Festivals & Events

Classic Boat Festival, Victoria

British Columbia celebrates some fabulous annual festivals and events.

Time your visit to coincide with some remarkable natural spectacles of the animal Kingdom, outdoor music recitals and local art exhibitions - or just come along and stare at the crazy things people do for work and pleasure - a wonderfully rich and colourful array of local festivities and entertainment.

Filberg Festival (August)
The Filberg Festival, reputed to be the best Arts and Crafts festival in the Pacific Northwest, offers an amazing selection of the finest quality work, from pottery to hand made toys - all produced by BC resident artists. This outdoor show and sale is displayed in the gardens of Comox Valley's historic Filberg Lodge. Entertainment is local too, provided in many musical styles.
For more information visit: www.filbergfestival.com

Nanaimo Marine Festival
Visitors won't want to miss the world-famous Bathtub Race held during the Nanaimo Marine Festival in late July! Men and women of all ages and backgrounds come from around the world to race across the Georgia Strait in bathtubs, from Nanaimo to Vancouver. Competitors always take the 48-km run very seriously, but the day is filled with tons of fun and laughs for both contestants and spectators alike. Hundreds of outboard powered "tubbers" plane their zany craft at high speed across the strait in their quest for the much-coveted first prize. For more information visit: Loyal Nanaimo Bathtub Society

Pacific Rim Whale Festival (mid March to early April)
The northward migration of an estimated 21,000 Gray whales along the west coast of Vancouver Island has heralded the coming of spring for thousands of years. Grays travel close to shore, pausing to feed in shallow waters, and provide excellent viewing opportunities from strategic shore locations. The greatest number of whales can be seen in the spring, although many whales remain in local waters to feed until the return migration to Mexico in October. Besides the unique opportunity of seeing these huge mammals, ocean scientists and whale researchers present education programs about whale migration, biology and the conservation efforts that have brought the Gray whales back from the edge of extinction. If you want a closer look at these magnificent animals, venture out onto the open Pacific aboard local charter boats offering scheduled whale watching tours from either Tofino or Ucluelet. Pacific Rim Whale Festival

Victoria Fringe Festival (September)
Over the Labour Day weekend theatre troupes from our own backyard and around the world present entertaining performances at different venues all over Victoria. For the very best in comedy, drama, dance, magic, music, story telling and more, the Fringe is the best ticket in town.
For more information visit: Victoria Fringe Festival

Jazz Fest International (June)
Lovers of jazz can take in music by jazz performers from around the world when they grace Victoria's stages for 10 days and nights in June. Various indoor and outdoor venues in downtown Victoria host the festival as the city heats up with more than 250 of the world's best jazz, blues and world beat artists.
For more information visit: www.vicjazz.bc.ca

Royal British Columbia Museum
The Royal B.C. Museum in Victoria always manages to produce remarkable annual exhibitions. The fabulous Leonardo da Vinci Exhibition attracted over 480,000 visitors to the museum! In 1999/2000, the Royal B.C. Museum, in cooperation with the Nuu-chah-nulth Tribal Council, presented HuupuKwanum Treasures of the Nuu-chah-nulth Chiefs in their Out of the Mist exhibition. Many of the 125 artifacts in the exhibit had never been on public display before and, while most were from the Royal B.C. Museum's own collection, many items were borrowed from major museums in Canada. The most recent exhibition was the Cirque de Soleil production Circus Magicus.
For more info visit: Royal BC Museum

Swiftsure Sailing Race (May)
A fleet of the most competitive racing sailboats converges on Victoria for the annual Swiftsure race, the longest-running yacht race in the Pacific Northwest. The challenge, hosted by the Royal Victoria Yacht Club, attracts about 200 boats in the short, middle and long distance events that take competitors across the Juan de Fuca Strait and back, providing spectators with a colourful display of boats and spinnakers.
For more information visit: www.swiftsure.org

Symphony Splash (August)
One of the grandest events in Victoria's summer season is the annual Symphony Splash. The Victoria Symphony Orchestra performs on a floating stage secured in Victoria's beautiful Inner Harbour. The free show traditionally climaxes with a resounding rendition of Tchaikovsky's 1812 Overture amidst a dazzling display of fireworks and booming cannons.

Victoria Dragon Boat Festival (August)
Spectacular dragon boats roar into Victoria's Inner Harbour, providing a colourful spectacle, with organized entertainment onshore.
For more information visit: Victoria Dragon Boat Festival Society

Victoria Classic Boat Festival (September)

Victoria Classic Boat Festival

Victoria’s Inner Harbour is the place to be on the Labour Day weekend when around 100 classic sail and power boats from throughout the Pacific Coast and beyond arrive for the Classic Boat Festival. Started in 1976, the festival officially begins at noon on the Friday, features steamboats cruising the Gorge Waterway on Saturday afternoon, and ends on Sunday with a colourful sailpast in the morning and the annual Schooner Cup and Classic Open Sail races in the afternoon.

The festival is one of the Pacific Coast's most celebrated displays of heritage sail and power craft, open to vessels of traditional plank-on-frame construction built prior to 1956 or newer vessels built to pre-1956 designs.

