Toronto Oktoberfest organizers say event cancelled due to lack of funding from province

Attendees are seen at Toronto's annual Oktoberfest in this undated photo. (Toronto Oktoberfest)

A popular Toronto festival will not be held this year, as organizers say they did not receive their usual funding from the province.

In an announcement posted to their website earlier this week, Toronto Oktoberfest said the festival will be taking a break this year.

“Due to current funding restraints, we have made the difficult decision to pause Toronto Oktoberfest for 2025 while we focus on building an even better festival experience for the future,” the message read.

The first Bavarian-style Oktoberfest in Toronto launched in 2012, and is a two-day event at the end of September that features food, drink, music, and dance.

It’s the first time since its inception that the festival has been cancelled, which organizers said in an emailed statement to CTV News Toronto was due in part to the lack of a provincial grant.

“For the last 10 years or so we have received a provincial grant which supports local festivals and events in Ontario,” organizers said in the statement. “The amount varies, but it helps sustain the event and offsets potential losses.”

“Without the grant, the festival runs the risk of losing money. This year we did not receive the grant.”

The statement also said that supplier costs have tripled since the COVID-19 pandemic and organizers aren’t comfortable passing those costs onto attendees.

They said they plan to reapply for the provincial grant next year in “hopes of securing it again.”

“Since 2018, the Ministry of Tourism, Culture and Gaming has provided nearly $500,000 in support of Toronto’s Oktoberfest through the Experience Ontario Grant Program,” the Ministry said in a statement to CTV News Toronto. “Experience Ontario is a highly competitive, application-based program and we are investing over $27 million dollars in support of over 350 festivals and events across the province.”

“This year’s program received over 500 applications, which were measured against established program criteria. There is no guarantee of funding, and all applicants are made aware at the start of the application process.”

Oktoberfest is not the first annual festival to be cancelled this year.

The Taste of the Danforth was cancelled for the second year in a row this summer, after facing funding constraints in 2024.