Vancouver Events Calendar
Click on any of the months below for information and to see what’s happening in Metro Vancouver at different times of the year.
To learn about what’s happening this month, click May 2023. For information about events this coming Friday, Saturday and Sunday, click What’s Happening This Weekend.
May 2023 Highlights
May is the month for flower festivals, Mother’s Day and Victoria Day Long Weekend events. It’s also a month of increasingly long days and, normally, warmer, sunnier and drier weather. It can be a wonderful month to be outside. It’s also a busy month for festivals and outdoor events including Farmers Markets and Vancouver Canadians baseball games.
Depending on the weather and growing conditions, flower festivals that begin in April typically finish sometime in early May. In 2023, however, Sweet Spring at Greendale Acres, the Abbotsford Tulip Festival and Chilliwack Tulip Festival are all expected to run until May 14th (which is Mother’s Day and later than most years).
Other events in early May include CityFest in North Vancouver, Cinco de Mayo activities, the Vancouver Marathon, ExplorASIAN Festival events like TJ Fest, and the Art Vancouver International Art Fair. In 2023 the Royal Canadian International Circus is also in Surrey in early May (and then again in Vancouver in mid-May and then again in Richmond on the Victoria Day Long Weekend). The DOXA Film Festival also takes place in the first half of the month.
On the second Sunday in May it’s Mother’s Day. On that weekend there are Mother’s Day Brunches and special events at a number of attractions. On that weekend in 2023 there is also the Westcoast Wellness Show, Coquitlam Block Party and family-friendly activities at places like Maan Farms and Greendale Acres in the Fraser Valley.
On the May Long Weekend there is the Vancouver All British Field Meet car show, Cloverdale Rodeo & Country Fair, Vancouver Comic Arts Festival and Fort Langley Parade, plus lots of other fun events too.
Later in the month in 2023, there is the Ladner May Days, the West of Main Art Walk, Hyack Parade, BC Polish Festival and Walk to Make Cystic Fibrosis History. In late May there is also the Vancouver International Children’s Festival.
In May there are concerts with choirs like Chor Leoni, and Tribute Bands showcasing the music of artists like Elton John and Billy Joel. There is also live comedy at the Improv Centre Theatre and multi-dimensional films at FlyOver Canada.
Other fun activities to do in May are outdoor games with Vancouver Mysteries and ropes course adventures at WildPlay Element Park. There are also walking tours with Forbidden Vancouver and museums to visit like the Vancouver Maritime Museum, Gulf of Georgia Cannery, Fraser River Discovery Centre and Britannia Mine.
Other Information
Click Festivals & Events for a listing of the best festivals and events to check out in and around Metro Vancouver at various times of the year.
Click Shows & Entertainment for the full year calendar of shows and performances taking place in the Lower Mainland.
For a list of other things happening this month, see our May Events Calendar or click Free Events in May.
For ideas on things to do in nearby places outside the Lower Mainland, see the events calendars on the Victoria’s Best Places website or What To Do In Whistler website.
