Festival of Trees

Festival of Trees means Christmas is here! It is one of my favourite things to experience before Christmas.
Once again the trees were stunning and inspired a ton of ideas. I love how they organize the trees and the quantity of trees to view as well.
A new favourite is the gingerbread and decorative baking area. There are som exceptionally talented artists in Edmonton!
For the kids there are activities scattered throughout including Santa, story time, decorating cookies, a kids only shopping area and more. The shopping for the adults is also great with dinnerware, décor and treats.
There’s always something happening on the stage. Plus there are the extra ticketed events like the gala lunch, fashion show and breakfast with Santa that sell out every year.
I thought the volunteers were fantastic. It seems like they are all really engaged and having fun!
It’s family fun, date night fun and more. The hours are awesome like on Saturday, they were open from 9−9pm.

It had been a few years since I came to Festival of the Trees and this year I decided to volunteer. It’s was an excellent experience. I signed up on their website and I received a letter in the mail with a confirmation of my shifts. Unfortunately, I wasn’t able to make my first one as I was sick but they had a phone number and email to let them know if you couldn’t make it.
The Volunteer area was in the lower level and they provided me with a name tag, light up necklace, and Santa hat (if I wanted it). There was coat racks (if you could find a hanger). In the Volunteer Lounge they provided snacks of sandwiches, oranges, desserts, drinks, and frozen treats.
As I walked into the hall, it was great to see all the families. The Gingerbread house displays was near the entrance and had a line up. Another popular attraction was the snow globe that you can go into and take a photo. The trees are in areas in the middle of the hall and beautifully decorated.
The coupons for activities are reasonably priced at 50 cents. There’s decorate and get a little tree for 8 coupons that was a popular activity. Although I didn’t look at all the kids’ activities, I noticed there are fewer than the years ago I used to go with my nephew and niece.
The Post Office where kids can write letters to Santa is a nice feature. I would like to volunteer here next year as my friend said she had a lot of fun helping the kids.
The Sweet Shop where I was had a lot of kitchen items all Christmas themed and lots of sweet treats! You could buy plates, candy jars, aprons, mugs, tea pots, packets of hot chocolate, apple cider, baked goods, chocolate covered spoons, lollipops, and so much more. The prices include GST and it’s a great place to Christmas gift shop.
There’s a Gift Shop too with Christmas trees, ornaments, and decorations. Lots of fun browsing and shopping!
There’s a small concession in the corner by the stage as are washrooms. There’s entertainment with singing and martial arts, and there are rows of seating too.
Will be back next year to volunteer! It’s a fun time, and they are organized in coordinating volunteers.

Largely, this was a disorganised jumble of people taking pictures of pretty basic trees.
I appreciate that the funds go to a good cause, but they had done little to overcome the gymnasium feeling of the Shaw’s conference halls.
While interesting once, I don’t think we’ll go back next year — it would have been far more enjoyable to just write a cheque and mail it in.

I am all aglow with Christmas spirit after taking in the 2013 festival of tree’s this year. I was super pleased they eliminated the colorful strobe lights from last year that projected images onto the floor and surrounding area. They were a cute idea but they took away from the color and shine of the tree’s themselves. My boyfriend had commented that it looked like there were less tree’s this year. While I can’t say I agree with him one hundred percent if they did take away some tree’s I think they used it to increase seating around the stage. I had no issues finding chairs this year to enjoy the entertainment as opposed to prior years where I was left standing.
This was the first year I bought coupons to do an activity and I thought they were extremely reasonable at fifty cents a pop. We bought eight to do the trim the tree activity and that got us a mini tree with some fairly decent quality decorations. They had a mini backpack activity going on as well and I really think stuff like that is a great way to do a fun activity with your kids and have a souvenir left over afterward that they are more likely to hold onto then say a coloring sheet or Popsicle stick figure.
As with every year the tree, wreath, and gingerbread house decorators went all out to create festive and stunning pieces and I would love to see the festival in a larger venue to allow more people the opportunity to participate as well as help with some of the foot traffic congestion issues. Despite a tiny hiccup or two however the Festival of Trees is still one of the most magical ways to celebrate the season and give money to the great folks at the University Hospital Foundation.

As an avid Christmas lover who is ready to start celebrating in November, the Festival of Trees has been a favorite tradition since I was a small child. There are plenty of exciting activities for children to partake in, including shopping at a children-​only store for presents, decorating their own gingerbread man, making a Santa hat, visiting a mini-​hospital (run by the stollery) and of course, visiting the big man himself. As a member of the older crowd, I now love gazing at the dozens of beautiful Christmas trees and displays, they’re really inspiring if you like to change your tree up annually. The store for adults generally has some neat decorations, albeit overpriced, along with some tasty treats and samples. This is definitely one of Edmonton’s best festivals.

Festival of Trees is another great tradition that takes place at Shaw Conference Centre during, you guessed it, Christmas.
They have a huge amount of Christmas trees of all shapes and sizes, decorated in many different ways. In addition to trees they also have Gingerbread houses. It’s really awesome to see how creative people can get with these.
Just like Candy Cane Lane, the Festival of Trees is a great way to get into the Christmas spirit.

I hadn’t been to Festival of Trees in about four years, so I decided to visit this annual event again this year. I was once again floored by the bright, beautiful decorated trees with a variety of themes. My favourites were the ones that incorporated teddy bears. Another cool tree used beaded necklaces and CDs, which worked well because of how CDs reflect light off of them. The gingerbread houses and cakes really stole the show, however. I simply cannot believe how much creative work goes into making them. One of the best houses was made by a child who is only ten years old! With an admission price of only $ 6 for adults, and the money raised going to the University Hospital Foundation, this is an affordable, fun, and beautiful outing.

The Festival of Trees is one of my favourite things to do during the holiday season. This year I plan to drag all of my friends to see it with me! It’s an annual event that takes place at the Shaw Conference Centre, where they have hundreds of various themed Christmas trees on display. I always like to go through them and see which one looks most like my Christmas tree I had growing up.
It’s a great way to spend time with family and/​or friends, whether you go during the day or evening. They have kids’ activities and live entertainment as well, to keep you entertained after gazing at all the trees. There are also vendors selling yummy goodies and holiday gifts, so you can munch on a treat while doing some Christmas shopping.
Admission is $ 6 for adults, $ 3 for seniors and youths 13 – 17, and $ 1 for children 2 – 12. All tickets are sold at the door. Proceeds go towards charity, all the more reason to go! Unfortunately the festival only runs for the last weekend of November, so be sure to make some time that weekend. They’re open 9am-​9pm Nov. 27 to Nov. 29, and from 9am-​5pm Nov. 30. But if you miss it, there’s always Bright Nights or Candy Cane Lane.

This is such a great way to get into the Christmas spirit. I love the Festival of Trees. It’s a fun hour or two on a weekend at the end of November when you can browse over 100 beautifully decorated Christmas trees at the Shaw Conference Centre. Many are set up by local businesses and organizations. From a workplace perspective, what a fun way to get into the holiday spirit with your coworkers and have a festive presence in the community. This is also a great place to get ideas for your Christmas or holiday decorating. There are lots of beautiful ornaments for sale, along with other gifts and crafty things in their shopping area. And there’s always coco and other yummy treats to munch on as you browse. It’s about $ 5 or $ 6 to explore the tree gallery, and proceeds go to an Alberta charity to help people with long-​term disabilities. This year’s event is just two weeks away. For info. check out: