Beat the boredom without breaking the bank with these free summer activities in and around Edmonton

An aerial view of the downtown skyline in Edmonton in the summer 2025. (Sean McClune/CTV News Edmonton)

CTV News Edmonton has rounded up a list of affordable – mostly free – ways to beat boredom and get your kids out of the house this summer.

Explore Edmonton’s extensive trails, take a nature tour, start a reading challenge, enjoy city programs, festivals and more. There are fun activities to fit your family’s budget.

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Here is a list of free, and nearly free, things to do in and around Edmonton before the new school year.

Explore the scenic route at parks, trails and footbridges

Edmonton has an extensive network of trails for walking, running or biking. The City of Edmonton website has a full map divided by area and graded for their steepness.

There are several parks and spots that have benches to enjoy the view of Edmonton’s River Valley, including:

• Constable Ezio Faraone Park;
• Legislature grounds;
• Louise McKinney Park;
• Queen Elizabeth Hill; and
• Rowland Park lookout.

Or cross some of Edmonton’s footbridges, which make for a great family photo spot and include:

• Capilano;
• Fort Edmonton;
• Terwillegar Park; and
• Tawatinâ.

Take a nature tour with experts or self-guided

From bugs to wildlife and from rivers to forests, learn more about nature with enthusiasts and experts at Family Nature Nights. Nature Alberta and its partners are holding two-hour interactive events on Wednesday evenings in July and August at various parks, including three in Edmonton. Families can register for free on site at the event, but everyone is encouraged to arrive early as space is limited.

Learn more on the Nature Alberta website.

For families wanting to explore natural area parks in Edmonton at their own pace, the city offers a free colourful workbook that can be downloaded, printed and used as a guide on your next urban adventure. The BioKit is filled with nature facts and kids can have fun spotting and matching plants and animals with the pictures on the pages.

Visit Elk Island National Park with free admission and shuttle from downtown Edmonton

Elk Island National Park is less than an hour’s drive east of Edmonton. Herds of elk and bison roam on the grassy hills and more than 250 bird species call the natural oasis home. Visitors can learn about the history of the land and conservation efforts with free admission until Sept. 2 as part of the perks offered with the Canada Strong Pass.

A convenient free shuttle service is also available for booking this summer. Take the complimentary bus from downtown Edmonton — at Mountain Equipment Co-Op or the Royal Alberta Museum — directly to the park’s visitor centre or Astotin Lake on select Saturdays and Sundays.

Seats must be reserved online and a $15 deposit fee per person will apply, but the fee will be refunded to guests who arrive on time for their scheduled departure. A one-hour guided tour with Parks Canada staff is also included on select dates. Learn more on the Park Bus website.

Hit the open road with the Alberta Strong Pass

Venture a little further from home, with free admissions using the Alberta Strong Pass this summer. There are several parks and tourist spots in the province which are offering free or discounted admissions until Sept. 2, including:

• Royal Tyrrell Museum, Drumheller;
• Reynolds Museum, Cardston;
• Oil Sands Discovery Centre, Fort McMurray;
• Stephansson House, Red Deer County;
• Frank Slide Interpretive Centre, Crowsnest Pass;
• Fort George and Buckingham House, St. Paul;
• Historic Dunvegan, Fairview;
• Victoria Settlement, County of Smoky Lake;
• Turner Valley Gas Plant, Diamond Valley; and
• Head-Smashed-In-Buffalo-Jump, Fort Macleod.

The Green Shack program returns with an added summer concert series

Edmonton’s Green Shack program is back and will run until Aug. 21. The free drop-in program is geared towards children ages six-12, but kids of all ages are invited to have fun through organized games, sports, crafts and more. Kids younger than six years old can join with a parent or guardian present.

A list of activities and scheduled events can be found posted on the side of the Green Shack each week. Find your nearest location and its hours online.

Families can also enjoy the newly added concert series this year. The full schedule of shows can be found on the Edmonton Arts Council (EAC) website, which has partnered with the city for the events.

Cool off at Edmonton spray parks, pools and rinks

Make a splash and let the kids cool off for free at one of Edmonton’s 78 spray parks, which are open 9 a.m. to 9 p.m. each day.

The city also has five outdoor pools, with Borden pool expected to open later in July. Admission is free for members and swim times can be reserved online. Drop-in prices for non-members range from $6.25 — for children under 12 — to $9.25 for adults.

There is also a summer child and youth pass available for purchase. Children and youth between two years old and 17 can get unlimited access to city gyms and pools for $25 or $35 per month until Aug. 31.

