A lot happens in Metro Vancouver over the holiday season including markets, Christmas lights, winter sport activities, Santa and more.
This article contains information about the following Christmas-themed events, attractions and activities.
Christmas Events in Vancouver
PNE Winter Fair | FlyOver Canada | VanDusen Garden | Bright Nights | Big Elf Run | Forbidden Vancouver Walking Tours | Granville Island | Canada Place| Vancouver Christmas Market | Vancouver Boat Parties | Goh Ballet Nutcracker | Cirque du Soleil | Robson Square | Gingerbread Lane | Vancouver Christmas Concerts
Events Elsewhere in Metro Vancouver
Canyon Lights | Dundarave Festival | Shipyards Christmas Market | Fort Langley | Holiday Hi-Light Festival | Surrey’s Christmas Train | Christmas at the Shipyards | Lights at Lafarge | Noel Holiday Light Festival & Market | Christmas Tea Lights | Peak of Christmas | WinterFest at MOS | Burnaby Village | Christmas Glow | Martini Town | Lower Mainland Christmas Parades
Christmas Events in the Fraser Valley
Christmas Glow | Martini Town | Lights by the Lake
Events in the Sea to Sky Regions
Britannia Mine | North Pole Express | Vallea Lumina | Squamish at Dusk
Below we list Christmas events that happen in the Lower Mainland. Most of the events should happen in 2024. Some, though, don’t take place every year.
We list over two dozen activities. Although numbered from 1 to 36, they aren’t ranked in any particular of order.
Cirque du Soleil is a world-famous company that puts on amazing shows in Vancouver each year. In 2024 there are ECHO shows at Concord Pacific Place in the fall and winter. The performances blend acrobatics, live music, dancing, and other kinds of entertainment. This year’s production highlights the importance of evolution, nature and animals.
Although it’s not a Christmas-themed show, performances take place during the Christmas season. Plus, tickets for the show can make for a great early Christmas present. This winter ECHO shows on select dates from October 9th, 2024, to January 15th, 2025.
For more information about the circus, see our Cirque du Soleil article.
A great downtown holiday venue most years is the Vancouver Christmas Market which takes place at Jack Poole Plaza by the Vancouver Convention Centre.
Open daily until Christmas Eve, the Vancouver Christmas Market features numerous German and other European-themed stalls selling all kinds of Christmas-y items. They range from souvenirs to European festival food to festive “adult” beverages to add to the holiday season celebrations.
The Vancouver Christmas Market runs from November 13th until December 24th in 2024.
To learn more about the annual event see our article about the Vancouver Christmas Market.
The PNE Winter Fair features all sorts of family-friendly activities. There are magical light displays and live performances, as well as indoor skating and shopping opportunities. This year the live entertainment also includes The Nutcracker on Ice as well as The Magic of Santa holiday musical.
In 2024 the PNE Winter Fair runs on December 6th, 7th and 8th, and again from December 12th to 23rd.
To learn more about this event, read our article about the PNE Winter Fair.
4. Squamish at Dusk
Squamish at Dusk is a festive holiday display at Rose Park. It’s a light art experience featuring illuminations and art installations on select evenings in November and December. The event is ticketed and great for all ages.
In 2024 the event runs from November 28th to 30th, December 5th to 7th, and from December 12th to 14th.
Click Squamish at Dusk for more information.
5. Christmas at Britannia Mine
Britannia Mine is a great place to explore anytime of the year. In 2024, if you go on the Saturdays and Sundays of December 7th and 8th, and 14th and 15th, you’ll also be there for Photos with Santa. The event runs from 10:00 am to 3:00 pm each day.
If you just want your family photo and treats, it costs $35 (for up to five people). Each additional person costs $5. If you also want to see everything at the museum, then you have to pay for general admission.
To learn more, see our article about Photos With Santa at Britannia Mine.
6. North Pole Express
One of the most popular Christmas activities in the Lower Mainland is the North Pole Express at the West Coast Railway Museum in Squamish. It runs from late November until just before Christmas. It’s so popular, in fact, that tickets for it sell out way in advance. (Note: This event used to be called the Polar Express.)
Just like in the movie of the same name, the North Pole Express train ride includes hot chocolate and cookies, chefs, entertainment, singing and a magical 40-minute train ride to the North Pole! Also just like in the movie, the event dress-code is pajamas, at least for the kids!
In 2024 the trains run on November 23rd, 24th and 30th, and again on December 1st, 7th, 8th, 14th, 15th and 21st.
Click North Pole Express at Christmas for more information.
7. Noel Holiday Light Festival & Market
The Noel Holiday Light Festival is a new event debuting in 2024. It takes place at the Cloverdale Fairgrounds in Surrey from November 28th to December 1st, December 5th to 8th, and again from December 12th to 23rd.
