Kitsilano Blossoms

The Vancouver Cherry Blossom Festival takes place in April most years. It features a Japan Fair and other blossom-themed events.

The 2025 festival runs from March 26th until April 28th.

Events happening in late March include both the Big Picnic and Blossoms After Dark at David Lam Park. Then the Sakura Days Japan Fair takes place at VanDusen Garden in mid-April. There are a few other events happening this year too.

Other flower festivals you might be interested in this time of year include the Harrison Tulip Festival, Abbotsford Tulip Festival, and Sweet Spring Flower Festival at Greendale Acres. All three of these are exceptional and well worth the drive to the Fraser Valley to see!

Below you’ll find information about this year’s cherry blossom-themed events as well as events that may or may not return in the future.

Information in this article includes the following topics:

Click on any of the above links to jump to a specific topic, or continue reading to learn all about the Vancouver Cherry Blossom Festival.

Cherry Blossom Festival Events in Vancouver

In celebration of spring and the blossoming of cherry trees, there are events throughout Metro Vancouver most years. They include the Big Picnic at David Lam Park, Sakura Days Japan Fair at VanDusen Garden and more.

It’s a great festival, as acknowledged by the Canadian Garden Council which named it Canada’s Garden Festival of the Year Award winner a few years ago.

BOYish7 at VanDusen Garden — Cherry Blossom Fun at VanDusen Garden

The Big Picnic at David Lam Park

The Big Picnic is a free cherry blossom-viewing event at David Lam Park. The venue is in Yaletown at 1300 Pacific Boulevard. In 2025 the event takes place on Saturday, March 29th. It runs from 10:00 am to 4:00 pm.

“Hanami” is the Japanese traditional practice of gathering with friends and family in parks under cherry trees and admiring the blossoms while eating and drinking. “Hana” in Japanese means “flower” and “mi” means “to see.” The Big Picnic is a celebration of “hanami.”

When the event happens, arrive early if you can to find parking, especially if it’s a sunny day. Also, take your own picnic, lawn chair or a tarp or something to sit on. There’s normally free family-friendly entertainment and outdoor sessions of yoga, along with a small number of food trucks most years.

In total, at the event, we estimate that between around 500 and 1,000 people are on-site at any given time. So it’s not a huge event, but it is free and a fabulous time to check out the park’s cherry blossoms.

For more information about this Vancouver Cherry Blossom hanami event, click Big Picnic.

Sakura Days Japan Fair at VanDusen Garden

In 2025 Sakura Days Japan Fair happens on the weekend of April 12th and 13th.

Each year Japanese anime comic art is featured and celebrated at the event, and there is a Japanese tea ceremony to experience, Japanese food for sale and sake to sample. There are also usually workshops for the public on things like origami (Japanese paper folding art), calligraphy, and ikebana (Japanese flower arranging art).

The cost for the Sakura Days Japan Fair depends on whether you are a member of VanDusen Garden and if you purchase your tickets in advance. Tickets purchased online in advance are around $20 for adults and $16 for seniors and teenagers. Kids ages 5 to 12 cost about $8, whereas children under the age of 5 enter for free.

Click Sakura Days Japan Fair for more information about the event.

VanDusen Girls in Japanese Clothing — Girls in Japanese Clothing at VanDusen Garden

Bike the Blossoms Cycle Ride in Vancouver

Bike the Blossoms is a free event that usually happens towards the end of the Vancouver Cherry Blossom Festival season. Last year’s event didn’t happen in its usual format. Instead, everyone was encouraged to cycle the suggested route in their own time. 2025 details are to be confirmed.

In years when the guided event does take place, the ride is usually about 10 km to 12 km long. Although free, participants in the Bike the Blossoms event need to fill out a waiver form, or at least that was the case in previous years. Waivers are normally available online and can be printed and brought with you to the event on the day. Alternatively, participants can arrive at least an hour early to fill out the form on-site.

The bike route varies slightly each year, but always starts on the south side of John Hendry Park near Trout Lake at East 19th Avenue. That’s just a short walk from the Trout Lake Community Centre which is located at 3300 Victoria Drive.

Cherry Blossoms and Skyscrapers — Spring in Vancouver by Burrard Station

Blossoms After Dark at David Lam Park

Blossoms After Dark is a three-day event full of family-friendly fun. In 2025 the event takes place on the Friday, Saturday and Sunday of March 28th to 30th.

Between 6:30 pm and 10:00 pm each night, there are illuminated cherry blossoms to admire at David Lam Park. There are also live performances and activities to enjoy. Food trucks are on-site as well.

There have been a few nighttime events during the festival in previous years. Spring Lights Sakura Illumination Night used to take place at Queen Elizabeth Park. However, the event hasn’t happened since 2018. Nights of Light was also scheduled to debut at the same location in 2019, but it never ended up happening. These events likely won’t happen again in the future. Now, instead, there is Blossoms After Dark.

Spring Lights Illumination — Cherry Blossom Illuminations at Queen Elizabeth Park

Blossom Block Party at Bentall Centre’s Dunsmuir Patio

New for 2025 is a one-day block party in Vancouver. Created in collaboration with Public Disco, this event takes place on Saturday, April 5th. It runs from 2:00 pm to 9:00 pm at the Bentall Centre Courtyard at 1055 Dunsmuir Street.

The event is free to attend and takes place outdoors. It features fun activities for all ages including dance performances, DJ music, a licensed bar and more.

For details see our articles about the Blossom Block Party.

Cherry Jam Concert at Burrard Station

The Vancouver Cherry Blossom Festival used to kick off with a Cherry Jam concert at the Burrard SkyTrain Station.

The event hasn’t happened since 2020. However, when it has taken place in the past, the Cherry Jam event usually included Taiko Japanese drumming, singing, dance and other musical performances. There was also the reading of haiku poetry.

See our article about the Cherry Jam Concert for more information.

Spring Lights Illumination in Daylight — Cherry Blossoms at Queen Elizabeth Park

Cherry Blossoms in Vancouver

The Lower Mainland has thousands of cherry trees all over the region, and never is this more obvious than in the spring when parts of the city turn beautiful shades of pink. Japan donated hundreds of cherry trees to the City of Vancouver in the 1930s, and to this day we benefit from that generous gift.

There are various different types of cherry trees, and they all bloom at slightly different times.

Depending on the date, best places to see the cherry trees include Stanley Park, VanDusen Garden and outside Burrard Station, but there are trees bursting into bloom throughout the region during much of March and April.

In most years, some of the earliest concentrations of cherry blossoms start to show up around Burrard Station in downtown Vancouver and in Kitsilano in various areas (including around West 4th and by the Vancouver Space Centre). The entrance to Stanley Park, by the southern end of Pipeline Road, is also one of the first places in Vancouver to see large numbers of pink trees each season.

Spring Flowers at VanDusen Gardens