For those wanting to beat the heat with some ice-time, there are free drop-in times at Edmonton arenas. A full schedule is listed on the City of Edmonton website.

Check out a new playground

The City of Edmonton operates more than 400 playgrounds. They are free and accessible for kids of all ages, and range from skateparks to fitness features. Some may house the Green Shack program or have a spray park on site.

There is even a website dedicated to finding the best playground in the city and surrounding communities. Listing ones with cool slides like in Glengarry to an inclusive playground in Clareview, there are hundreds to explore and find a new family favourite.

Library summers programs encourage reading and more

There are more than just books at the public library. Edmonton Public Library (EPL) and St. Albert Public Library (SAPL) are both offering fun reading challenges for children this summer.

Kids can pick up a book and track their reading time to win prizes at SAPL until Aug. 17 and at EPL until Aug. 23.

For more interactive fun, the downtown library in St. Albert has set up a “mad scientist laboratory” for kids to explore science themed rooms, play reading games, and earn prizes.

Devon Public Library, southwest of Edmonton, has a unique item to borrow. “Bird backpacks” are bags filled with all the necessary gear to start bird watching. The library has three adult packs and one for youth available for loan, which staff believe will be flying off their shelves this summer.

Explore the city for unique finds

The city is dotted with unique gems, including a public art project that is nominated for an international award.

The interactive art display, Play it by Ear, was designed by Calgary artists and installed in Butler Memorial Park in 2023. Sitting off Stony Plain road in Edmonton’s west end, visitors can pick up one of the brightly coloured phones and make a call to another matching coloured phone in the park.

Spark a conversation with someone new or listen in on one of the phones. And if this art project doesn’t get your family talking, there are about 300 other pieces of public art to explore in Edmonton. Find the full list on the EAC website.

Free museum visits

The Art Gallery of Alberta in downtown Edmonton offers free admission on the last Thursday of each month from 4 p.m. to 7 p.m. All ages are welcome, but children under 12 years old must be accompanied by an adult. See the schedule of exhibits online, including one comparing notable artists William Kentridge and Pablo Picasso.

Before there were smart phones, there were just good old-fashioned telephones. See how people used to communicate with an extensive display of antique phones at the Telephone Historical Centre at the Prince of Wales Armouries in Edmonton. Admission is by donation and the centre is open Tuesdays to Fridays from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m.

The John Walter Museum is open for free from 1 p.m. to 4 p.m. on Sunday afternoons. Located in Edmonton’s River Valley next to Kinsmen Park, learn about the life of John Walter and the Strathcona community of Walterdale by visiting the three historic homes on site.

Summer festivals

KDays is kicking off with a free pancake breakfast at 9 a.m. at Klondike Park at the Edmonton Expo Centre on Friday. The first 5,000 people can get their fill of complimentary flapjacks and gain free admission to KDays at 11 a.m. when the festival opens.

There is also free general admission to KDays for Arc transit card holders on July 22. As part of “Transit Tuesday”, transit riders who show their Arc card at the gate will get into KDays for free. More information can be found on the Edmonton Transit Service website.

OEG Sports & Entertainment is holding a series of events in Ice District for their Summer SoltstIce festival. Some events are free to attend like movie night on July 26 and Aug. 9 in Ice District Plaza. Find the full schedule of events online.

Here is a list of more festivals offering free admission or entertainment, or accepting donations for admission, this summer:

• Taste of Edmonton from July 17 to 27 at Sir Winston Churchill Square;
• Chalk-It-Up on July 19 at The Carrot Community Arts Coffeehouse on Alberta Avenue;
• Hoop City 3X3 Festival from July 31 to Aug. 3 at the Ice Palace in West Edmonton Mall;
• Heritage Festival from Aug. 2 to 4 at the Exhibition Grounds and Borden Park;
• Cariwest Weekend from Aug. 8 to 10 at Sir Winston Churchill Square;
• Edmonton International Fringe Theatre Festival from Aug. 14 to 24 at Old Strathcona; and
• Edmonton Dragon Festival from Aug. 16 to 24 at Louise McKinney Park and various locations.

St. Albert Botanic Park

Take a walk and admire the flowers for free at the St. Albert Botanic Garden, which is open all year from sunrise to sunset. The five acre garden is run by a non-profit organization and it is maintained by volunteers with a green thumb.

Celebrate Garden Day and the park’s 35th anniversary on July 27 from 1 p.m. to 4 p.m. The afternoon will have family-friendly entertainment including face painting, a scavenger hunt, live music and more. There will be food, drinks and raffle tickets available for purchase.

Donations are also welcome at the garden, and the money goes directly back into the green space and its operation.