Quebec

Lots of Major Record Conventions

There will be several major record conventions this weekend in Montreal, Toronto, Bowmanville, Brantford and Calgary, as well as comic book conventions in Calgary, Sudbury, Chatham and Cornwall.

The first record convention, the Montreal Plateau Record Show, will be held on Saturday, the 26th of April, 2025, from 10am to 4pm at the Église Saint Denis.

Admission is $5 or $15 for early entry at 9pm. And the entrance of the venue is at 5075 Rivard Street, near the north entrance of the Laurier Metro Station (on the Orange Line).

The next four record conventions will be held on Sunday, April 27th, 2025, the first being the Toronto Downtown Record Show at The Tranzac from noon to 4pm.

Admission will be $7 or $12 for early entry at 10am. And the venue is a six minute walk away from either the Bathurst or Spadina Metro Stations. It’s in-between the two TTC stations.

The next record convention this Sunday will be the Bowmanville CD and Record Show, which will be hosted by the Memorial Park Clubhouse from 10am to 4pm.

This is a free event and the venue is a nine minute walk from the nearest bus stop, #1499, which is serviced by Route 902 on Durham Regional Transit.

The Brantford Record Show will also be held on Sunday, this time at the Dunsdon Legion, from 10am to 3pm. And admission will be a $2 donation to the legion.

The nearest bus stops to the venue are 450 and 483, which is serviced by Routes 4A and 4C on Brantford Transit.

And last but not least, the Calgary Record Collectors Show will be held on Sunday at the Acadia Recreation Complex from 11am to 4pm.

Admission to this event is $5 or $10 for early entry at 9:30am. And the nearest bus stops to the venue, 6414 and 6447, are serviced by Route 99 on Calgary Transit.

The Calgary Expo will also be held this weekend, from the 24th to the 27th at Stampede Park.

Admission information can be found by clicking here. And the venue is serviced by Victoria Park / Stampede Station on Calgary Transit.

The Sudbury Comicon will be held for one day, on Saturday the 26th of April, 2025, at the George Armstrong Community Centre and Arena from 10am to 3pm, and admission will be $5 or free for kids 12 and under.

This venue is serviced by Route 102 on GOVA and the nearest bus stops to the venue are unfortunately not numbered ; The southbound stop is the closest to the venue, followed by the northbound stop.

Chatham Kent Expo will be a two day event at John D. Bradley Convention Centre on the 26th and 27th of April, 2025.

Admission information can be found by clicking here. And the casino next door has its own bus stop, 5231, which is serviced by Route 5 on Ride CK.

And finally, the Cornwall Pop Event (a.k.a CAPE) will be held at the Benson Center, also on north the 26th and 27th of April.

Click here for ticket information. And although the venue is serviced by Route 3 via its own bus stop on Saturdays, you might need to contact Cornwall Transit for information on access on Sunday. Their offices are next to the venue.

Please note that cash may be preferred at these events so you might want to look for the nearest ATMs to the venue. And FYI, the Real Canadian Superstore offer on $50 Apple Gift Card purchases will end tonight so hurry to get your 5000 Optimum Point Bonus.

This Weekend’s Events

I have waited to post this entry to make sure none of the events in Eastern Canada were canceled due weather and it appears that none have been canceled:

The Vancouver Comic and Toy Show will be held at the PNE Forum on the 5th and 6th of April, 2025.

Tickets to this event can be purchased by clicking here and the venue is serviced by multiple routes on Translink, via bus stops 50951 and 52718.

The Salon National des Collectionneurs will also occur on the 5th and 6th, but at Espace St-Hyacinthe.

The nearest bus stop the to venue is #506, which is serviced by Routes 50 and 70 on the St.Hyacinthe city transit system. And note that this event is predominantly in French.

Back Issues Comicon will be held at the Christ Church Parish Hall on Saturday, the 5th of April, 2025, from 9am to 3pm and admission will be $3.

The nearest bus stop to the venue is 7389 which is serviced by Routes 54, 55 and 62 on Halifax Transit.

The Stratford ComiCon appears to still be on for April 5th, 2025 at the Best Western Plus The Arden Park Hotel from 10am to 3pm.

Admission is $5 or free for kids 12 and under. And Stratford Transit offers on demand services to the venue and the Stratford Via Rail station is only a 3 to 4 minute taxi ride away from this hotel.

The Woodstock Pop Show will be held on Sunday, April 6th, 2025 from 9:30am to 2:30pm at the Woodstock Fairgrounds Auditorium.

Admission will be $5 or free for accompanied kids 12 and under. And the venue is unfortunately not serviced by transit on Sundays but it is a four or five minute taxi ride away from the Via Rail station.

And finally, the Guelph Record Show will occur on Sunday, the 6th of April, 2025 from 10:30am to 4pm at the Royal Canadian Legion.

