Abbotsford

Abbotsford is a large yet rural city east of Vancouver in the Fraser Valley. It’s famous for its farm country, the Abbotsford Airshow and cheap gas.

See below for a brief background description of the city followed by a list of some of its most popular events and places of interest.

This article contains the following information about Abbotsford:

Where is Abbotsford | Abbotsford Events | Abbotsford Places & Attractions | Fraser Valley Gas Prices | Other Information

The City of Abbotsford

With over 130,000 residents, Abbotsford is one of the largest municipalities in British Columbia by both population and land area. In the Lower Mainland it has a larger population than Coquitlam (125,000+) and Delta (around 100,000). It also has one of the highest proportions of visible minorities in the country.

Abbotsford is in what some consider part of Canada’s “Bible Belt,” and its citizens are some of the country’s most generous as far as donating to charities.

Where is Abbotsford

Abbotsford is located along the Trans-Canada Highway about an hour’s drive southeast of Vancouver in good traffic. It’s directly south of Mission on the other side of the Fraser River. It’s also about halfway between Langley and Chilliwack. The community also borders Washington in the United States to the south.

Abbotsford Events

Abbotsford is home to a number of significant festivals and events including the following that happen during normal years in winter, spring, summer and fall.

Early Winter and Spring Events

Vancouver Motorcycle Show – a motorcycle trade show at Tradex in January.
Western Golf Expo – a consumer golf trade show in February.
Vancouver Pet Lover Show – a trade show for pets and their owners at the Tradex Centre in February (but sometimes in other months instead).
Earlybird RV Show – a large recreational vehicle trade show at the Tradex Centre. (It’s a spring version of the Snowbird RV Show which is run by the same company.)
BC Sportsmen’s Show – a consumer trade show at Tradex for people who like fishing, hunting, boating and other outdoor activities.
Spring Break Up Country Music Festival – a new festival (as of 2023) at the Tradex Centre.
Easterfest and Adult Easter Hunts – Taves Farm offers both kid-friendly and adults-only Easter events on different weekends in the spring.
Bunnies and Booze – adults-only Easter egg hunts happen at Maan Farms in the spring.
Easter Egg Hunts – family-friendly Easter-themed events also take place at Maan Farms on the Easter Long Weekend.
Fraser Valley Wedding Festival – an event for wedding planning with vendors and more in the spring.

Abbotsford Tulip Festival — Lakeland Flowers in Spring

Summer Events in Abbotsford

Abbotsford Canada Day Event – the community celebrates July 1st with a parade along South Fraser Way and a festival at Abbotsford Exhibition Park.
Abbotsford Agrifair – a country fair with carnival rides, animals, a car derby and motocross shows at Exhibition Park on the August long weekend.
The Abbotsford Airshow – Western Canada’s largest airshow takes place at the Abbotsford airport in mid-August.
Abbotsford Farm and Country Market – a Saturday morning farmers market that takes place most years from around 9:00 am until 1:00 pm from late April or early May until the end of October.
Abbotsford Flea Market – a massive market featuring as many as a couple of hundred vendors. It used to take place at Abbotsford Exhibition Park almost every Sunday of the year. (NOTE: This flea market is permanently closed as of 2024.)
Abbotsford Summer Flower Festival – fields of flowers on display at Lakeland Flowers from July until September.
Symphony in the Park – a free concert at Mill Lake Park in the summer.

Abbotsford Agrifair Midway — Midway at the Abbotsford Agrifair

Fall and Winter Events in Abbotsford

Sky’s No Limit: Girls Fly Too – a free event featuring airplanes and flying opportunities at the Abbotsford Airport in October.
Olde Farmhouse Vintage Market – an event featuring over 100 vendors selling antiques and collectibles at the Tradex Centre on a weekend in April and November.
Kickoff to Christmas Makers Market – a major winter holiday artisan market in November.
Snowbird RV Show – a recreational vehicle trade show at the Tradex Centre. (It usually happens in September or October.)
Taste of Abby – a food festival with a variety of events in September.
West Coast Women’s Show – a women-focused trade show at the Tradex Centre in the spring and/or fall.
West Coast Christmas Show – one of the Lower Mainland’s largest Christmas markets that takes place at Tradex near the Abbotsford Airport in mid-November.
Winter Jubilee – a free one-day celebration of the Christmas season in November.
Circo Circo Circus – a circus from Las Vegas that usually visits Abbotsford in the fall as part of its tour through British Columbia.

TIP: Parking at Tradex costs about $10 as of the last time we checked. That’s good for all day with in-and-out privileges. Parking next door at the airport, however, costs around $3 for the first hour and $1 or $2 for each subsequent hour (but only up to a maximum of three hours in the short-term parking area).

Apple Blossoms at Taves Farm — Taves Farm in Spring

Abbotsford Places & Attractions

In addition to the above festivals and events, Abbotsford is also home to a number of places of interest including the following:

Abbotsford Airport (YXX) – the Lower Mainland’s second largest airport.
Castle Fun Park – a family-friendly attraction that features go-carts, bumper cars, batting cages and both indoor and outdoor mini-golf.
Exhibition Park – a large sports and recreation park with a running track and facilities for major events including the annual Abbotsford Agrifair in August.
Maan Farms – a fruit and vegetable stand, petting zoo, seasonal corn maze and miscellaneous family-friendly activities. It’s open in the spring, summer and fall at 790 McKenzie Road.
Mill Lake Park – a nice city park with trails, a small lake to walk around and an outdoor swimming pool in the summer. It’s located at 2310 Emerson Street (but with other access points too).
Taves Family Farm & Applebarn – a farm that hosts family-friendly activities and seasonal events at various times of the year.
Tradex – located at 1190 Cornell Street near the Abbotsford Airport, the Fraser Valley Trade and Exhibition Centre is the second largest building of its kind in the province. Numerous different kinds of trade shows and events are held there every year.

Mill Lake in Abbotsford — Mill Lake at Mill Lake Park

Fraser Valley Gas Prices

Whenever passing through the Fraser Valley it’s good to remember that gas prices there are always cheaper than in Metro Vancouver. That’s because Metro Vancouver has an extra gas tax to help pay for its transit system. Fraser Valley municipalities like Abbotsford, Chilliwack and Mission are outside the Metro Vancouver region.

If you’re in Abbotsford or other Fraser Valley municipalities that aren’t part of Metro Vancouver, be sure to fill up your vehicle’s gas tank. The savings can be as high as 10 cents per litre on good days!