At the event you can expect to see more than one million lights, plus a market with a variety of vendors. There are also photo opportunities with Santa, live entertainment, face painting, a Ferris Wheel, and other things to see and do.
For more details about the event, see our article about the Noel Holiday Light Festival.
8. Goh Ballet Nutcracker
Goh Ballet puts on its annual production of The Nutcracker during December most years. The Christmas-themed show features ballet dancing and acting with over 200 talented performers.
The family-friendly story is a battle between the Nutcracker and the Mouse King plus his army of mice. It’s a classic play with toys and children. The show also usually features music by Tchaikovsky played live at the event by the Vancouver Opera Orchestra.
In 2024 the Goh Ballet Nutcracker shows happen at the Queen Elizabeth Theatre on December 19th, 20th, 21st and 22nd.
Capilano Suspension Bridge is one of Vancouver’s best and most popular tourist attractions. Arguably the best time of the year to visit is between the end of November and late January. That’s when the Canyon Lights festivities and illuminations happen.
During Canyon Lights the park is lit up with some of the Lower Mainland’s most beautiful Christmas light displays, both close to the ground and way up high among the trees.
If you’re a BC resident, for the price of regular admission, you can get an annual pass which will allow you back in for the following 364 days. An annual admission includes a bit of the Canyon Lights season for the following year.
This winter the Canyon Lights begin on November 22nd, 2024, and runs until January 19th in 2025.
See our article about Canyon Lights at Capilano Bridge for more details.
The VanDusen Garden Festival of Lights is without doubt one of the Lower Mainland’s best places to admire Christmas light decorations.
In the 2024/2025 season, the Festival of Lights runs from November 29th to January 9th. There are over a million lights to enjoy in very intricate and dazzling displays.
To learn more, see our article about the Festival of Lights.
FlyOver Canada‘s home is at Canada Place. The multi-dimensional theatre flying experience is fun any time of the year, but only from late November until early January do guests get to accompany Santa on an exhilarating adventure across the country and to the North Pole.
This attraction is a top pick on days with both good and bad weather (because it’s indoors).
The Christmas show happens this season from November 21st, 2024, until January 1st, 2025.
Click FlyOver Canada at Christmas for more details or visit flyovercanada.com.
12. Martini Town Merry & Bright
One of the Lower Mainland’s newest holiday attractions of significance is Martini Town Merry & Bright. The second edition of the event takes place at a film studio in Langley from December 4th, 2024, until January 5th, 2025.
Martini Town is a cute little backdrop town that’s used in movies. During the Christmas season this year it’s open to the public. The place is decorated with holiday lights. There are also musicians, artisan vendors and food trucks.
Click Martini Town Merry & Bright to learn more.
13. Christmas Glow
Christmas Glow is a popular indoor and outdoor event in Langley. This year, Christmas Glow runs on select dates between November 21st and December 28th.
The attraction takes place at Milner Gardens with all sorts of light displays. The event has an “Enchanted Forest” theme with mini games, arts and crafts, and more.
For further details, click Christmas Glow in Langley.
14. Shipyards Christmas Market
The Shipyards Christmas Market is a new event happening in 2024. It opens on November 29th and runs until December 24th.
The event has a European theme and is free to attend. Expect to see around 75 vendor booths and some live entertainment. There’s also an outdoor skating rink, light displays and other family-friendly things to see and do.
For more details, see our article about the Shipyards Christmas Market.
15. Vancouver Boat Parties
Boat parties are great ways to celebrate and have fun anytime of the year, but especially during the holiday season.
Vancouver Boat Parties hosts two New Year’s Eve cruises on December 31st in 2024. There’s A Night on the Waves on the Burrard Queen and the Hip Hop X Latin event on the Magic Spirit yacht. Both parties are for ages 19+ and include lots of music and dancing.
There are usually Christmas-themed boat parties as well. 2024 details are to be confirmed.
Click Vancouver Boat Parties to learn more.
16. Vancouver Christmas Concerts
A number of Christmas concerts take place in Vancouver over the winter holidays. They include performances by Chor Leoni, the Vancouver Welsh Men’s Choir and Vancouver Symphony Orchestra. There are lots of other performances too.
For a list of other concerts happening this year, see our article about Vancouver Christmas Concerts.
The Dundarave Festival of Lights is a small and normally fairly quiet and simple community event in West Vancouver that features a forest of decorated Christmas trees throughout most of December. It’s a nice destination to combine with a walk along the seawall on a sunny day (or evening around dusk).
This season, the Dundarave Festival of Lights takes place from November 30th until January 7th. There are also special events on the Saturdays of November 30th, December 7th, December 14th and December 21st.
See our article about the Dundarave Festival of Lights for more information.
