Port Moody Ribfest is a three-day community festival that features live music, family-friendly activities and barbecued ribs in Rocky Point Park in Port Moody.

In 2024 the event took place on the Friday, Saturday and Sunday of July 19th to 21st. Exact dates for the event in 2025 are to be confirmed. It’s a fabulous festival, and admission is by donation. There’s also a 50/50 Draw that could reach up to $225,000! Half of the jackpot goes to the winner, while the other half benefits great causes.

For the event’s official website, visit portmoodyribfest.ca.

TIP: Port Moody Ribfest is an awesome event to volunteer for. If you’d like to help, they’d love to hear from you! For details about volunteer opportunities, click Volunteer at Port Moody Ribfest 2024.

This article contains the following information about Port Moody Ribfest:

Ribfest Festival in Port Moody in 2024

Hosted by the Rotary Club of Port Moody, Ribfest is a free event that takes place in July each year.

In most years as many as 40,000 people attend the weekend festival. That number is greater than the entire population of Port Moody! Ribfest is a fundraising event benefiting charitable projects. Up to around $100,000 is raised each year. Donations are appreciated and there’s usually also a 50/50 Draw.

Take your friends and family (and your appetite), and check it out!

Click portmoodyribfest.ca for the event’s official website.

Where is Port Moody Ribfest?

Port Moody Rotary Ribfest takes place at Rocky Point Park which is at 2800 Murray Street in Port Moody, a beautiful town of 34,000 people just east of both Vancouver and Burnaby. For a smaller community, Port Moody Ribfest is an impressive event and at a wonderful venue.

Rocky Point Park is a beautiful park on the waterfront with a pier, community stage, walking trails, outdoor swimming pool, and first-class children’s playground and waterpark.

When is Port Moody Ribfest?

Port Moody Rotary Ribfest usually takes place on the second-to-last weekend in July. In 2024 it happened on July 19th to 21st. Admission is by donation and activities run from 11:00 am until about 9:00 pm on all three days.

Click portmoodyribfest.ca for the event’s official website.

Ribfest Activities

At Port Moody Rotary Ribfest there is Live Music and lots of Barbecued Food for sale. There are also craft breweries on site, a Family Zone, 50/50 Draw, and various forms of family entertainment.

Concerts & Entertainment at Port Moody Ribfest

Port Moody Ribfest features free live music on all three days of the festival. Below was the live music schedule for 2024. (Note: Times and performer details were subject to change.)

Friday, July 19th, 2024

12:00 pm – Chapter II
1:45 pm – Los Meatballs
3:30 pm – Trigger Mafia
5:15 pm – Pop Junkies
7:00 pm – Truly Tina
8:00 pm – Feelin’ Alright

Saturday, July 20th, 2024

11:00 am – Harris & DeBray
12:30 pm – Hickelstock
2:15 pm – Steve Sainas Trio
4:00 pm – Blue Collar Overdrive
5:45 pm – Bad Medicine
7:30 pm – Bad Moon Riders

Sunday, July 21st, 2024

11:00 am – Nun the Wizer
12:30 pm – The Heartland Levy Band
3:00 pm – Gift Shop
4:45 pm – Jason Lane Band
6:45 pm – Soulstream

Click portmoodyribfest.ca for the event’s official website.

BBQs, Food and Beverages at Ribfest

Being a “Ribfest,” a major part of the Port Moody event is the food. A variety of BBQ vendors serve beef ribs, barbecued chicken, corn on the cob and other tasty items.

Renowned barbecue vendors at Port Moody Ribfest typically include the following (as well as Big Bubba Lou’s BBQ who was also there this year):

Rusty’s BBQ – a local, Port Moody company
Smoke Dem Bones – from Penticton
Boss Hog’s – a London Ontario-based rib vendor
Prairie Smoke & Spice – from Winnipeg (and 14-time Grand Champion winner)
Grizzly BBQ – from Greater Victoria on Vancouver Island
Pit Crew BBQ – participating at Port Moody Ribfest for the first time (and coming all the way from the Maritimes)
Gator BBQ – from Port Dover Ontario

In addition to the above vendors specializing in barbecued meats, at the event there is also a vegetarian food truck.

The biggest challenge at Port Moody Ribfest is deciding which vendor to get your ribs from! The second biggest challenge is choosing which craft beer to wash it down with (or root beer for the kids)!

Local participating breweries in 2024 included Yellow Dog Brewing, Moody Ales, Twin Sails Brewing and The Parkside Brewery. There will also be Lonetree Cider as well as wine and other drinks for sale. (Note: The event has a site-wide liquor license, so you don’t have to stay at the beer garden. You can wander around with your drink pretty much wherever you like within the festival grounds.)

Family Zone at Port Moody Ribfest

Port Moody Ribfest is definitely a family-friendly event. There is something for everyone, including for children at the Family Zone.

