Abbotsford celebrates Canada Day with a morning parade and then festival activities including free concerts and fireworks at Abbotsford Exhibition Park.

Canada Day events happen all over the Lower Mainland on July 1st each year, including in Fort Langley, Harrison Hot Springs, Langley, Maple Ridge, Surrey, Richmond, North Vancouver and other communities. See our article about Vancouver Canada Day Events for a comprehensive list of places to celebrate the country’s birthday. Continue reading to learn about the event in Abbotsford.

This article contains the following information about the Abbotsford celebrations:

Canada Day in Abbotsford on July 1st

The city of Abbotsford hosts some great events throughout the year including the Abbotsford Agrifair (on the August long weekend) and Abbotsford Airshow (in mid-August). Another great event is the Canada Day parade and festival on July 1st each year.

Canada Day celebrations in Abbotsford normally begin with the parade along South Fraser Way. Local residents then make their way to Abbotsford Exhibition Park for live entertainment and family-friendly activities.

Canada Day in Abbotsford

The day begins with the annual Canada Day Parade at 11:00 am. The same was the case this past year. From there, fun family-friendly activities at Abbotsford Exhibition Park continue from 1:00 pm until 10:00 pm. There are interactive play zones, food trucks and live music and entertainment to enjoy. Festivities conclude with a fireworks show at 10:00 pm.

Venue Location

Except for the parade, everything takes place at Abbotsford Exhibition Park which is located at 32470 Haida Drive.

Abbotsford Exhibition Park is a big venue bordered by Haida Drive, Trethewey Street and Maclure Road. Most of the festival activities usually take place in the south half of the park (so closer to Maclure Road than to Haida Drive).

Abbotsford Parade Crowds — Parade Crowds Along South Fraser Way

Abbotsford Canada Day Parade

The Abbotsford Canada Day parade begins at 11:00 am at Bourquin Crescent West and South Fraser Way. The parade route goes west along South Fraser Way before turning on to Trethewey Street and finishing on Mouat Drive.

The parade typically includes classic cars, vintage farm equipment, street performers, clowns, local politicians waving at the crowd, marching bands and the occasional float. It’s a relatively large parade, with entries fairly spread out along the route. The parade and its participants always have a distinctly agricultural and “farm community” flavour to it.

Canada Day Festival

After the parade, from 1:00 pm until 10:00 pm, Abbotsford Exhibition Park is filled with people, vendors and community organization stalls, and activities for all ages.

The venue is usually divided into a number of different activity areas such as:

Sports Zone – interactive games, mini challenges and fun sports activities for all ages.
Agriculture Zone – tractor rides, farm games and kid-friendly agriculture activities from 1:00 pm to 5:00 pm.
STEM Zone – science, tech, engineering, and math through hands-on experiments and demos.
Kids Zone – games and activities where children can run, play and explore.
Sand Zone – sandcastles and play in the sand from 1:00 pm until 8:00 pm.
Fire Protection Misting Tent – a refreshing misting tent, an ideal spot to chill and recharge on hot days.
Unitech Slide Zone – a fun super soaker slide open to all.
Community Showcase – local organizations, cultural groups, and non-profits with interactive displays and giveaways.

Canada Day at Abbotsford's Exhibition Park — Abbotsford Exhibition Park Before the Crowds Arrive

Entertainment Schedule

In addition to the above festival activities, the Canada Day celebrations at Abbotsford Exhibition Park feature free outdoor entertainment. Below was what this past year’s schedule looked like.

Main Stage Schedule (in 2025)

1:05 pm – Mascot Dance-Off
1:30 pm – Brewster the Buccaneer Puppeteer
2:00 pm – BerryFest Pie Eating Contest
2:35 pm – MemoryLane Productions
2:50 pm – Stirling Scottish Dancers
3:05 pm – Skipping Sensations
3:20 pm – Learning Star Arts Academy
3:45 pm – Brewster the Buccaneer Puppeteer
4:15 pm – Punjabi Folklore Bhangra Academy
4:30 pm – Cambree Lovesy
5:30 pm – DJ 40K and Friends
6:00 pm – The Della Kit
8:30 pm – Elijah Blond
9:20 pm – BAWAH

Food Trucks on Canada Day

There are typically lots of food trucks at the event hosted by the Greater Vancouver Food Truck Festival. Other Canada Day events that the Greater Vancouver Food Truck Festival usually supports are the ones in Langley and Maple Ridge.

Food trucks that were most probably at the event this year were Big Bites Burger, Chaiwala of London, Dim Sum Express, Little Devils Pizza, Moms Grilled Cheese, Rotato Potato, Shawarma Time, The Frying Pan and Truckin BBQ. Additionally, there were Candies Candy, Candy’s Lemonade, Mr. Rainbow, Rocky Point Ice Cream, Garys Kettle Corn, Juicy Green Express and Little Ooties Mini Donuts.

Other events hosted by the Greater Vancouver Food Truck Festival in the 2025 summer included the White Rock Night Markets (on July 18th, August 8th and September 2nd) and Chilliwack Ribfest (on July 25th to July 27th).

Abbotsford Canada Day Fireworks

A number of Canada Day celebrations in the Lower Mainland feature evening fireworks, including Abbotsford’s. There are also usually July 1st fireworks in Burnaby, Coquitlam and Surrey.

Abbotsford’s fireworks start at 10:00 pm, weather permitting.