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.

The 2021 Spot Prawn Festival was a virtual event on May 29th. In 2022 the Spot Prawn Festival took place in its regular in-person format on Sunday, May 15th. When and if the event takes place in 2023 is to be confirmed.

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 or so. 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 usually free to attend. In 2021 the festival took place online and included virtual cooking classes. In normal years, however, 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 Sunday, May 15th from 11:00 am until 3:00 pm.

Signs at the Spot Prawn Festival

What to Expect

In 2022, the Spot Prawn Festival offered three main activities. There were free cooking demonstrations and musical performances on the docks, which is where you’ll likely see lots of people. There were also two different food options. The first was a 10-ounce bowl of chowder available for $10. For those wanting more, a $65 tasting menu was available for brunch. 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. It was taken in 2019, so before COVID-19 and the need for masks and physical distancing.

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.