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 celebrates its 22nd year in 2025 and runs from August 23rd to 24th.

Other events that happen on the same weekend elsewhere in the Lower Mainland include the Shipyards Night Market, Farewell to Summer Fireworks Festival, World of Love Multicultural Carnival, PNE Fair, and Salmon Sessions Music Festival (all of which are awesome and the first three 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 takes place on the Saturday and Sunday of August 23rd and 24th. Last summer, the festival ran from 11:00 am until 6:00 pm and 2025 will likely be similar.

Britannia Shipyards National Historic Site is located at 5180 Westwater Drive in Steveston Village in the southwest corner of Richmond. It’s 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. For an idea of what you can expect in terms of entertainment this year, below is the schedule from last August’s event. Roving performers, demonstrations and workshops that also took place each day last year are not included below. 2025’s entertainment schedule will likely be similar with exact details to be confirmed.

Note: Scheduled performers and times were subject to change.

Saturday, August 24th, 2024

Octopus’ Garden

11:00 am – Tales from Mara the Mermaid
12:00 pm – Paul Silveria
1:00 pm – Clanna Morna
2:00 pm – Blackthorn Blossoms
3:00 pm – The Seabillys
4:00 pm – Clanna Morna
5:00 pm – Blackthorn Blossoms

Seine Net Loft

11:30 am – Dan Propp
12:00 pm – Richmond Delta Youth Orchestra
1:00 pm – Dan Propp
1:30 pm – Richmond Delta Youth Orchestra
2:30 pm – Dan Propp
3:00 pm – Richmond Delta Youth Orchestra

Seine Net Loft (Back Deck)

11:45 am – Pat Chessell
12:30 pm – Estella Celeste Banez
1:15 pm – Paul Silveria
2:00 pm – Beautiful Losers
2:45 pm – Pat Chessell
3:30 pm – Blackthorn Blossoms
4:15 pm – John Michael Lind

Chinese Bunkhouse

11:15 am – Estella Celeste Banez
12:15 pm – Tales from Mara the Mermaid
1:00 pm – Pat Chessell
2:00 pm – Paul Silveria
3:00 pm – John Michael Lind
4:00 pm – Beautiful Losers
5:15 pm – John Michael Lind

Port of Call Stage

11:00 am – Opening Ceremony
12:00 pm – Undercurrent/Naden Band
1:00 pm – Go Taiko Drummers
1:45 pm – Undercurrent/Naden Band
2:50 pm – Clanna Morna
3:50 pm – Undercurrent/Naden Band
4:50 pm – The Seabillys

Captain’s Quarters

11:00 am – Seagal the Seagull
11:45 am – Rikki the Rat
12:30 pm – Seagal the Seagull
1:15 pm – Rikki the Rat
2:00 pm – Estella Celeste Banez
2:45 pm – Seagal the Seagull
3:30 pm – Rikki the Rat
4:15 pm – Seagal the Seagull

Historic Shipyard Buildings at Steveston Village — Britannia Heritage Shipyard

Sunday, August 25th, 2024

Octopus’ Garden

11:00 am – Tales from Mara the Mermaid
12:00 pm – Paul Silveria
1:00 pm – Clanna Morna
2:00 pm – Blackthorn Blossoms
3:00 pm – The Seabillys
4:00 pm – Clanna Morna
5:00 pm – Blackthorn Blossoms

Seine Net Loft

11:30 am – Dan Propp
12:00 pm – Richmond Delta Youth Orchestra
1:00 pm – Dan Propp
1:30 pm – Richmond Delta Youth Orchestra
2:30 pm – Dan Propp
3:00 pm – Richmond Delta Youth Orchestra

Seine Net Loft (Back Deck)

11:30 am – Kevin Takahide Lee
12:30 pm – Estella Celeste Banez
1:15 pm – Paul Silveria
2:00 pm – Beautiful Losers
3:30 pm – Blackthorn Blossoms
4:15 pm – John Michael Lind

Chinese Bunkhouse

11:15 am – Estella Celeste Banez
12:00 pm – The Irish Wakers
1:00 pm – Tales from Mara the Mermaid
2:00 pm – Paul Silveria
3:00 pm – John Michael Lind
4:00 pm – Beautiful Losers
5:15 pm – John Michael Lind

Port of Call Stage

11:00 am – Vancouver Okinawa Taiko Drummers
12:00 pm – Blackthorn Blossoms
1:00 pm – Mashigeta Crew
1:45 pm – The Irish Wakers
2:50 pm – Clanna Morna
3:50 pm – The Irish Wakers
4:50 pm – The Seabillys

Captain’s Quarters

11:00 am – Seagal the Seagull
11:45 am – Rikki the Rat
12:30 pm – Seagal the Seagull
1:15 pm – Rikki the Rat
2:00 pm – Estella Celeste Banez
2:45 pm – Seagal the Seagull
3:30 pm – Rikki the Rat
4:15 pm – Seagal the Seagull

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, or the Steveston Village Farmers’ Market on the Sunday.

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!