Upcoming Event: Canada Day in Vancouver, July 1

As the unofficial kick-off to summer, Canada Day (July 1) is a fantastic opportunity to get out there and enjoy our city’s offerings, be entertained, eat superb food, and learn a few new things about our country along the way.

The big shindig is again at Canada Place (999 Canada Place) and the streets surrounding the area. It’s free and runs from 11 am through to 6 pm ‘Canada Together’ is an event produced in collaboration with the Musqueam, Squamish, and Tsleil-Waututh Nations, with the theme “weaving together the fabric of a nation.” This is the 40th anniversary of the Canada Place Canada Day celebration, and is typically the largest July 1 event outside of Ottawa!

Entertainment includes performances by headliners The Strumbellas, along with artists including The Matinee, Serengeti, JESSAMINE, SPENDO and Rebecca Sichon; and a Kid Zone with DJ Ira Pettle and The School of Rock Vancouver. There’s also an Indigenous Marketplace with artisan booths selling jewellery, art, home decor and more. Other activities and events include a citizenship ceremony and an Expo 86 exhibit. All stages will start with an Indigenous welcome and blessing.

Of course, hunger will strike at some point, and that’s your cue to enjoy the cultural array of food trucks on-site that will be dishing out tasty fare. Thirsty? Head out to the Summer Sips Beer and Wine Garden on the North Point of the pier for beverages with the best view in the city.

Another option is to head to Granville Island for its Canada Day celebrations – this year combined with its World Cup watch party with games shown at 9 am , 1 pm and 5 pm. Celebrations start at 8:30 am with the annual False Creek Ferries water ballet performance, and throughout the day you’ll find a citizenship ceremony, cake cutting, live entertainment, face painting, a food village and more. Elsewhere on the Island, Vancouver International Jazz Festival offers free concerts all day long, the Lobster Man has its annual lobster roll picnic, and the Kids Market stages its own celebrations for the pint-sized among us.

You’ll also find Canada Day celebrations in other cities within Metro Vancouver. North Vancouver, just a short SeaBus ride north from downtown, usually holds a community party at the Shipyards District – check here for details. Or head further out into the suburbs for Surrey’s Canada Day extravaganza, with four entertainment stages, rides, an Indigenous Village, oodles of food trucks, a beer garden, and FIREWORKS!

There are also plenty of self-guided adventures you can mark the day with as well, from strolling and grazing around the beachfront neighbourhood of Kitsilano, to hiking the trails and maybe stopping for a picnic in Stanley Park. A unique way to recognize the day is by taking in the Indigenous cultural and art exhibitions at the Bill Reid Gallery of Northwest Coast Art or the Museum of Anthropology out at UBC. Finish up with a quiet dinner at West Broadway’s Salmon n’ Bannock, Vancouver’s only Indigenous owned restaurant, offering family recipes with organic and free range game meats, and local seafood and fish caught wild off the coast.

Planning on heading to our city for the Canada Day long weekend? Search our site for some great rates.

Photo Credit: Canada Place website