18. Forbidden Vancouver Walking Tours
Forbidden Vancouver Walking Tours are guided experiences in downtown Vancouver. The tours are a great way to explore the area and hear stories from the city’s past.
This winter, there’s a special holiday-themed tour to check out. The Holiday History & Hot Chocolate Tour runs most days between November 15th and January 10th. It only isn’t offered on December 25th and January 1st.
To learn more see our article about Forbidden Vancouver Walking Tours.
19. Big Elf Run at Stanley Park
Taking place in Vancouver’s Stanley Park each December is the Big Elf Run. It’s a fun Christmas-themed event at which people wear elf hats and then walk, jog or run up to 15 kilometres. There are shorter runs available for kids, as well as for anyone who wants to bring strollers or dogs.
The Big Elf Run takes place on December 14th in 2024. Prices vary depending on the distance you run.
Click Big Elf Run to learn more about the event.
20. WinterFest at MOS
The Museum of Surrey hosts an annual Christmas celebration. Formerly known as the Cloverdale Christmas Tree Festival, WinterFest at MOS is a family-friendly event that’s free to attend. At the festival there are Christmas trees to admire and scavenger hunts to enjoy.
The Christmas trees and special activities run from November 23rd until December 21st.
For more information, click WinterFest at MOS.
21. Humbug Holidays at Fort Langley
Fort Langley National Historic Site gets decorated for the holiday season in December. In 2024, instead of hosting Heritage Holidays, the historic site hosts Humbug Holidays. Visitors craft ornaments and help the fort look even more festive.
This year’s event runs from December 16th to 31st.
See the Parks Canada website for the latest information.
22. Christmas Tea Lights at Camp Howdy
Christmas Tea Lights is an annual festival at Camp Howdy near Belcarra Park. The event venue transforms into a festive environment over the holiday season. There are light displays, domed dining experiences, boat rides and other activities.
In 2024 the event runs on Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays between November 15th and December 22nd.
See our article about Christmas Tea Lights to learn more.
23. Vallea Lumina
Vallea Lumina offers an enchanting walking experience through a forest filled with illuminations, projections and special effects. It’s located on Cougar Mountain which is just past Whistler. The attraction runs throughout the year.
The first day of the 2024/2025 winter season is November 1st and it runs until late April. Guests can walk at their own pace at this attraction, although the walk-through experience takes between 30 and 45 minutes on average.
For more information, click Vallea Lumina.
24. Christmas at the Shipyards
A great place to find holiday lights and festive cheer in the Lower Mainland is at the Shipyards in North Vancouver.
The Spirit of the Season Festival happens on November 30th in 2024. The entire neighbourhood, though is lit up throughout the season, which makes it a great place to explore pretty much any evening in December. New for this year, there’s also the Shipyards Christmas Market to visit up until December 24th.
Bright Nights at Stanley Park is arguably the most wonderful and magical place to take children to admire Christmas decorations in the Lower Mainland. Open from the beginning of December until the beginning of January, this attraction is especially fun to visit with kids.
In the 2024/2025 season Bright Nights runs from November 29th until January 4th. As usual, admission is by donation benefiting the BC Professional Fire Fighters’ Burn Fund. The Christmas train operates this year as well. Tickets to ride the train cost extra.
See our article about Bright Nights at Stanley Park to learn more.
26. Holiday Lights at Granville Island
There is more to Granville Island than just shops, restaurants and theatre venues, especially during the Christmas season. Between the middle of November and the beginning of January the district is decorated with all kinds of beautiful holiday lights.
To learn more about the lights see our article about Granville Island at Christmas. For information about unique Christmas shopping opportunities in the area, click Shopping at Granville Island.
If you like snow, Christmas decorations and any kind of winter sport, then you need to visit Grouse Mountain for the Peak of Christmas.
Running from the end of November until the first few days of January, the Peak of Christmas features Christmas lights, ice skating, snowshoeing, skiing and snowboarding opportunities. It also features one of the best views of Vancouver at night.
In 2024 the Peak of Christmas starts on Friday, November 22nd, and it finishes on Christmas Day.
See our article about the Peak of Christmas at Grouse Mountain for more details.
Burnaby’s Deer Lake Park is a great place to visit in December. The Lake is wonderful to walk around during the day when it’s sunny and Heritage Christmas at Burnaby Village is a festive place to be in the afternoons and evenings.
Burnaby Village is usually free this time of year and open until the first day or so in January. Best times to go include evenings on days when it’s open late and lit up with all its Christmas decorations.
This winter, the museum is open for the holiday season between November 23rd, 2024, and January 3rd, 2025.
Click Heritage Christmas at Burnaby Village for more details.
Another great winter tradition is ice skating at Robson Square. Skating usually takes place on the outdoor rink at the corner of Robson and Howe. The skating is free if you bring your own equipment, and rentals cost about $5.
