English Bay beach. Photo: Destination Vancouver/Tanya Goehring
BC Day long weekend is the perfect time to soak up our beautiful province’s nature, culture, and history. In 2024, check out festivals, hikes, parades, beaches and more on the August 3rd to 5th long weekend.
VanPrideFest and the Pride Parade
Held at Concord Pacific Place on August 3 and 4, VanPrideFest is a two-day outdoor festival. Enjoy DJs, drag performances, and dancing. Don’t miss the Vancouver Pride Parade on August 4th. It’s a mobile celebration that attracts over 100,000 attendees each year as it makes its way along Beach and Pacific Streets.
Vancouver Pride Parade. Photo: Destination Vancouver/Vision Event Photography Inc.
Take a Hike
Celebrate British Columbia’s beauty on the trails this BC Day weekend as you hike to mountain tops, swimming holes, rainforests, and viewpoints. If you’re new to hiking, start with one of our favourite beginner hikes near Vancouver. Make a day of it with a hike and then dinner or drinks with our list of hikes with incredible apres. Or explore a section of the Trans Canada Trail.
You can hike to great viewpoints. Photo: Destination Vancouver/Kindred & Scout
Harmony Arts Festival
The annual Harmony Arts Festival takes place along West Vancouver’s waterfront from August 2nd to 11th in 2024. Each day includes live music, kids’ activities, and an outdoor market where you can purchase paintings, jewellery, ceramics, textiles, photography and more from local artists. If you’re hungry, there will be food trucks on site too.
Photo: Harmony Arts Festival/Vancouver’s North Shore
Shop at an Outdoor Market
Browse for artisan goods and food from around the world while you listen to live music at one of this weekend’s outdoor markets.
The Richmond Night Market is back for its 24th year next to Bridgeport Skytrain Station on the Canada Line. Modelled after outdoor night markets in East Asia, and Hong Kong in particular, it is the largest night market in North America. It’s open on Friday, Saturday, Sunday and Monday night on BC Day long weekend.
Head to the Shipyards Night Market on Friday night in North Vancouver, just one block east of the Lonsdale Quay. You can listen to live music and DJs, hang out with friends in the beer garden, grab a snack from one of the food trucks, or browse the stalls at the artisan market.
Vancouver’s farmers’ markets are full of locally grown fruit and veggies, artisan baked goods, and prepared foods like jams and beverages. On BC Day long weekend, you can visit the West End, Riley Park, and Trout Lake markets on Saturday and the Kitsilano and Mount Pleasant markets on Sunday.
West End Farmers’ Market. Photo: Destination Vancouver/Vision Event Photography Inc.
White Rock Sea Festival and Semiahmoo Days
Head to the beach in White Rock, south of Vancouver, to enjoy family-friendly activities at the White Rock Sea Festival and Semiahmoo Days. Organized by the City of White Rock and the Semiahmoo First Nation, the 73rd annual event is on from August 2nd to 4th this year. Enjoy local and Indigenous vendors, live music, a car show, a torchlight parade, and lots more.
Photo: City of White Rock
FlyOver Canada: Awaken Canada
Soar through the sky without leaving downtown Vancouver at FlyOver Canada. Climb into your seat in front of the wrap-around screen, then brace yourself for adventure with the new Awaken Canada experience. Created in collaboration with Parks Canada, the immersive ride includes motion, wind, mist, and scents to transport you to real locations across Canada.
Photo: FlyOver Canada
Hit the Beach
BC Day weekend is a great time to relax on the beach, have a picnic, or go for a swim. With stretches of sand downtown, on remote coastlines, and everything in between, our guide to Vancouver’s beaches has a beach for everyone.
Spanish Banks Beach. Photo: Destination Vancouver/Hubert Kang
Powell Street Festival
The 48th annual Powell Street Festival takes place on August 3rd and 4th in Oppenheimer Park in historic Japantown in Vancouver’s Strathcona neighbourhood. Enjoy live music, food, martial arts demonstrations and lots more to celebrate the long history of Vancouver’s Japanese-Canadian community.
Banners at the Powell Street Festival. Photo: Destination Vancouver/Dannielle Hayes
Squamish Days Logger Sports Festival
The 67th annual Squamish Days Logger Sports Festival occurs from August 1st to 4th in Squamish, just north of Vancouver. The four-day festival includes a pancake breakfast, chilli cook-off, chainsaw carving, and lots of logger sports competitions. You won’t want to miss the only-in-Squamish Bed Races on Friday night. Costumed teams of five (4 pushers and a rider) navigate a 2-block long course in downtown Squamish.
Photo: Squamish Days Logger Sports Festival
Try Paddleboarding
Plan a paddleboarding adventure this BC Day weekend. In Vancouver, you can get on the water in the heart of downtown, at the beaches, and on wilderness coastlines. Our guide to paddleboarding in Vancouver has tips on where to find paddleboard rental shops, lessons, and guides as well as recommendations for the best paddleboarding spots around the city.
Stand-up paddle boarding in False Creek. Photo: Destination Vancouver/Tanya Goehring
