ScotFestBC: The BC Highland Games is a Metro Vancouver Scottish festival that takes place in mid-June at Lafarge Lake in Coquitlam.
In 2025 the festival happens on June 20th and 21st which is the Friday and Saturday after the Father’s Day weekend.
As of early January, most details about this year’s festival are to be confirmed. For the latest information, visit scotfestbc.com.
This article contains information about the following:
Admission | Schedule | Sports, Music & Dance | Workshops & Demos | Entertainment | Sporting Events | Tips & Advice | ScotFestBC Video | Other Information
Click any of the above links to jump to a specific topic, or continue reading to learn all about the event.
ScotFestBC: The BC Highland Games & World Music Festival
ScotFestBC is an annual event featuring athletic competitions, Celtic dancing, live music, whisky tasting and bagpiping! It’s a family-friendly event and lots of fun!
The British Columbia Highland Games takes place on a Friday and Saturday around mid-June, 2024, by Lafarge Lake at Town Centre Park in Coquitlam. They happen there again on June 20th and 21st in 2025.
ScotFestBC has been a terrific event for decades! If you like live music, cultural events, outdoor markets, athletic competitions, whisky and everything to do with Scotland, you’ll love this event! We highly recommend it!
Conveniently, the event takes place near the Lafarge Lake-Douglas SkyTrain Station.
Below is a map of the southern half of the festival grounds. To see what was where at the festival, click 2024 Festival Map.
Festival Admission
Admission to ScotFestBC and the British Columbia Highland Games on the Friday last year was free. The only ticketed portion of that evening was the Whisky & Oysters event which cost $45 per person.
Tickets were required to enter the festival on the Saturday in 2024. They cost $25 for adults, $20 for students and seniors, and $15 for children (ages 6 to 12). Whisky School Classes cost an extra $45 per person. Details about tickets in 2025 are to be confirmed.
For tickets and the most up-to-date information, visit the official ScotFestBC website.
Festival Schedule
The schedule of events in 2025 is to be confirmed. For an idea of what to expect, last year’s schedule is below. We divided the schedule up into Competitions, Workshops & Demonstrations, and Live Entertainment. Some of the activities took place on the festival’s Main Stage, while others happened in the field and other locations. Many of them overlapped with each other.
(Note: The following event times, locations and other details were subject to change.)
Sports, Music and Dance Competitions
Friday, June 14th, 2024
Heritage Stage
- 5:00 pm – Open Piobaireachd
Saturday, June 15th, 2024
Main Stage
- 8:30 am – Vancouver Open Highland Dancing Championships
In The Meadow
- 8:00 am – BC Pipers’ Association Solo Piping and Drumming Competition
- 2:00 pm –Pipe Band Competitions (Grades 4 and 5)
- 4:15 pm – Pipe Band Competitions (Grades 1 and 2)
In the Heavy Events Field
- 9:00 am – REMAX Scottish Heavy Events Competition
On the Big Tent Stage
- 10:30 am – RSPBA Pacific Rim Drumming Championships
For tickets and full details visit the official ScotFestBC website.
Workshops and Demonstrations
A number of whisky-tasting and other cultural workshops and demonstrations take place in various locations including in the Whisky Tent and the Scottish Cultural Tent.
Friday, June 14th, 2024
- 7:00 pm – Whisky & Oysters
Saturday, June 15th, 2024
- 11:00 am – Neil MacLean: “100-years of Scottish Highland Games in BC” historical and photographic display
- 12:00 pm – Zephan Knichel: a closer look at “The Great Highland Bagpipe”
- 1:00 pm – Robert MacDonald: “The Gallows Herd,” “Trouble with the Neighbours” or “A Fresh Look at the Glencoe Genocide”
- 2:00 pm – Vancouver Gaelic Society
- 3:00 pm – Ashley MacIsaac: Fiddle Workshop
- 4:00 pm – Robyn Carrigan: Learn Gaelic milling frolics and why they were important
Live Entertainment (Non-Competitive Schedule)
Below was the music and live entertainment schedule for 2024. (Note: Times and performer details were subject to change.)
Friday, June 14th, 2024
On the Main Stage
- 6:00 pm – Opening Ceremony
- 6:20 pm – “Pipes in the Park” with the SFU Pipe Band and more
On the Big Tent Stage
- 5:00 pm – The Hounds of Cuchulain
- 7:30 pm – Live Celtic Music
Saturday, June 15th, 2024
On the Big Tent Stage
- 12:30 pm – Hounds of Cuchulain
- 1:30 pm – The Whiskey Dicks
- 2:45 pm – Bob Collins
- 4:00 pm – Hounds of Cuchulain
- 6:00 pm – The Whiskey Dicks
- 7:30 pm – Ashley MacIsaac
On the Heritage Stage (Hosted by DJ Paul Manocha)
- 1:00 pm – Strictly Scottish
- 1:45 pm – Mariachi Los Dorados
- 2:30 pm – Kvitka Ukranian
- 3:15 pm – Taiko Highland Fusion with Onibana Taiko & Shot of Scotch Highland Dancers
- 4:00 pm – Compaigni V’ni Dansi
In The Meadow
- 1:00 pm – JP Fell Pipe Band
- 1:30 pm – RCMP E. Division Pipe Band
For tickets and the most up-to-date information, visit the official ScotFestBC website.
Sporting Events
In addition to bagpiping and dancing events, the BC Highland Games also includes Heavy Events competitions which are open to athletes ages 19+ (although competitors ages 16 to 18 can register if they have a parent’s permission). Registration for the events closes a couple weeks before the games.
There are usually three categories of Heavy Events: Distance Events; Height Events; and the Caber Toss.
Distance competitions include the Stone Putt, Weight for Distance Throws and the Scottish Hammer Toss.
Height Events include the Weight Over Bar competition which involves throwing a 56-pound weight (for men) or a 28-pound weight (for women) over a bar. Similarly, the Sheaf Toss involves throwing a 10- to 20-pound simulated bale of hay over a bar with a pitchfork.
The Caber Toss is the event where contestants throw giant poles as far as they can, with each pole weighing from 70 pounds to 130 pounds and being between 15 feet and 23 feet long.
Tips & Advice
Below are some suggestions to help you make the most of your visit to the BC Highland Games.
TIP #1: Take public transit if you can. The Lafarge Lake – Douglas SkyTrain Station is right next to the site and there are bus stops as well.
TIP #2: If you can only stay for a short time, then go in the afternoon. That’s when things are most interesting.
TIP #3: If you want to attend one of the Whisky School Classes, register early as they usually sell out well in advance.
TIP #4: If you plan to compete in the Heavy Events, be sure to register at least two weeks prior to the day of the games. Also, be sure to prepare well and know what you’re doing! The weights are heavy and you don’t want to injure yourself!
TIP #5: Wear your tartan if you have some! You’ll fit right in!
For tickets and full details about the festival visit the official ScotFestBC website.
ScotFestBC Video
Below is a video to give you an idea of what to expect at ScotFestBC: The BC Highland Games. It features pipe bands and clips of other live entertainment from the 2022 event.
Other Information
For further details about the event, see the ScotFestBC: British Columbia Highland Games website. And for information about a similar event on Vancouver Island, check out the Victoria Highland Games & Celtic Festival which takes place in May.
To learn about the town and surrounding area, see our article about the City of Coquitlam.
For other events taking place in the Lower Mainland, check out the following:
- Vancouver’s June Calendar and July Calendar
- Festivals & Events Calendar
- Father’s Day Weekend Events
- Free June Events
- Free July Events