There is also ice skating at recreation centres all over the Lower Mainland most years, as well as at the top of Grouse Mountain during the Peak of Christmas and at the Shipyards in North Vancouver.
The free ice skating at Robson Square begins on November 29th in 2024 and runs until the end of February in 2025.
To learn more about this activity, see our article about Ice Skating at Robson Square.
Lights by the Lake is a free holiday lights attraction at Harrison Hot Springs. All along the waterfront are Christmas displays and illuminations. It’s quite spectacular!
The event has a sasquatch theme, so a fair number of the twinkling art displays feature Big Foot characters and members of his or her family doing everything from skiing to windsurfing to cycling. New a couple of years ago, there was also a small outdoor ice skating rink at one end of the greenspace along the water.
This season the Christmas lights go up on November 23rd, 2024. The ending date will be January 6th, 2025.
Click Lights by the Lake to learn more.
Halfway between Canada Place and St. Andrew’s-Wesley United Church (where a number of Christmas concerts usually take place) is Gingerbread Lane at the Hyatt Regency.
For most of December the hotel’s foyer becomes one of the best places on the West Coast to see amazing gingerbread creations. Because of its location, and the fact that it’s such a tiny event, this is a great activity to combine with other events while in the area. In a typical year there are between about 24 and 36 gingerbread creations on display.
Gingerbread Lane runs from November 28th until December 27th this year.
To learn more see our article about Gingerbread Lane.
32. Christmas at Canada Place
If you plan to be in downtown Vancouver between 8:00 am and around 10:00 pm between late November and the end of December, then check out The Canadian Trail along Canada Place‘s West Promenade. It’s just a few blocks from Waterfront Station (so convenient to get to) and only a few blocks from Gastown and the Vancouver Lookout at Harbour Centre.
Christmas at Canada Place is a fairly simple event, but free. In a typical year it includes an avenue of decorated Christmas trees and holiday displays to look at.
This season the displays are up from November 29th until January 1st.
Click Christmas at Canada Place to learn more about the event in normal years.
33. Lower Mainland Christmas Parades
Santa Claus parades are great places to see the big guy in red and get into the festive spirit, especially when you have young children.
The City of Vancouver’s Santa Claus Parade used to take place on the first Sunday in December beginning at noon. Attracting as many as 300,000 people in good years, this event hasn’t happened for a few years now.
The good news is that Vancouver isn’t the only municipality to have a Santa Claus parade in the Lower Mainland. Other communities do too including Aldergrove, Chilliwack, Maple Ridge, New Westminster, Steveston Village, Surrey and a few other places.
For a comprehensive list of Santa Claus parades in Metro Vancouver and the surrounding area, see our article about Lower Mainland Christmas Parades.
Christmas is celebrated in the Tri-Cities area with the Lights at Lafarge event at Lafarge Lake in Town Centre Park in Coquitlam. It’s a free event featuring holiday lights and Christmas decorations all around the lake.
Lights at Lafarge usually takes place from late November until mid to late January most years. Typically, the lights are on between 4:30 pm and 11:00 pm every day, except for on New Year’s Eve when the event runs until 1:00 am.
This season the event kicks off on Friday, November 22nd. The lights will likely be up until mid-February.
For more information, click Coquitlam’s Lights at Lafarge.
If you plan to be in North Vancouver over the holidays and want to see some great free Christmas lights, then check out the displays at Park & Tilford mall. Admission is free or by donation.
The lights and displays aren’t quite as amazing as what you’ll see at Stanley Park, or at places like VanDusen Garden or Capilano Suspension Bridge, but they are still beautiful, impressive and recommended.
The Holiday Hi-Light Festival is a great place to visit on your way back from one of the local ski hills, and especially on Friday evenings leading up to Christmas when they have special family activities.
In 2024 the Holiday Hi-Light Festival begins with a launch event on November 29th with special activities. After that, the lights remain up to check out until the end of the month.
See our article about the Holiday Hi-Light Festival to learn more.
One of the best places to take children for holiday season activities in Surrey is Bear Creek Park at 13750-88th Avenue. That’s where you’ll find the Miniature Train Rides through the Christmas forest.
In a typical year at the attraction kids get to visit with Santa Claus and do activities on the platform while waiting for the train ride.
The Santa Express runs from 10:00 am to 4:00 pm for the full month of December in 2024. It’s only closed on Christmas Day. During the same period, the Christmas Night Train runs from 6:00 pm until 10:00 pm most Wednesdays to Sundays.
To learn more, click Surrey Miniature Train Rides.
Other Information
For more ideas on things to do over the Christmas holidays, check out the Vancouver December Calendar.
Other articles that might be of interest include the following:
Related
