🚂 The Detour That Comes to You

Imagine standing beside a railway line on a cold winter evening.

A brightly illuminated train pulls into town. The locomotive stops, the carriages settle, and the crowd waits.

Then something unexpected happens.

The entire side of one railway car begins to open.

A stage appears. Stage lights come on. Musicians step forward, and suddenly you're standing in front of a live concert.

Not at a theatre. Not at an arena.

Beside a railway track.

Thirty minutes later, the musicians disappear, the stage folds away, and the train continues toward its next destination.

It's one of Canada's most unusual travelling Christmas traditions.

And here's the best part.

You don't have to travel across the country to find it. It might be coming to you.

The CPKC Holiday Train begins its 2026 journey on November 19, bringing free concerts to communities across Canada and the United States.

And the story behind this extraordinary train is almost as interesting as seeing it arrive.

Watch a railway car transform into a concert stage in this remarkable video from 2023.

1. The concert venue travels with the performers.

The Holiday Train stretches roughly 1,000 feet, with railway cars covered in colorful LED lights. One specially modified car transforms into an outdoor concert stage.

2. You could see some surprisingly big names.

Established recording artists perform at stops ranging from major cities to tiny railway communities. And the concerts are completely free.

3. Almost anyone can experience it.

No admission charge. No expensive reservations. Just find a scheduled stop, bundle up, and bring a donation for the local food bank.

A few ways to explore this remarkable Canadian tradition:

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Here's something you might not expect.

This isn't a train full of amateur Christmas carolers.

Some pretty recognizable names are climbing aboard this year.

Remember MAGIC!, the Canadian band behind the international hit Rude? They're performing in Quebec and southern Ontario.

American Authors, best known for Best Day of My Life, will be travelling through Ontario and the Prairies alongside Canadian singer Tyler Shaw.

And if you're in Alberta or British Columbia, you could catch the Sam Roberts Band performing alongside rising Canadian country artist Owen Riegling.

Imagine seeing the Sam Roberts Band playing a free concert in Lacombe, Alberta, or the little community of Notch Hill, British Columbia.

No arena. No expensive tickets.

Just a railway car, a crowd bundled up against the cold, and some surprisingly good music.

And these aren't the only performers. The 2026 lineup also includes Jamie Fine, Shawnee Kish, Rafaëlle Roy, MARIS and several American artists.

Want to see what a performance actually looks like?

Watch the Barenaked Ladies performing aboard the 2025 Holiday Train in Pitt Meadows, B.C.

It's a pretty impressive show for something that costs absolutely nothing.

Here's another fascinating part of the story.

On previous tours, the musicians and crew actually lived aboard the train.

They had sleeping accommodations, and there was even a chef preparing meals.

Imagine spending days travelling through the Canadian winter, sleeping on a train, waking up in another town, and stepping outside to perform in freezing temperatures.

Sometimes several times a day.

During the 2018 tour, musicians reportedly performed as many as seven shows in a single day.

Seven concerts. Seven different audiences. All from the same travelling stage.

Singer Kelly Prescott, who performed aboard the train that year, explained that while the musicians might be doing their sixtieth show, each audience was experiencing its very first.

And that's what kept the performers motivated.

You can read more about life aboard the train in this wonderful behind-the-scenes account from Lake Superior Magazine.

In December 2018, the Holiday Train rolled into Schreiber, Ontario, a small railway community along Lake Superior.

At the time, the town had roughly 1,000 residents.

Hundreds gathered to watch the train arrive.

And when that railway car opened, out stepped country music star Terri Clark, along with Kelly Prescott and Sierra Noble.

Imagine that.

A little town on the northern shore of Lake Superior, a freezing December afternoon, and nationally recognized musicians performing right beside the tracks.

No concert hall required.

But something else happened that day.

The Holiday Train presented a $5,500 donation to the local North Shore Harvest Food Cupboard.

For the volunteers helping feed families in the area, that contribution meant something long after the train disappeared.

The story is even more remarkable when you learn that Schreiber itself grew out of the construction of the Canadian Pacific Railway.

More than a century later, the railway was still bringing people together.

And the Holiday Train is scheduled to return to Schreiber on December 2, 2026, with American Authors and Tyler Shaw performing.

The Holiday Train began in 1999 as a Canadian Pacific initiative to support food banks in communities along its railway network.

Since then, the program has raised more than $28.3 million and collected over 5.6 million pounds of food across Canada and the United States.

This year's two trains will deliver 182 concerts during a 32-day tour through six Canadian provinces and 13 American states.

And the donations made at each stop remain in that community.

It's an extraordinary achievement for an idea that began with a decorated train and a desire to help neighbors.

Here's one way to turn a 30-minute concert into a memorable afternoon.

On Saturday, November 28, the Holiday Train is scheduled to arrive in Merrickville, Ontario, at 5:00 PM.

American Authors and Tyler Shaw will be performing.

But Merrickville is worth discovering even without the train.

Located along the historic Rideau Canal, about an hour southwest of Ottawa, it's known as the Jewel of the Rideau.

Its historic village center is filled with independent shops, artists, boutiques, and heritage buildings.

It's the sort of place where you can spend an afternoon exploring without any particular destination in mind.

Discover Merrickville's shops and artisans.

And there's something else worth seeing.

Standing beside the canal is the remarkable Merrickville Blockhouse, constructed in 1832–33 to help defend the canal against a possible attack.

It's one of Canada's largest surviving blockhouses.

The museum's regular season is over by November, but the historic building and surrounding canal area are still worth seeing from outside.

Discover the story of the Merrickville Blockhouse.

And while you're exploring, take a walk past the historic Rideau Canal locks.

Imagine spending the afternoon discovering a charming Canadian village before gathering beside the railway tracks to watch a Christmas concert arrive.

An unusual little town, a remarkable piece of Canadian history, and a travelling concert.

Now that's a Detour.

Getting there, accommodations, approximate costs, best season and an easy itinerary.

The 2026 Holiday Train tour begins November 19 in Montreal and continues through December 20.

Here are the scheduled Canadian tour dates:

These are just a handful of the scheduled stops. The complete schedule includes many smaller communities, and different performers appear along different parts of the route.

Admission: Free. Cash or non-perishable food donations are encouraged.

Concert length: Approximately 30 minutes.

What to bring: Warm clothing, comfortable winter boots, a camera, and a contribution for the local food bank if you can.

Important: The train does not offer passenger rides. Concerts take place beside the train. Follow event staff directions, stay off the railway tracks and ballast, and respect CPKC's safety guidance to remain at least 15 meters (50 feet) from the tracks.

Schedules can change, so confirm the exact location and time before leaving home.

We usually think of a Detour as somewhere we have to travel to.

A hidden waterfall. An unusual little town. A remarkable place tucked away in some forgotten corner of Canada.

But the Holiday Train turns that idea upside down.

For a few weeks every year, something extraordinary travels from community to community, inviting Canadians to share an experience that costs nothing and helps their neighbors.

And somewhere on a cold December evening, after the final song, a railway car will close, the lights will fade into the distance, and a crowd will begin heading home.

Meanwhile, a few towns farther down the tracks, another group of people will be getting ready.

Because tomorrow, the Detour comes to them.

Detour Canada Verdict: Absolutely worth experiencing at least once.

Have you ever seen the Holiday Train?

Or have we just given you a reason to get out and experience something different this Christmas season?

Hit reply and tell us where you're planning to see it.

And if you know someone who might enjoy this unusual Canadian tradition, forward them this edition.

Their next Detour might be coming right through their hometown.

Until our next Detour, keep discovering Canada! 🍁