Kitchener-Waterloo

Kate's 5 fun things to do in and around Waterloo region and Guelph: Nov. 15 to 17

Santa Claus is coming to town with two parades, plus there are lots of craft and artisan markets, live music and lights in Cambridge's Central Park.

Santa Claus is coming to town and making several stops in the area

Santa waves to the crowd from a parade float
Santa Claus will be making several stops around Waterloo region this weekend at parades and events. (Kate Bueckert/CBC)

A mild fall weekend is ahead with lots of events happening around the region.

The Guelph.Beer bus, a free shuttle between breweries in the city, will make its last run of the year on Saturday. That's also Guelph Beer Day, where people who enjoy beer are encouraged to buy a local pint.

Danny Michel and Steve Poltz are playing a show in Guelph Saturday night at Royal City Mission.

I, The Mountain — who will be performing at CBC K-W's Make The Season Kind show on Dec. 6 — has a CD release party Friday night at TWB Brewing in Kitchener.

The Kitchener Rangers are home Friday night to play host to the Peterborough Petes, then hit the road for a Sunday game in Sarnia.

The Guelph Storm are home Friday and Saturday. Friday night they'll host Niagara IceDogs and on Saturday afternoon, the London Knights will be in town.

If you need to drive, here are some local gas prices:

Santa Claus parades

K-W: Saturday at 10 a.m.

Cambridge: Saturday at 6 p.m.

You'd better watch out, you'd better not cry and if you're driving, you'd better be ready for detours. Santa Claus is coming to town this weekend for two parades.

The K-W parade begins at 10 a.m. in Kitchener and runs north on Weber Street to Waterloo.

Cambridge's evening parade will start at 6 p.m. and runs along Hespeler Road from Dunbar Road to Langs Drive.

St. Jacobs Sparkles

All weekend

Village of St. Jacobs

This is the first of two Sparkles weekends in the village. There will be special deals in local shops and restaurants.

There's also strolling carolers, local high school bands, live music in local venues, a hot chocolate bar, live music and horse-drawn carriage rides.

A Yule Market will be hosted by Neruda Arts and Santa will make a stop at the Home Furniture store Saturday afternoon.

Winter Ice and Lights

Kickoff is Friday, 6 p.m. to 8 p.m., then runs nightly to Jan. 1

Central Park, Cambridge

This light display in the park is the first event for Cambridge's annual Winterfest. There will be live entertainment and K-W Huron Beavertails will be on hand at the kick-off event. There are also special visits from Santa and Mrs. Claus.

Quadball Canada Eastern Regionals

Saturday and Sunday

University of Waterloo

Hundreds of athletes will be in Waterloo this weekend for the Harry Potter-inspired sport, Quadball. 

Basically quidditch for muggles, the co-ed, full-contact sport, will be played by teams hoping to win here to move on to compete at a national level.

People are allowed to watch the teams in action.

Markets

Holiday craft and artisan markets are in full swing and there are many happening around the community. 

All weekend:

Friday:

Saturday:

Sunday:

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Kate Bueckert

Content producer

Kate has been covering issues in southern Ontario for more than 20 years. She is currently the content producer for CBC Kitchener-Waterloo. Email: kate.bueckert@cbc.ca