Light Up Chinatown in Vancouver

A Vancouver event celebrating the Chinese Mid-Autumn Festival, Light Up Chinatown features food, live entertainment and decorations lining the streets.

Light Up Chinatown in Vancouver

The Mid-Autumn Festival, also called the Moon Festival, is one of the most important holidays in China. Celebrations are marked by lanterns, mooncakes and plenty of fun and colourful festivities.

Running since 2021, Light Up Chinatown has been hosted by many different organizations including the Vancouver Chinatown Foundation, Chinese Cultural Centre and Dr. Sun Yat-Sen Classical Chinese Garden.

The festival normally includes plenty of delicious food to try, lanterns and bright lights on all sides, music and dance performances and more. Thousands of people attend and the festival keeps growing!

Where and When is Light Up Chinatown

Light Up Chinatown is centred around 500 Columbia Street, although it spills out into neighbouring streets as well. In 2024 the festivities took place on the weekend of August 24th and 25th. On Saturday the event ran from 11:00 am until 9:00 pm and on Sunday it ran from 11:00 am until 6:00 pm. 2025 dates and hours are to be confirmed.

The best part of the festival is that it’s entirely free! Everyone is welcome to stop by for as long as they’d like on both days of the event. It’s meant for people of all ages and backgrounds.

What to Expect

One of the biggest parts of the festival is the variety of food that is available. On top of the eateries already in the neighbourhood there are food trucks set up along the streets.

There is a Light Up Chinatown souvenir passport that attendees can pick up. If you explore the area and collect all of the stamps available you have the chance to win some prizes at the end of the event.

As stated by its name, the festival certainly lights up the neighbourhood with a large number of lanterns and lights strung up along the streets. There are also family-friendly activities in the Kids Zone including workshops, face painting and other arts and crafts.

Entertainment Schedule

Throughout the day there are performances on a main stage at the intersection of Columbia Street and Keefer Street. The entertainment schedule from 2024 is below. As you can see, there was lots of live music and dance to enjoy on both days. 2025 details are to be confirmed.