Richmond Maritime Festival

The Richmond Maritime Festival is a free event that takes place in and around the Britannia Heritage Shipyard in Steveston Village in the summer.

The event celebrated its 22nd year in 2025 and happened on August 23rd and 24th. It will likely happen around the same time in 2026, though exact details are to be confirmed.

Other events that happen on the same weekend elsewhere in the Lower Mainland include the Shipyards Night Market, BEST Move, Farewell to Summer Fireworks Festival, PNE Fair, and Salmon Sessions Music Festival (all of which are awesome and the first two of which have free admission).

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Maritime Festival in Steveston

The Richmond Maritime Festival is a fair-sized festival that includes live entertainment, artisans and boat-related activities.

Where and When?

In 2025 the Richmond Maritime Festival took place on the Saturday and Sunday of August 23rd and 24th. The festival usually runs from 11:00 am until 6:00 pm on both days.

The event happens at and around the Britannia Shipyards National Historic Site which is located at 5180 Westwater Drive in Steveston Village in the southwest corner of Richmond. The venue is about 1.5 kilometres from the Gulf of Georgia Cannery, or just a five-minute drive from Steveston’s other National Historic Site.

Maritime Festival Activities

The Richmond Maritime Festival is a free, family-friendly event that includes educational and interactive activities, as well as historical exhibits and live entertainment. There are street performers, local artists, boats to explore, craft activities, food vendors and other forms of entertainment.

Music and Entertainment Lineup

There are multiple areas with live performances. Below was the 2025 schedule from this event to give you an idea of what you can expect in terms of entertainment. Roving performers, demonstrations and workshops that also took place each day this past year were not included below.

Note: Scheduled performers and times were subject to change.

Saturday, August 23rd, 2025

Octopus’ Garden

11:00 am – Rikki the Rat (Brent Hirose, Puppeteer)
11:45 am – Caro & Ali
12:45 pm – Rikki the Rat (Brent Hirose, Puppeteer)
1:30 pm – Kung Jaadee
2:15 pm – Rikki the Rat (Brent Hirose, Puppeteer)
3:00 pm – Stories on Wheels
5:00 pm – elmo
5:30 pm – Chloe Greenberg

Seine Net Loft

11:00 am – Steveston Maritime Modellers
11:00 am – Jia-huan Long Art Show

Aboard the Gikumi

11:30 am – Richmond Delta Youth Orchestra
12:30 pm – Richmond Delta Youth Orchestra
1:30 pm – Richmond Delta Youth Orchestra

Port of Call Stage

11:00 am – Welcome Ceremony
11:45 am – GO Taiko & World Soran
12:15 pm – The Wheat in The Barley
1:15 pm – Collage Trad
2:15 pm – The Irish Wakers
3:15 pm – 5 on a String
4:15 pm – Collage Trad
5:15 pm – The Irish Wakers

Historic Shipyard Buildings at Steveston Village — Britannia Heritage Shipyard

Sunday, August 24th, 2025

Octopus’ Garden

11:00 am – Rikki the Rat (Puppet Show)
11:45 am – Caro & Ali
12:45 pm – Rikki the Rat (Puppet Show)
1:30 pm – The Nautical Notes
2:30 pm – Rikki the Rat (Puppet Show)
3:15 pm – Fangfei Guzheng
4:00 pm – Company
4:15 pm – Company

Seine Net Loft

11:00 am – Steveston Maritime Modellers
11:00 am – Jia-huan Long Art Show

Aboard the Gikumi

11:30 am – Richmond Delta Youth Orchestra
12:30 pm – Richmond Delta Youth Orchestra
1:30 pm – Richmond Delta Youth Orchestra

Port of Call Stage

11:00 am – The Nautical Notes
12:00 pm – The Wheat in The Barley
1:00 pm – 5 on a String
2:00 pm – Murfitt & Main
3:15 pm – R&S Duo
5:00 pm – The Whiskeydicks
5:15 pm – Murfitt & Main

Richmond Maritime Festival Video

The following video shows scenes of the festival from 2022.

About the Area

Steveston Village and the area around the Britannia Heritage Shipyards are worth visiting any time of the year.

Steveston Village is full of history. You can explore walking and cycling trails along the water and two National Historic Sites. Britannia Heritage Shipyard is in a neighbourhood along the water with historic buildings, some of which you can go into and explore.

Tips & Advice

Below are some tips and advice to help you make the most of your visit to the Richmond Maritime Festival and surrounding area.

TIP #1: Take your walking shoes or bicycle and explore the trails while you’re in the area. Parking close to Britannia Heritage Shipyard will likely be challenging during the festival, which means parking elsewhere and walking or cycling the rest of the way can be a good idea.

TIP #2: While in Richmond, combine your trip to the Richmond Maritime Festival with visits to other weekend activities, including the giant Richmond Night Market on either evening.

SAVE 25% AT THE MUSEUM!

If you like maritime history, then be sure to visit the Vancouver Maritime Museum at Vanier Park. Inside the attraction is the St. Roch that you can climb aboard and explore. Outside on the water are other interesting boats to see too. And if you use the promo code BESTVANCOUVER you can save yourself 25% on the price of admission.