Québec City, Québec

“J’taime, Bonnehomme Carnival!” Every kid who visit’s Québec City’s magnificent two week celebration of winter comes away knowing that phrase. By the end of a five day visit, I came away saying it myself. I’m not sure if the guy in the Bonnehomme Carnival mascot costume expected an adult man to express his love with such sincerity, but it was all in good fun. And fun with a snowman—and everything snow—is what this winter party is all about.

While the majority of Canadians (and Americans in winter climates) hunkers down and grumbles their way through winter, the people of Québec’s capital happily pull on their parkas, caps and mittens, then go outside and play. Over the last 50+ years, they’ve created the world’s largest winter festival. Held each February, Carnival now attracts upwards of a million participants to a city with a European feel where the cobbled streets nearly drip with wintry magic.

The centerpiece of Carnival is a magnificent ice castle, standing across the street from Quebec’s main government building. Bonnehomme shows up there at specified times, and at night it’s beautifully lit. Several magnificent snow sculptures stand nearby, and more can be seen around the festival area.

Quebec Carnival features a surprising number of wintry things to do—families with children will enjoy it as much as couples on a romantic getaway. Here’s a sampling:

Snow Bath. This signature event brings out the drunk, the crazy, and those who just can’t resist showing off their winter white bodies as they splash around in a giant mountain of snow for several minutes, clad in little more than a Speedo or bikini. Bonnehomme is there cheering them on and playing in the snow with them. And yes, it is open to all. Participate if you want some serious bragging rights back home. Those wishing to warm up afterwards, snow bathers or not, can take advantage of the on-site hot tubs.

Drink Caribou. At the ice bar you can try “caribou,” a regional alcoholic beverage made by blending port wine, whiskey, and a hint of maple syrup. The bar itself is completely fashioned from ice and the cocktail tables are 100% ice. Even the glasses are ice, cut in perfect squares and drilled with a two-inch-round center opening. Drinking booze from an ice glass has its challenges—my bottom lip struggled to adapt to the perfectly flat, icy surface, and my top lip to the round opening. But mon dieu, caribou is tres, tres bon!

One Horse Open Sleigh Races. Watch Québec’s version of winter cowboys as they race in a one horse open sleigh derby. It’s a colorful event with horses and sleighs that look like they stepped off a Currier & Ives holiday card. But when the whistle sounds, each sleigh suddenly becomes a wildly speeding winter blur racing around a hilly course between pylons and decorative objects. It is fantastically entertaining. There are other spectator sports, including canoe races, a soapbox derby, and dogsled races.

Maple Syrup on Snow. A major highlight (for me) was twirling maple syrup onto a stick. It was ladled onto the snow by a terribly Quebecois-looking, farmer type man, complete with red and black flannel jacket. You press your stick into the sticky syrup and wrap it into a taffy-like sucker (and it fulfilled a childhood dream I’ve had about snow and maple ever since reading the Little House books as a child).

Rides & Skating. There are plenty of things to ride at Carnival, from a big horse-drawn sleigh wagon, to dogsled rides, to giant inflatable tubes racing down a hill (they call it snow rafting). A surprise was a zipline running above the festival grounds, with no shortage of people wanting to harness up for the quick zip. Ice skating is also available, and Bonnehomme has been known to lace up his skates.

Entertainment & Parades. There are both daytime and nighttime parades. The night parade is held each weekend with floats and bands. It’s a colorful extravaganza with Bonnehomme himself riding a float and waving to his adoring fans. Weekends also feature nighttime concerts by artists well-known to Québec locals.

By the time I left Québec City, I had fallen seriously in love with Winter Carnival, Bonnehomme and all. I was already in love with the city itself and this event gave me reason to go during the cold season. I think you’ll feel the same.