Pride Night at KDays 2025
Review and photosby Ani Heslop
KDays started way back in 1879 as a celebration of “agriculture, innovation, and technology”. Over time, it evolved into a community gathering place and a celebration of summer, moving to its current location at Northlands in 1910.
And it really does bring the community together for music, food, shows, thrills, and good causes. For example, this year, local man Chris Scheetz spent 54 consecutive hours (save for brief bathroom breaks) on the Ferris Wheel to raise money for Alberta Dreams, an organization that grants wishes to sick children. The goal was $54,000, and they ended up raising over $70,000.
The night I attended Kdays was Pride Night, July 25, the festival’s tribute to Edmonton’s queer scene, which is being celebrated ahead of Edmonton’s first Pride Parade in seven years, which takes to the streets on August 23. Instead of having to pay general admission ($18), I got a free ticket for KDays Pride Night from Alt After Dark’s pride market back in June (check out my piece on Alt After Dark’s Cabinet of Curiosity night market here).
Free admission tickets are one way the festival continues to drive community spirit. This year, local businesses and markets gave away free admission tickets in exchange for money spent at their business.
KDays celebrated Pride Night with a queer market at the front entrance, a drag show, and not much else. While it was lackluster, that was ok with me, because KDays itself is still the theme: it’s like the Family Day, it’s not all about families or queerness, it’s just an add-on to the already themed festival.
Despite my almost four years living in Edmonton, I had never attended KDays, and I was excited! Friday evening was one of the sunniest days we’ve had in Edmonton all month – not a cloud in the sky. As I walked down the midway for the first time at 4pm, the alley of food trucks smelled delicious, people crowded every vendor and street, and the rides and games were loud and thrilling. After my first tour to orient myself, I stopped at the ticket booth and splurged on an express ride wristband. In hindsight, it’s much better to buy those in advance from Costco or Coop, as the $95 for the ride wristband felt like a little too much out of my pocket.
But I was determined to make the most of it, so I rode just about every ride, some of them twice or thrice. I’m not much one for thrills, especially precarious ones that can be packed into a suitcase and built on the spot, but after hours of spinning, dropping, and whipping, I think it was exactly the kind of adrenaline I needed to kick this summer into gear, and a great way to spend a night at the fair.
As I was being whipped around, 80 feet in the air, and zero gravity on the Ring of Fire, Star Dancer, Mega Drop, and Polar Express, my stomach dropping and getting shoulder bruises from the seat-belt, I just looked down at the busy midway, the bright sun, and the wind in my hair, and the strangers next to me, I understood how Kdays brings people together. Despite some of the ride operators being slightly grumpy, as is their right, each ride was its own type of thrill.
I’m never one to play midway games, I never did as a kid, so it’s not generally a part of my fair ritual, but I did spend $20 for three throws of a sandbag at balloons. The Carny assured me no one loses. I must have thrown at least ten sandbags instead of the three I paid for, but I still got a stuffed toy once I did hit a balloon.
Despite my wanting to stay in the sun, I had to check out what was inside the Expo centre, and I was deeply disappointed. The market was strange, with most of the vendors being pain relief gadgets, massage chairs, beds, and machines, and it was eerily quiet. I didn’t explore much due to being uncomfortable. The next hall was a giant e-game tournament setup. The next hall after that was the Indigenous experience, which was educational and interesting, and a decent sounding band was playing for a nonexistent crowd.
I would have liked to see some sort of agricultural or petting zoo type situation as I’ve seen advertised, but I couldn’t find anything. I decided that if there were goats and chicken on the premises, I probably didn’t need to see (or smell) them anyway.
As for food, I was also slightly disappointed, but it was all of my own choice. I got a caramel apple ($8), which I had high hopes for as a popular carnival treat, but it was sticky and messy, and once you eat all the candy, all you have left is an apple. Every single vendor sold lemonade, but you have to make sure to get it from the stand that looks like a little lemon and just says “Lemonade.” It’s sweet, tart, and super refreshing ($6).
I wanted a Colossal Onion so badly, but the line was longer than some of the rides, so I opted for The Fry Guys poutine instead ($14 + $3 for a delicious crushed ice diet coke). The poutine was perfectly creamy and salty and not a bad choice, and pop over crushed ice is always refreshing. Lastly, I waited too long to get deep fried ice cream, and by the time the fireworks were on, they were closed, so I got a soft serve cone instead ($9 with waffle cone), and it kind of tasted like the machine, but it was creamy and chilly.
The “Drag Me To The Midway” drag show that was presented at the CKUA Radio Stage near the entrance was fun and entertaining, with local and famous drag queens such as Melnda Verga, Kendall Gender, and Aurora Matrix strutting their stuff to popular music in front of an ecstatic crowd. It was packed with people and rainbow flags, and it was the first, and only, instance of queerness that the festival put on for ‘Pride Night’. I stayed just long enough for a few musical numbers, a witty interjection from the emcee, and a free pride flag that I had hanging out of my bag for the rest of the night.
Once the sun went down, they started the drone show, which would have been great if I could have seen anything, but there was only one good spot to watch, and it was crowded and we had to look through the chain link fence. The fireworks were fireworks, beautiful, loud, and interesting, but not an astounding or lengthy show.
I will admit, I did spend most of my time at Kdays on the rides, or walking around and taking it all in. One popular criticism of the festival is that the prices have gone up exponentially with almost no change in quality or offering. While they have, it is a fun experience if you have the disposable income, are just visiting the city, or, like me, are an Edmontonian and have never been.
But it is just like every other summer carnival/music festival that comes through town. With the prices and long lines, it’s not worth it to some, but I did have a great time and will probably go again next year, if I can get free admission again.
KDays
July 18 to July 27, 2025
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