Vancouver Spot Prawn Festival

The Spot Prawn Festival celebrates spot prawn season. The family-friendly event takes place at Fishermen’s Wharf near Granville Island in False Creek in May.

In 2023 the Spot Prawn Festival took place on Sunday, May 28th. Other events that happened on the same weekend included Ladner May Days, the BC Polish Festival, West of Main Art Walk and Planted Expo Vancouver.

Spot Prawn Festival in Vancouver

The Spot Prawn Festival is an annual event in the City of Vancouver. It marks the beginning of British Columbia’s spot prawn season which usually runs for about six weeks. The goal of the festival is to spread the love of spot prawns in a fun, tasty and educational way.

The festival is family-friendly and free to attend. There’s live music, cooking demonstrations and more to enjoy outdoors along the water. The place can get quite busy and the atmosphere is both diverse and fun.

Fresh Spot Prawns

When and Where?

The Spot Prawn Festival is usually held sometime around the middle of May at Fishermen’s Wharf in False Creek. The venue’s address is 1505 West 1st Avenue. It’s on the south side of False Creek across the water from downtown Vancouver. It’s also just a short walk along the False Creek Seawall from Granville Island.

In 2019 the festival took place on May 19th. Unfortunately, the 2020 event was cancelled due to the coronavirus pandemic. In 2021 the festival was a virtual event, though people could still show up in person to buy the spot prawns. In 2022 the festival returned to its usual location with in-person activities on May 15th.

The 2023 Spot Prawn Festival took place on Sunday, May 28th. It ran from 11:00 am until 3:00 pm at Fishermen’s Wharf. The festival’s date for 2024 is to be confirmed.

Signs at the Spot Prawn Festival

What to Expect

In 2023, the Spot Prawn Festival offered three main activities. There were free cooking demonstrations and other things to do on the docks, which is where you’ll likely see lots of people.

There were also two different food options, each with different timeslots to choose from when paying online. The first food option was a 10-ounce Prawn Bisque with a bun available for $10. Timeslots were every hour throughout the event. For those wanting more, a $79 tasting menu was available for brunch. The brunch was served from 11:30 am to 1:00 pm, and again from 1:30 pm to 3:00 pm. It included small portions of six tasty spot prawn dishes along with samples of wine, beer and a sweet dessert.

Spot Prawn Festival Video

To give you an idea of what to expect at the festival in a typical year, check out the following short video clip from 2019.

As you’ll see in the video, there are plenty of people walking around and exploring the many tents. As well, the event happens at a beautiful venue. The waterfront location is stunning and features views of nearby Granville Island, which is always worth a visit.