Admission is $5 or $20 for early entry at 9am. And unfortunately there is no transit service to this venue on Sundays. But the venue is an eight minute taxi ride from the Guelph Go Train and Via Rail station.

Please note that cash may be preferred at these events so keep an eye out for the ATMs near or in the venues. And although the Spring sale is over at Amazon.ca, you should probably check out their deals on music, DVDs/blu-rays, electronics and musical instruments.

Last Minute Entry & More

I completely missed CompassCon:Oakville and thought there were no events this weekend.

This event will be held at Galaxy 707 Club on Saturday, February 8th, 2025 from 10:30am to 4:00pm, with early access from 9:30am for $10.

Regular admission with be $5 whilst 12 and under will be admitted free with a parent. The nearest bus stops to the venue are 2616 and 2937, which are located behind the venue and next to its parking lot, and these are serviced by Route 20 on Saturdays on Oakville Transit. And yes, this route does operate from the Oakville Go Station.

X-Box users should note that a $100 Game & Grub Gift Card purchase at participating Rexall stores from the 7th to the 13th of February, 2025 may make you eligible for a $10 Rexall Gift Card. Consult your local flyer for detail by clicking here.

Now for some unfortunate news for cinema fans in Quebec – Cinema Guzzo has closed all of their theatres in the province, immediately offering them for sale to cover their 39 Million dollar debts.

Cinestarz has secured their Dollard-Des-Ormeaux location and will be converting it shortly to their brand. But seven theatres remain unsold in the Montreal/Laval area.

Events this Weekend & More

There will be no record conventions this weekend but Ottawa will be hosting two free events that might be of interest to some of this blog’s readers.

The first will be the two day, Winter Edition of Ottawa Comicon on the 25th and 26th of January at the EY Center:

There will be no guest speakers but plenty of exhibitions at this free event, which will be open from 11am to 6pm on Saturday and 11am to 5pm on Sunday. And note that the Uplands O-Train Station next to the venue will be open on Saturday, the 25th of January, so you will be able to use Lines 2 and 4 that day.

Furthermore, the 613flea Market will be held at the Aberdeen Pavilion, also on Saturday the 25th of January, 2025, from 10am to 4pm. And you can use Bus Route 7 from the Carleton University Station to & from the venue:

This is a free event that occasionally has vendors that sell vinyl LPs/singles, DVDs/blu-rays and memorabilia, so it might be worth your while to pop on by. And remember to both stock up on cash and warm clothing, because it is cold!

Now for some news for people in Eastern Ontario and Western Quebec:

Steve’s Music will be moving into their new location, 280 St. Catherines Street, by February 1st, 2025. This store faces the former Ottawa Bus Terminal site and is next to Tannis Cash & Carry.

Also scheduled for February is the opening of the Boutique Musique web site; This is a cute little store in the scenic village of Wakefield, Quebec that sells vinyl LPs/singles, CDs and turntables.

Comiccon de Québec & More

The two day Quebec City Comicmon will be held at the Centre De Congres de Quebec on Saturday the 12th and Sunday the 13th of October, 2024.

Admission varies (click here for information) and multiple major bus routes on RTCQuebec service the venue though bus stops 1517 and 1560.

A CompassCon Pop Up Event will also colour on Saturday, the 12th, in Newmarket (Ontario) at the Royal Canadian Legion Branch 426 from 10am to 3pm.

Admission will be $5 or free for kids 12 and under. And the nearest bus stops to the venue, bus stop numbers 2060 and 2074, are a seven minute walk south Muriel Street and on Gorham Street. Route 56 services these stops and York Regional Transit does have a trip planner.

Another edition of the Capital Trade Show at The Nepean Sportsplex will occur on Sunday, October 13th, 2024 from 10am to 3pm.

This is a free event, with ample free parking, but public transit users should know that this venue is services by multiple OC Transpo routes via bus stop numbers 1683 and 1701.

Please note that cash may be preferred at these events so you might want to locate the nearest ATMs to the above mentioned venues. Enjoy.

Ontario/Quebec Covid Update & More

Capacity limits will be removed today on establishments that require vaccine passports in Ontario, like cinemas and conventions. But it appears a 50% limit will be imposed on concert venues and theatres according to the official press release from the Government of Ontario.

Proof of vaccination requirements will be lifted on March 1st but social distancing, masks and hand sanitizing will remain for some time, as it will in Quebec, where capacity limits have been lifted for cinemas.

Smaller venues in Quebec with less than 10,000 seats will be allowed to fully open but restaurants, bars and taverns will be limited to 50% capacity until March 14th.

By the way, the Record Store Day release lists for April 23rd and June 18th have been released. You can view them by clicking here.