Join Us for ROM for the Holidays

At ROM a world of wonder awaits visitors this holiday season from December 26 to January 7.

TORONTO, December 5, 2023 – Experience the best of the season with friends and family during ROM for the Holidays, presented by BASF Canada. Here, Museum guests will enjoy daily festive performances featuring joyful community choir singing, energetic Bollywood-inspired dance, exuberant klezmer musical shows, and even indoor ice-skating presentations. There will also be plenty of family-friendly activities during this festive season to engage imaginative kids who wonder about things like: how does a cloud choose its shape, which mineral is the tastiest, or what are Roman sculptures thinking about. Kids will enjoy the newly opened WonderWorks—where play meets learning—a space that invites young children to experiment and connect with the Museum in an interactive and fun environment. 

“Between our many hands-on activities and daily performances, ROM for the Holidays is a wonderful way for families to connect with art, culture, nature, and each other,” says Josh Basseches, ROM Director & CEO.

ROM has something for everyone this holiday season. For something special, kids can be enrolled in ROMKids Holiday Camp while school is out, and adults (19+) can ring in the new year with exceptional performances and all-inclusive food stations at ROM After Dark: New Year’s Eve on December 31.

“ROM has provided unforgettable experiences to millions of local and international visitors over the years,” said Neil Lumsden, Minister of Tourism, Culture and Sport. “I invite all to gather the family, get into the spirit of the season and enjoy the entertaining activities that ROM for the Holidays has to offer.”

ROM for the Holidays brings visitors to the ROM to share in the festive season and enjoy a most precious gift, that of time together, while enjoying all that the Museum has to offer. Family-friendly activities will cultivate a sense of wonder by asking kids amusing questions related to ROM's collections and actively engaging them through facilitated creative and active hands-on play.

“We are proud that our partnership with ROM is helping to bring learning and fun to museum visitors this holiday season,” says Apala Mukherjee, President of BASF Canada.

Highlight Activities

Daily from 10 am to 4 pm. All activities are included with General Admission.

• Live entertainment daily on Level 1. Catch live performances on the mainstage over the course of the holidays, featuring My Pop Choir, where the joy of music and the power of community come together in perfect harmony; internationally acclaimed dancer Kanushree Jain’s energetic blend of Bollywood movement and contemporary dance; the Miles Nadal Jewish Community Centre Klezmer Ensemble performing soulful and traditional songs, and the seasonally inspired indoor ice-skating of Gliss on Ice, with daring jumps, spins and twirls.
• Level 1, kids activity stations to have fun creating “cloud crafts” based on the symbolism of clouds found on objects in ROM’s China galleries.
• Level 2, activity stations in the Teck Suite of Galleries challenge kids’ knowledge of minerals with matching games, and in the Schad Gallery of Biodiversity kids will go on a nature photography assignment to locate special animals in the gallery.
• Level 3, has chain mail crafting activities for kids to create their own armour based on various European and Japanese styles. Kids can also test matching skills and challenge their powers of deduction by examining Roman busts.
• Eaton Theatre, Level B1 East, weekends only, film screenings of episodes of the popular TV series Jane.

ROMKids Holiday Camp

Engaging, immersive, and exciting, ROMKids Holiday Camp features classroom and in-gallery learning, bringing kids face-to-face with immortal stories from ROM’s vast art, culture, and nature collections. Sessions for kids ages 5 to 14 run from Tuesday, January 2, to Friday, January 5, 2024, 9:00 am. - 4:00 pm.

ROM After Dark: New Year’s Eve

Ring in New Year’s Eve at the ROM with a special edition of ROM After Dark on Dec 31, 2023, from 8 pm to 1:30 am. Headline musical performance on the Currelly Gallery Main Stage feature Battle of Santiago, Saxsyndrum and lots more. Also included are food stations and a celebratory drink to make this a NYE to remember. Tickets are available for purchase now. Regular priced tickets are $225 and last-chance tickets will be $250. ​

Give the gift of ROM to family and friends with a ROM Membership

Thoughtful and easy to give, Gift Memberships can be purchased in person, by phone at 416.586.5700 during office hours, or online through ROM’s Membership web page. Members enjoy free, unlimited access to galleries and feature exhibitions, plus exclusive previews, tours, lectures, and discounts.

Holiday Shopping

With the holiday season here, ROM Boutique is a natural destination for experiential, memorable, and timeless gifts. Included in the ROM Boutique this year is the Indigenous Fashion Arts Pop-Up shop, running from November 14 to February 9, offering an exquisite selection of crafts, textile works, from exceptional Indigenous makers and is presented in partnership with Indigenous Fashion Arts. ROM Boutique is the perfect place to buy any of the ROM produced books that are a treasure to own including such books as:

• A Field Guide to Trees of Ontario, newly published in 2023, contains more than 1,400 vibrant photographs and illustrations, and describes the trees encountered on forest hikes and city streets.
• A Field Guide to Freshwater Fishes of Ontario is a beautiful and accessible full-colour field guide published in 2022 and is the definitive guide to Ontario freshwater fish.
• ROM Field Guide to Butterflies of Ontario covers 167 species of butterflies known to occur in Ontario including seasonal flights and dramatic photos showing various life stages.
• Being and Belonging: Contemporary Women Artists from the Islamic World and Beyond features interviews with leading artists and their compelling works that are shaping contemporary art today.
• Kent Monkman: Being Legendary at the Royal Ontario Museum presents a new body of work by the revered and internationally renowned Cree artist Kent Monkman, guided by an Indigenous worldview, historical narratives, and the artist's playful imagination.
• Canadian Modern features objects from ROM’s permanent collection that tell the story of the birth and evolution of popular and artistic Canadian design and crafts.

Exhibitions on during RFTH

Please note, feature exhibitions Death: Life’s Greatest Mystery and Wildlife Photographer of the Year are specially ticketed.

• Death: Life’s Greatest Mystery  is a thought-provoking exhibition that explores cultural and natural responses to life and death and asks big questions including: “What if I don’t want to die?”, “What will happen to my body?” and “What will happen to my ‘self’?”.
• Wildlife Photographer of the Year is the world-renowned annual nature photography competition and exhibition, presenting a new set of 100 images celebrating artistic composition, technical excellence and breathtaking views of the natural world.
• Noelle Hamlyn: Lifers displays over twenty repurposed and retailored life jackets, hand-crafted by Canadian visual artist, Noelle Hamlyn, as it examines the impact of textiles and fashion on the planet's water quality.
• Being and Belonging: Contemporary Women Artists from the Islamic World and Beyond is a bold exhibition exploring the defining issues of our time from the perspective of 25 women artists from or connected to the broader Islamic world. This exhibition closes January 7, 2024.

Admissions information: Advance ticket purchase is strongly recommended. The Museum is open from December 26 to January 7, including Monday, January 1, daily from 10:00 am to 5:30 pm. Last entry to Death: Life’s Greatest Mystery and Wildlife Photographer of the Year is at 4:30 pm. ROM is closed on December 25, 2023.