Vancouver, Coast & Mountains

Abbotsford International Airshow (August)
Attracting 300,000 spectators, this is North America's largest aerial extravaganza.
For more information visit: www.abbotsfordairshow.com

Alcan Dragon Boat Festival (June)
Take in a weekend of racing and cultural activities. Recognized as the largest and most celebrated dragon boat event in North America - and one of the premiere in the world - the festival will once again set new standards in dragon boat excellence.
For more information visit: Alcan Dragon Boat Festival

Bard on the Beach Shakespeare Festival (June / September)
Bard on the Beach is a professional summer Shakespeare Festival in Vancouver. Located near the beach on beautiful English Bay, plays are presented in our 520 seat main performance tent our Douglas Campbell Studio Stage tent June through September. Bard on the Beach Shakespeare Festival was established in 1990 with a mandate to provide Vancouver residents and tourists with affordable, accessible Shakespearean productions of the finest quality.
For more information visit: www.bardonthebeach.org

Cloverdale Rodeo (May)
Top cowboys and cowgirls on the professional rodeo circuit compete in traditional events.
For more information visit: www.cloverdalerodeo.com

Vancouver Fringe Festival (September)
One hundred groups from around the world present 500 shows on eight indoor and outdoor stages. The Fringe is a place where artists are free to express themselves in a nurturing, vibrant and flourishing environment with a theatre on every street corner. For the very best in comedy, drama, dance, magic, music, story telling and more, the Fringe is the best ticket in town. For more information visit: Vancouver Fringe Festival

Pacific National Exhibition (August / September)
A variety of concerts, agricultural exhibitions and an amusement park highlight this family fair. Over 60 million people have visited the PNE since it first began as the premier entertainment and industrial exhibition on the west coast over 89 years ago.
For more information visit: www.pne.ca

Vancouver Folk Music Festival (July)
The 1999 Festival saw more than 45 groups offer nearly 70 hours of music on seven stages in a breathtakingly beautiful outdoor venue. In addition to both traditional and contemporary folk and folk-fusion music, the Festival offers an array of informative workshops, a colourful folk art marketplace and a mouthwatering selection of healthful foods and beverages to keep everyone's strength up.
For more information visit: www.thefestival.bc.ca

Thompson Okanagan

Okanagan Fest-of-Ale (April)
This event has become one of the largest festivals of beer in the province. For the beer aficionado, the annual Okanagan Fest-of-Ale is the place to be. At least 70 different brews, great entertainment, exceptional food treats and a spirit of fun and conviviality are all together for what is the first of Penticton's great summer season events. For more information visit: www.fest-of-ale.bc.ca

Okanagan International Children's Festival (May)
Okanagan International Children’s Festival features the world’s finest musicians, actors, acrobats, comedians and storytellers! This international celebration of the arts stimulates global awareness and an appreciation of cultural diversity. It is an opportunity to delight in the world of imagination and open the door to creative possibilities for your children. For more information visit: www.okchildrensfest.org

Ironman Canada Triathlon (August)
It is a sporting event like no other held here in Canada - 1,700 of the fittest athletes in the world testing themselves on one of the most difficult athletic challenges there is: a 2.4 mile swim, a 112-mile bike race, and a 26.2 mile marathon run. This is a race that takes the best athletes in the world just over 8 hours - the rest of the field has up to 17 hours to complete the course. Just finishing is an incredible achievement.
For more information visit: www.ironman.ca

Kamloops Indian Powwow (August)
The 17 bands of the Shuswap invite thousands of native participants, as well as the public, to attend the annual event showcasing native art and culture. During the festivities, the large log stadium vibrates to scores of native drum groups and hundreds of dancers who arrive from across Canada and the United States. Dances, accompanied by chants and drums, are among the most ancient expressions of success in the hunt.

Penticton Peach Festival (August)
The Peachfest is held in Penticton on the second weekend in August. This five day event features over thirty different activities ranging from live entertainment to fireworks to arts and crafts displays to parades and everything in between.
For more information visit: www.peachfest.com

Winter Carnival (February)
100 events to choose from including a parade, snow sculpture competitions, sleigh rides, stock car ice-racing derby, ice sculptures, polar bear swim and Hot Air Balloon Fiesta.

Okanagan Wine Festivals have become synonymous with celebration of the spring growing season and the annual fall harvest, as well as the new Icewine Festival. They provide an experience for the truly serious wine lover, and those keen on experiencing the character of the festivals. The annual Icewine Festival runs for three days in January. The year 2001 festival will be at Sun Peaks, Kamloops from January 19th to 21st. The annual Spring Festival runs for 4 days through the first weekend in May each year, and now features more than 40 events. The annual Fall Festival takes place over 10 days in early to mid October featuring over 110 events. The dates for 2000 are September 29th to October 8th. The Okanagan Wine Festivals have been recognized as being among the Top 100 Events in North America for the past five years.
For more information visit: www.owfs.com

BC Rockies

Blossom Festival (May)
The area has the mildest climate in southeast BC, and spring arrives early. The annual Blossom Festival celebrates that fact and takes place during the May long weekend in Creston. Residents and visitors enjoy the Grand Parade and a variety of activities including ball tournaments, the Demo Derby, Childrens' Parade, craft and flea markets.

Sam Steele Days (June)
On Sam Steele Day, in Cranbrook, celebrate Superintendent Sam Steele's arrival in Fort Steele in 1887. Fun for the whole family...parade, logger sports, pancake breakfast, barbecues, fastball, soccer, tennis tournaments, and Sam Steele Sweetheart Pageant.

Cariboo, Chilcotin, Coast

Cariboo Cross-Country Ski Marathon (February)
100 Mile House, the self-professed 'International Nordic Ski Capital' (and who can argue with a town that displays the world's largest pair of cross-country skis outside its Visitor Info Centre) offers a 200-km/125-mile machine groomed trail system. No wonder the local Cariboo Marathon attracts an international field of skiers, annually, during the first weekend in February.

Williams Lake Stampede (June / July)
A world famous event which has withstood the test of time...tracing its earliest roots to 1920s when cowboys raced down the side of Fox Mountain. Contestants from Western Canada and the US compete for top prize money and chances in the big rodeos in Calgary, Edmonton and Las Vegas. Bareback bronc, boys steer riding, bull-riding, calf-roping, ladies barrel racing, novice bareback, novice saddle bronc, saddle bronc, and steer wrestling make up the roster.