Weekend need-to-know: Diwali festivities lights up the Toronto sky

Posted October 22, 2026 11:15 am.

The skies will be lit up this weekend as the city celebrates Diwali in two different locations ahead of the festival of lights in November. Keep in mind, there is a closure on Line 2 and on the Lakeshore West GO line this weekend.

Diwali Festival of Lights

Celebrate Diwali early at Canada’s largest festival of lights this weekend at Nathan Phillips Square. The event will bring together music, culture, dance, fireworks and more.

The free event starts at 12 p.m. on Saturday and runs until 10 p.m. on Sunday.

Just a little further north, the party continues at Mel Lastman Square. Over 45,000 visitors are expected to descend on the square to celebrate Diwali with over 150 performers and 50 vendors at the festival. The third annual event will kick off on Oct. 23 and run all weekend.

You can find more details on their website.

Riverside Halloween Fest

Celebrate Halloween a little early with the annual Riverside Halloween Fest this Sunday with free activities for the whole family.

There will be pumpkin decorating, a dog costume party, face painting, and of course, candy.

It kicks off at 11 a.m. with the dog costume party starting at 12 p.m. and the Riverside Candy Crawl and costume parade happening at 3 p.m. The guided Candy Crawl will stop for treats at over 10 local businesses and end at the Queen Street and Saulter Street Toronto Public Library.

All the festivities will begin at Joel Weeks Park on Thompson Street near Queen Street East and the Don Valley Parkway.

Fall Leisure Skate – Exhibition Place

While it may still be a little warm to throw on a pair of skates, the Coca-Cola Coliseum is opening its doors for one night for you skate where the Toronto Sceptres and the Toronto Marlies play.

The free skate begins at 6:30 p.m. on Friday and runs until 9:30 p.m. with skates, helmets and skate aids available on a first-come, first-served basis so everyone can join even if you don’t have the equipment.

Good Mourning

A festival to create space for those grieving is happening this weekend with a celebration of the Day of the Dead as well.

The annual Good Mourning Festival at Evergreen Brickworks begins Saturday with Together in Grief where attendees can express their grief through workshops, art installations, music and peer support.

The second day will be the Día de los Muertos celebration, which is a Mexican and Latin American tradition that uses rituals, performances, crafts and food to commemorate loved ones who have died.

You can find more details on their website.

Halloween Witches Market

The Village at Black Creek will be transformed into a Halloween Witches Market this weekend.

Over 35 magical vendors will include tarot and intuitive readers, spritual offerings and handmade goods.

The market will kick off at 11 a.m. and run until 5 p.m.

TTC/GO closures

Line 2 weekend closure

Subway service on Line 2 between Kipling and Jane stations on Saturday and between Kipling and Keele on Sunday will be replaced by shuttle buses for planned infrastructure work.

Regular subway service will resume on Monday at 6 a.m.

Lakeshore West GO Transit service adjustments

On Saturday and Sunday, due to planned construction on Lakeshore West, there will be no GO train service between Aldershot GO and Union Station.

GO trains will run between Niagara Falls and Aldershot GO while GO buses will run between West Harbour GO and Union Station Bus Terminal.

There will be no GO Transit service at Appleby, Bronte, Port Credit, Long Branch, Mimico or Exhibition GO.

You can find more details here.

Road closures

Ongoing road closures

Gardiner Expressway long-term closure

As part of the long-term construction plan on the Gardiner Expressway, a stretch of the westbound Gardiner has been reduced from four lanes to three. The westbound lane closure will stretch from Park Lawn Road to Grand Avenue in southern Etobicoke. The eastbound lanes along the same stretch will be narrowed, but with no lane reductions, from April 2025 to December 2026.

For full traffic and closure updates, click here for the latest information from 680 NewsRadio Toronto.

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