Events in Vancouver: Lunar New Year Parade
Check out one of the Vancouver’s largest annual parades in Chinatown this weekend to help kick off Lunar New Year celebrations for the Year of the Snake!
The 51st Vancouver Chinatown Spring Festival Celebration is happening on Sunday, February 2, 2025, the fifth day of the Year of the Snake.
The popular event is expected to draw over 5,000 participants and more than 100,000 spectators to the Vancouver’s Chinatown, with family-friendly activities, live entertainment, and more for everyone to enjoy!
The parade hosted by the Chinese Benevolent Association of Vancouver and partners starts at 11 a.m. on Sunday, Feb. 2nd.
Attendees can catch the 1.3 km parade at 11 am at the Millennium Gate on Pender Street (between Shanghai Alley and Taylor Street). The procession, featuring a wide array of cultural groups, will wind its way east along Pender Street and then turn south onto Gore Street.
The colourful parade will turn west onto Keefer Street and then disperse at the intersection of Keefer at Carrall. The entire event is estimated to take about three hours.
There’s lion dancing, firecrackers and lots of the colour red, symbolic in legend for helping ward off Nian, a monster set on terrorizing people in the new year.
A spring festival cultural fair runs the same day from 2 to 4 p.m. at the Chinese Cultural Centre and Dr. Sun Yat-sen Garden courtyard (50 East Pender St.), featuring multicultural performances and Lunar New Year celebration booths. Admission is free.
Businesses in the area often host their own lion dance performances after the parade to bring good fortune for the new year.
When: February 2, 2025
Time: 11:00 am (parade start), 2:00 to 4:00 pm (fair)
Where: Various locations throughout Chinatown
Cost: Free for parade and fair
