This weekend Canadians will say goodbye to 2023 and wake up Monday morning in the new year.
With New Year’s Day being a statutory holiday, some stores and services Canadians rely on will be closed.
Here’s a guide of what is open and what is closed across the country on Jan. 1, 2024.
Grocery stores, pharmacies and liquor stores
If you’re looking to restock your fridge after a week of festive cooking, you might have to wait until Tuesday, Jan. 2.
Loblaws, Sobeys, Walmart, Longo’s, Metro and Costcos will be closed holiday Monday throughout most of the country.
Some grocery store locations will be open on New Year’s Day, however, including Metro at 444 Yonge St. in Toronto and 977 Rue Cartier in Quebec. Whole Foods at 510 W. 8th Ave. in Vancouver will also be open, along with Walmart at 2370 McPhillips St. in Winnipeg.
Rabba Fine Foods, a retail grocery store based in the Greater Toronto Area, has been open during the holiday season and will remain so on New Year’s Day. “Open 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. It doesn’t matter if it’s Christmas,” the company says on its website.
Vancouver Save-on-Foods locations will be open from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. on Jan. 1.
LCBO and Beer Store locations in Ontario will be closed on New Year’s Day, but where permitted by local municipalities, some LCBO Convenience Outlets might be open with regular business hours.
Wine Rack outlets in the Toronto area will be open but other locations such as Kingston, Ont. will be closed.
If you aren’t tired of shopping yet, malls such as Shops at Don Mills in Toronto and CF Polo Park shopping centre in Winnipeg will be open.
In Toronto, retailers in designated tourist areas such as Yorkville, downtown Yonge, Queen’s Quay West and the Distillery District can stay open on New Year’s Day, according to City of Toronto bylaws.
Pharmacies across Canada will be operating at reduced capacity. Some Shoppers Drug Mart locations will be open, but not all. New Year’s Day hours can be seen on the Shoppers store locator map.
Transit
Most transit services across the country will be operating on New Year’s Day, but most will be running on an altered schedule.
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The Toronto Transit Commission (TTC) will be operating on a Sunday schedule, meaning vehicles will arrive every four to five minutes starting at 8 a.m.
Go Transit’s New Year’s Day service will also operate on Saturday schedules.
Montreal bus lines operate on a holiday schedule on Jan. 1-2. See schedules at stm.info/en or call 514-288-6287.
The Halifax–Alderney ferry will be closed. It runs every day of the year except Christmas Day, New Year’s Day, Good Friday and Easter Sunday.
Calgary bus and CTrain service will be operating on a Sunday schedule.
Ottawa’s OC Transpo holiday service is running until Jan. 5.
In B.C., TransLink bus service, SkyTrain and SeaBus will be running on holiday schedules on Jan. 1. The West Coast Express will not operate.
Transit in Kingston, Regina and New Brunswick will not operate on New Year’s Day.
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Activities
If you’re looking to kick off the new year with something fun, a lot of attractions across the country will be open with reduced hours.
While some Niagara Falls attractions are closed during winter months, including the Whirlpool Aero Car, Wildplay Whirlpool Adventure Course, Niagara City Cruises and the White Water Walk, others remain open. The Journey Behind the Falls and the Niagara Power Station will be open Jan. 1. Hours of operation can be seen on the Niagara Parks website.
THEMUSEUM, an art and technology museum in Kitchener, Ont., will be open from 12 p.m. until 4 p.m. on Jan. 1.
Science World in Vancouver will be open from 12 p.m. to 5 p.m. while the Vancouver Aquarium will be open from 9:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. holiday Monday.
The West Edmonton Mall Waterpark will be open from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Monday.
Cineplex and Landmark Cinemas both have their doors open for moviegoers.
Most ski hills across the country will also be open.
Other services
Banks, post offices and public libraries across the country will be closed New Year’s Day.
Most government locations such as city halls, municipal offices and facilities will also be closed.
Some cities will pause municipal services, such as garbage collection, but most will resume on Jan. 2.
In Regina and Toronto, waste collection will run without interruption on Jan. 1, but there will be no curbside waste collection in Ottawa, Kitchener, Cambridge and Waterloo.
Ottawa’s 311 contact centre will remain open for urgent matters only, returning to regular hours Jan. 2.
For more information on New Year’s Day hours, visit respective websites for municipal and provincial services and fun activities to do in each city.
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