In the Family Zone you will likely find things like miniature golf, a climbing wall, puppet show and more. The 2024 event also included an exhibition about the upcoming Invictus Games in Vancouver and Whistler, as well as virtual reality experiences. Plus, if that’s not enough, right in Rocky Point Park is one of the Lower Mainland’s best outdoor children’s playgrounds and water parks, as well as an outdoor swimming pool.

Kids, don’t forget your swimsuits! Also, don’t forget to point out to your parents the Rocky Point Ice Cream Store that’s located close by!

50/50 Draw

Another exciting component of Port Moody Ribfest is the Colossal 50/50 Draw. There was the potential for this year’s jackpot to reach up to $225,000! Half of the total benefits community projects funded by local Rotary Clubs, while the other half goes to the winner.

Festival attendees can buy one ticket for $20, three tickets for $50, or 10 tickets for $100. This year’s jackpot reached $56,070. The draw took place on August 2nd at St. James’s Well Pub and the winner took home $28,035!

Visit the Port Moody Ribfest website for the 50/50 draw at next year’s event.

Tips & Advice

Below are some tips and advice on how to have an enjoyable time at the Port Moody Ribfest.

Suggestions for Getting There

TIP #1: Take public transit if you can as parking on the day can challenging. If you can’t, another option is to put your bikes on the back of your car and then cycle part way to the venue (including from far away along the beautiful, forested paths). An alternative option is to wear good shoes and just plan to walk. The SkyTrain Station is just 800 metres away. However you get there, it’s worth the journey!

TIP #2: If you must take a vehicle, go early to improve your chances of finding a spot. There is a bit of parking available for early birds at Rocky Point Park, at the Port Moody Soccer Field on Murray Street just east of the park, and at Port Moody’s West Coast Express Train Station.

TIP #3: You might also find parking at the Community Recreation Complex at 300 Ioco Road in town (although you might not technically be allowed to park there). Otherwise, try your luck wherever you can find it, but be sure wherever you park is a permitted place and not limited to too short of a time.

TIP #4: Another transportation option is to take a taxi or Uber, either from your home or from a place you can get to close by (like the train station).

Other Tips

TIP #1: Rocky Point Park is a beautiful park to visit any time of the year. While you’re already there for Ribfest, take some time to explore. Also, return another day when it’s a little less crowded.

TIP #2: On hot days kids will love the playground, water park and outdoor swimming pool. The walking and cycling trails are beautiful and go on for miles. The pier is also very pleasant for a short stroll out into the water.

TIP #3: And finally, if you like outdoor live music, go back any Sunday in July or August for Summer Sundays when they have a free outdoor concert in the park.

Important Notes

ACCESSIBILITY: Port Moody Ribfest is fairly stroller and wheelchair accessible. Just be patient getting around, however, as there will be thousands of people. There are a lot of lawns (which aren’t easy to get around on after a heavy rainfall), but there are also lots of paved pathways throughout Rocky Point Park.
PET POLICY: Only on-duty service dogs are welcome at Port Moody Ribfest. Other pets are not allowed. That’s okay, though, as Fido will probably appreciate being left at home anyway as he’ll likely hate the crowds and go insane with all the tantalizing BBQ smells!
PARKING: There isn’t a lot of parking along Murray Street or at Rocky Point Park, at least nowhere near enough for thousands of people. Moody Centre Station is less than a 15-minute walk away. There are also 400 parking spots at that SkyTrain Station, and another 1,000 by Coquitlam Station.

About Rotary

Rotary International is a volunteer service organization with members around the world. The Rotary Club of Port Moody is one of many Rotary clubs comprised of professionals, business people and folks who want to make a difference in their community.

The Rotary Club of Port Moody meets for breakfast on Wednesday at 7:15 am at St. James’s Well Pub in Newport Village at 248 Newport Drive in Port Moody.

Another fundraising event put on by the same organization is Search for the Perfect Pint which is a beer-tasting event at Port Moody’s City Hall. It too is a fundraising event.

For more information on the fundraising group behind Port Moody Ribfest, see the Rotary Club of Port Moody website. It’s an exceptional organization to be a part of.

Other Information

For more information about the July event at Rocky Point Park, see the Port Moody Ribfest website.

To learn more about the venue and surrounding area, see our articles about Rocky Point Park or Port Moody. For ideas on other things to do at other times this month, see Vancouver’s July Calendar.

To learn about a similar festival that’s also a fundraising event for Rotary Clubs and their charitable projects, see our article about Ribfest Langley.

For a list of other major events throughout the year in the Lower Mainland, click the Festivals & Events Calendar.

Events hosted by other Lower Mainland Rotary Clubs include the following:

Search for the Perfect Pint – a beer-themed event in Port Moody.
Rotary Ride for Rescue – a bike race up Cypress Mountain that raises money for North Shore Rescue.
North Vancouver Canada Day Celebrations – an event on July 1st on the North Shore.
Langley Ribfest – a barbecue-themed community event in the summer.
Rotary Ride for Hearing – a cycling ride that benefits people who are deaf and hard of hearing in BC.
White Rock Polar Bear Swim – a January 1st icy swim in the ocean on New Year’s Day.