CITY OF THUNDER BAY

POPULATION: 120,000+

• Canada’s premier outdoor city
• Regional centre for Northwestern Ontario
• International airport


WHY THUNDER BAY?

• Excellent sports facilities and affordable accommodations
• Friendly and accessible community
• Skilled volunteers and inspired spectators with a passion for sports
• Northern hospitality where athletes take centre stage


CONNECTING TO THE CENTRE OF CANADA 

Thunder Bay International Airport is the fifth busiest airport in Ontario

To Toronto:
Porter: 5x to Toronto Island, 
1x to Toronto Pearson 
Air Canada: 3x Daily
Flair – 4x weekly (seasonal)

To Ottawa:
Porter: x2 daily 

To Winnipeg:
WestJet: x1 daily

To Calgary: 
WestJet – 3x weekly 
April/May/September/October
5x weekly – June
Daily July/August

Bearskin Airlines, North Star & Wasaya Airways (Regional)
Daily connections, Northern Ontario and Northwestern Ontario

DRIVE
All roads connect to Thunder Bay – Trans Canada 
Highway (east-west) and Highway 61 (south).

SUCCESS STORIES

A proven track record for championship sports events.

2026
All-Ontario U15AAA Hockey Championships
WCL USPORTS Invitational Wrestling Championship
U16 OCUP Provincial Alpine Skiing Championships

2025 
Scotties Tournament of Hearts 
Nordiq Canada Selection Trials, Ontario Cup
Canadian XCM Mountain Bike Championship

2024
Ontario Winter Games
WBSC Womens Baseball World Cup

2023
All-Ontario U13 AAA Hockey Championships
Canadian Cross Country Ski Championships
Canadian Disc Golf Championships

2022
Scotties Tournament of Hearts 
Canadian WUSHU Championships

2020
Special Olympics Canada Winter Games

2019
TELUS Cup – Canadian Midget Hockey Championships

2018
Pinty’s Grand Slam of Curling – Tour Challenge
Canadian Cross Country Ski Championships 

MEMORABLE EXPERIENCES

No trip to Thunder Bay is complete without 
experiencing these iconic attractions.

• The Sleeping Giant 
• Terry Fox Monument 
• Fort William Historical Park
• Kakabeka Falls

THUNDER BAY is located in the geographical centre of Canada on the 
northwest shore of Lake Superior, 45 minutes from the USA border.


FIRST RATE FACILITIES
Thunder Bay offers a wide range of venues to host sports events:

Fort William Gardens – 3,624 seat, multi-purpose facility (hockey, curling, 
figure skating); new video scoreboard & digital upgrades. Fort William Curling Club 
is attached with 8 sheets.

Thunder Bay Tournament Centre – A twin-pad arena with seating for 750 in 
the main arena and limited seating in the second pad. Second pad is currently 
converted to a turf field. Next to full service conference hotel with 89 rooms. 

Fort William First Nation Arena – A twin pad arena with one full size NHL sized 
rink (200 x85) - with seating for 800-1,400. The second rink is 185 x 85 with 
limited seating. 

Port Arthur Stadium – 6,400-seat, natural-grass baseball facility, lights & scoreboard.

Tbaytel Multiplex (Coming Soon) – Indoor turf facility with 
a 129.5m x 47.5 field, configured for 2 half size pitches and 4 
quarter-sized pitches. Seating capacity of 500. 

Rogers Tennis Dome – Indoor tennis facility with 6 indoor 
courts. Positioned next 9 outdoor courts.

Fort William Stadium – Multi-use facility with 400m track 
and artificial turf field for football & soccer; track and turf 
upgraded in 2024, in addition to new video scoreboard.

Chapples Park Stadium – 1,000-seat, natural-turf premier soccer stadium; two 
adjacent practice fields. 

Canada Games Complex – 77m eight-lane pool divided by two bulkheads, diving 
towers, spring boards, squash courts, and new scoreboard (2024). 

Lakehead University – Four connected multi-use indoor facilities. 

CJ Sanders Fieldhouse – 15,000 sq. ft. gymnasium for varsity basketball
and volleyball.

The Hangar – 50,000 sq. ft. pro-grade artificial turf field with 200m track. Upgraded 
50m, eight-lane swimming pool. 

Wolf Den – 30,000 sq. ft. multi-purpose gym – new build (2020).

Lappe & Kamview Nordic Centres – Cross-country ski facilities with over 45 km 
of groomed trails combined. 

OTHER VENUES 

• Two Alpine ski/snowboard areas with 25+ runs
• Three curling clubs with combined 20 sheets of ice
• Lighted outdoor tennis facility with nine hard courts, plus 6 indoor courts
• 18-hole championship golf course; additional three 18-hole venues
• Two FIFA certified turf fields with 400m tracks at local high schools. Soccer, 
football, ultimate, track & field.
• Expanded 30k mountain bike trails – (IMBA Ride Centre standard 2023)


AFFORDABLE ACCOMMODATIONS 

Events Big or Small

• 3,335 guest rooms (73 accessible) at 36 hotels/motels
• Six full service hotels with banquet/meeting facilities plus 
13 other branded properties.
• 2 New Builds with an addition 153 rooms opening in 2026
• Residences at Lakehead University (600 rooms for late 
spring, summer events)
• Accommodations are within a 5 to 20 minute drive of the 
airport and sport venues


Wherever you decide to stay, you will always be 
assured of warm hospitality and comfortable lodgings.


COMING SOON: TBAYTEL MULTIPLEX

CHOOSE THUNDER BAY FOR YOUR NEXT EVENT!
Bring your sport event to Thunder Bay and you can be eligible 
for financial incentives up to 25% of your event budget through 
the CEDC Tourism Development Fund.
visitthunderbay.com/eventfunding

FOR MORE INFORMATION
Contact Ally Drombolis 
TOURISM DEVELOPMENT 
OFFICER(807) 621-4257 
ally.drombolis@thunderbay.ca 

Contact Paul Burke 
SPORT & COMMUNITY 
DEVELOPMENT SUPERVISOR(807) 627-9415 
paul.burke@thunderbay.ca 

visitthunderbay.com