What is GO Fest?

The Whistler Great Outdoors Festival, GO Fest for short, is just that—an annual festival celebrating Whistler and BC’s natural and inviting landscape.

The 5^th Annual GO Fest, which takes place during the Victoria Day long weekend, from May 18^th to 21^st, is the perfect way to spend a weekend and transition from winter to summer. During the four-day festival, locals and visitors alike will have the opportunity to participate in plenty of fun-fuelled activities while experiencing the Whistler Village and surrounding Valley.

GO Fest offers a fully loaded schedule of events relating to different sports, wining and dining, arts and music, and educational clinics.

Sports

Whether you want to try something new, brush up on your skills, or come first in one of the many competitions, you’ll be able to find it at GO Fest. Learn to sail and compete in a sailing race at Alta Lake, take a road cycling course, float along a self-guided river tour, stand-up paddleboard, play ping pong at Basecamp, join in on the Parkrun or find your inner calm with some yoga.

GO Fest is a family event and there will be separate snowboard parks and skate parks set up for the little ones at Olympic Plaza, as well as an interactive scavenger hunt on May 19.

Plus, hungry cycling enthusiasts won’t want to miss the Bici Gusti gourmet ride, which tours 70 riders through Whistler’s pristine wilderness before sitting down for a masterfully crafted dinner made by Chef Ned Bell.

Culture

GO Fest offers a variety of events that bring together food, art and adventure. From Beers + Bears to Wine About Painting, you’ll be able to learn how to sculpt your very own bear, or get a lesson from a painting pro, while drinking a variety of beers and sampling different wines.

If you’re more interested in new media, there will be a digital photography workshop you can sign up for, plus, the Whistler Film Festival will be running a film series curated with adventure-based short films, over the weekend.

Also, you might not want to miss the Farmer’s Market offering of some local goods, the all British car show in the valley, as well as the Mountain Biking Heritage exhibit at the Whistler Museum.

Music

From Friday to Sunday, GO Fest is putting on a series of free concerts at the Whistler Village Main Square with performances from The Philosopher Kings, Victoria’s Current Swell, The Funk Hunters and more. Shows will start on Friday night and will run daily at 3 p.m. and 7:30 p.m.

Clinics

A lot of the aforementioned activities will include a clinic that you may have to sign up for in advance; the sailing race, yoga, photography workshop, road cycling as well as axe throwing, gardening and a dog training session. Registration for most of these events is available at greatoutdoorsfest.com.

GO Fest is the perfect time to experience all that Whistler has to offer. If you have any questions at all, please don’t hesitate to ask; we pride ourselves on being the experts on all that is Whistler – see you out there!