Plan an Event

Conferences & Conventions · how to plan in Toronto & the GTA

Everything on EventPlans.ca for Conferences & Conventions: planning guides, ideas, lessons from the free Academy and the vendors who work these events in Toronto and the GTA.

Where to start

Set the budget with the budget calculator (it shows HST and contingency).
Build the dates backwards with the timeline generator.
Shortlist rooms in the venue directory and acts with the entertainment finder.
Run the day from a run of show.

Person from behind moving magnetic blocks on a whiteboard grid

Venues

Halifax Convention Centre

In-house catering · Near transit

A downtown convention centre in the Nova Centre with more than 120,000 sq ft of event space and Rick Hansen accessibility certification.

Hands plugging cables into a projector with an outdoor screen behind

Venues

Musée national des beaux-arts du Québec

300+ guests

In-house catering · Free parking

Quebec's national fine arts museum in Battlefields Park, with its own catering and private exhibition access.

Wavy blue neon line on a greenery wall with a guest from behind

Venues

Québec City Convention Centre

300+ guests

Québec City's convention centre, with about 295,000 sq ft of usable space including a 75,000 sq ft exhibit hall.

Security staffer guiding a queue between barriers at a festival gate

Venues

Fairmont Le Château Frontenac

300+ guests

In-house catering

A historic hotel in Old Québec with more than 40,000 sq ft of event space, in-house banquet menus and a wedding team.

Planner’s hands dividing coins into paper cups beside a calculator

Venues

Fairmont The Queen Elizabeth

300+ guests

A large downtown convention hotel with 950 rooms and suites and about 84,000 sq ft of space in 36 meeting rooms.

Long harvest table set with candles and greenery in a barn

Venues

Marché Bonsecours

300+ guests

Bring your own caterer

A 19th-century market building in Old Montréal with four event halls (about 27,000 sq ft).

Hands placing figures and arrows on a cardboard floor model

Venues

Palais des congrès de Montréal

300+ guests

Near transit

Montréal's convention centre, with 113 meeting rooms and about 353,000 sq ft of meeting space next to the Place-d'Armes metro station.

Magenta and teal light circles on an empty dance floor in haze

Venues

Fairmont Château Laurier

300+ guests

A historic railway hotel next to Parliament Hill and the Rideau Canal, with 36,000 sq ft of space in 16 meeting rooms.

Parking attendant waving cars into rows on a field lot at golden hour

Venues

Rogers Centre Ottawa

300+ guests

Ottawa's convention centre beside the Rideau Canal, formerly the Shaw Centre, with 192,000 sq ft of meeting space over four floors and…

Stage manager’s wristwatch and run sheet backstage beside a cue light

Venues

The Hotel Saskatchewan

300+ guests

In-house catering

A historic downtown hotel with 12 event rooms and about 15,400 sq ft of event space; the Regency Ballroom seats 350 for…

Hands tracing a route on a blank aerial site printout with toy cars

Venues

Wanuskewin Heritage Park

300+ guests

A First Nations heritage site and interpretive centre north of Saskatoon with meeting rooms, an outdoor amphitheatre and more than 6 km…

Gobo light patterns on a ballroom dance floor during a focus session

Venues

Remai Modern

300+ guests

In-house catering

A modern art museum beside the South Saskatchewan River that rents single spaces or the whole building, catered by Hearth.