City of Bhangra Dance Performance

Formerly known as the City of Bhangra Festival, the 5X Festival is a series of performing arts events showcasing South Asian culture in Vancouver and Surrey.

In 2025 the festival has events that are open to the public on the Friday and Saturday of June 13th and 14th. Other events happening that same weekend include the Shipyards Night Market, Langley Community Day and Old Car Sunday in Mission. Admission to all of those events are free, as is the case with National Indigenous Heritage Month events at Fort Langley and the Gulf of Georgia Cannery. There is also a free kid-friendly event with the Vancouver Chinese Music Ensemble and Ginalina in Yaletown.

Ticketed events unrelated to the 5X Festival happening elsewhere in the Lower Mainland on the weekend of June 13th to 15th include the Old Town New Queens Pride-themed event at Britannia Mine and the baseball and basketball games with the Vancouver Canadians and Vancouver Bandits.

To learn about other events happening in Metro Vancouver this time of year, see our June Calendar of Events. To learn about the 5X Festival in 2025, continue reading.

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Festival Dates and Location | Events | What is Bhangra? | Other Information

Metro Vancouver’s 5X Festival

Running since 2004, including under its previous name until 2017, the 5X Festival is an annual multi-day festival.

Historically, the event’s focus was sharing Punjabi culture, music and dance with the greater community. Since 2019 the focus is on celebrating South Asian arts in general.

In 2025 the 20th festival includes a Blockparty event outside Surrey City Hall on Saturday, June 14th.

5X Fest Crowds at Holland Park — 5X Fest in Surrey

Festival Dates and Location

The 5X Festival has taken place in various formats and at different venues over the past number of years.

In 2025 the festival runs from June 12th to 14th. The public events are held at The Beaumont Studios (316 West 5th Avenue, Vancouver), Surrey Civic Plaza (13450 104 Avenue, Surrey) and at a secret location that’s to be confirmed.

Surrey Library and City Hall — Surrey City Hall

5X Festival Details

The 2025 5X Festival takes place over three days, but a couple of the events are invite only. The three public events are listed and described below.

5X Art Party (June 13th, 2025)

The 5X Art Party takes place on Friday, June 13th, from 6:00 pm until 11:00 pm at The Beaumont Studios at 316 West 5th Avenue in Vancouver. Tickets cost about $26 for students and $41 for everyone else. The event involved all types of art, along with music and the chance to connect with others.

5X Blockparty (June 14th, 2025)

The 5X Blockparty is a party at Surrey Civic Plaza which is located at 13450 104 Avenue in Surrey. The event runs from 4:00 pm to 9:00 pm and features live music, food vendors, a beer garden and other activities.

Admission to the event is free if you RSVP online. Tickets for the VIP area, meanwhile, cost about $100 each and are only for ages 19 and above.

For an idea of what to expect at the next Blockparty, check out the video below. It was recorded at the 2022 event, which took place at Holland Park instead of Surrey Civic Plaza.

5X Afterparty (June 14th, 2025)

The 5X Afterparty event happens at a secret location that’s yet to be announced as of mid-May. It begins at 10:00 pm and runs until 2:00 am. The underground music event features three sets by local DJs.

General admission costs about $21 for students and $26 for everyone else.

5X Fest Party at Holland Park — 5X Street Block Party at Holland Park

What is Bhangra?

Bhangra is a style of East Indian music and folk dance from the Punjab region of Pakistan and India that became popular in the 1970s and 1980s in Great Britain.

Originally performed frequently in the Punjab by labourers, Bhangra served as a way for young folks to bridge social and racial divides, connect people with their cultural heritage and strengthen local communities through dance and music.

Since 2004, the City of Bhangra/5X Festival has continued the tradition of connecting people – the mission of the organization behind the event is to educate, foster community engagement and stimulate artistic innovation.