Ottawa's Johnathan Lockhart of The Cowguys performs at the 2012 Ottawa International Busker Festival on Sparks Street. Photo by Glen Gower.

Ottawa Busker Festival - August 2-4, 2013

Ottawa's annual Busker Festival (aka Buskerfest) takes place from August 2-4, 2013 on the Sparks Street Mall in downtown Ottawa. There are over 40 performances daily, with entertainers from across Canada and around the world.

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Festival Schedule (2012)

The festival takes place along Ottawa's Sparks Street pedestrian mall between Elgin Street and Kent Street. Shows start daily at 11:00am. Make sure you bring some loonies & toonies for the performers!

There are set performance times for certain locations, but there will also be unscheduled performances popping up along the street and in surrounding areas.
2013 details to come!

Road Closures (from 2012)

Thursday & Friday, 6pm-12am: Metcalfe Street closed between Sparks & Wellington.
Saturday, Sunday & Monday, 10am-12am: Metcalfe Street and O'Connor Street closed between Sparks & Wellington.

Where to park

It'll be busy, but World Exchange at Metcalfe & Queen has free parking on the weekend. (Entrance from Metcalfe.)
There's also the parking lot under 240 Sparks. Entrance is on Queen Street between Bank and Kent.
There are lots of parking lots around downtown, just remember to pay!
Another great option is to take the bus. OC Transpo's Transitway runs on Albert and Slater, just a couple blocks from Sparks Street.

About Sparks Street Mall

Sparks Street Mall is a pedestrian street (no cars allowed!) located one block south of Parliament Hill in downtown Ottawa. The street spans five full city blocks (map), and is lined by restaurants, shops, museums, and more. It's also home to CBC Ottawa's tv and radio studios.

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