboine Park
- Outdoors Cycling the Trans-Canada Trail
- With kids Winnipeg Goldeyes baseball games
- With kids Manitoba Museum planetarium
Winnipeggers speak with a Canadian accent featuring Canadian raising, so 'about' sounds like 'a-boot' to outsiders. They use 'eh' for confirmation and sprinkle in French and Ukrainian words like 'perogy' and 'bonjour'.
Only here
- Winnipeg is the Slurpee capital of the world, with the highest per-capita consumption.
- The Golden Boy statue atop the Legislative Building is a city symbol.
- The Forks is a historic meeting place at the confluence of two rivers.
- St. Boniface is the largest French-speaking community west of Quebec.
New here? A few tips
- Dress in layers in winter – temperatures can drop below -30°C with wind chill.
- Try perogies and honey dill sauce – they're local staples.
- Visit The Forks for a taste of history and a great meeting spot.
- Learn to say 'Winnipeg' as 'WIN-ih-peg' – not 'Winnie-peg'.
- Be ready for wind at Portage and Main – it's famously blustery.
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Nearby
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Winnipeg. Areas from the US Census Bureau and Statistics Canada; places from GeoNames. Local flavour was written with a model and may have mistakes. Team names identify teams; no endorsement.