The Squamish Arts Festival is a community event in the summer. It features concerts, art displays, the performing arts, an outdoor movie and other activities.
Formerly called the Squamish Wind Festival, the Squamish Arts Festival runs from August 6th to 17th in 2024. Other events happening elsewhere in the Lower Mainland during those dates include the BC Dumpling Festival in Coquitlam, Brewhalla Beer & Music Festival in New Westminster, and both the African Descent Festival and Dished Food Truck Fest in Vancouver. In the middle of the month there is also a Ribfest event in Langley and Symphony in the Park in Abbotsford.
To learn about the above and other events happening this month, see our August Calendar of Events. To learn about the Squamish Arts Festival, continue reading.
Arts Festival in Squamish
The Squamish Arts Festival is an annual event with a focus on both visual and performing arts. In years prior to COVID-19, the festival used to take place in July. Since then it’s happened in August each year.
Where and When
The Squamish Arts Festival takes place in the summer in the town of Squamish. The area is about a 45-minute drive from Vancouver along the Sea to Sky Highway.
The festival runs from August 6th to 17th in 2024. This year’s venues include Junction Park and Sp’akw’us Feather Park.
Known as the “Outdoor Recreation Capital of the World,” Squamish is home to some of the region’s premier outdoor recreation venues, including Stawamus Chief Mountain (for hiking), the Sea to Sky Gondola, and Squamish Spit (for kite boarding).
For more information on the area, click Squamish or the Sea to Sky region.
Squamish Arts Festival All-Day Events
In 2024, there are art workshops between August 6th and 15th. The main Squamish Arts Festival event happens on August 10th at Junction Park. Lastly, the Sp’akw’us Feather Park Shakedown is on August 17th.
There are a large number of events taking place over the course of the 2024 festival. Below are details about two of the biggest ones which are both free to attend!
Saturday, August 10th, 2024
From 10:00 am to 6:00 pm there’s a big free event at Junction Park. Below is a list of the free activities taking place. There’s also an artisan market, bar and an area with food trucks.
The following things to do all begin at 10:00 am:
- Gabriel Ostapchuk Live Painting
- Alixandra Jade
- Squamish Circus Collective
- Liz Sax Ceramics
Activities and performances happening at other times of the day include the following:
- 10:30 am – Ira Pettle
- 11:40 am – Cat Madden
- 12:50 pm – The Beating of The Unborn Drum
- 1:00 pm – Paintertainment
- 1:30 pm – Olin Brix
- 2:40 pm – Dhol Nation Drummers
- 4:40 pm – Blonde Diamond
Saturday, August 17th, 2024
The final day of the festival takes place at Sp’akw’us Feather Park from 2:00 to 11:00 pm. The day’s live entertainment schedule is listed below. There’s a bar at the event from 4:00 pm onward. Food trucks are also on site.
- 5:10 pm – Bitterly Divine
- 5:50 pm – Squamish National Cultural Dancers
- 6:20 pm – DJ OShow
- 7:10 pm – Mark Woodyard
- 8:15 pm – SLB B2B LERMA
- 9:00 pm – DJ KOOKUM
- 9:50 pm – The Funk Hunters
Vendors
For an idea of which vendors to expect at the festival, food trucks and vendors that attended in previous years are listed below.
Vendors
- Charcoal & Grain – selling handmade gifts made from reclaimed wood.
- Dogwood Letterpress – specializing in handmade vintage stationary.
- Fox Fibers – featuring hand-crafted woven plant and wall hangers.
- Geojab Bowls – West Coast Indigenous-designed bowls made from reclaimed wood.
- Hollow Tree – hand-crafted candles.
- Sons of Vancouver Distillery – a Vancouver-based small batch distillery.
Food Trucks
- Alice & Brohm Real Fruit Ice Cream – a New Zealand treat made with real fruit!
- Carte Diem – Seize the Souvlaki – a food truck serving traditional Greek cuisine.
- Chickpea – a food truck specializing in plant-based food.
- Luz Tacos – fun and delicious tacos served out of a converted airstream trailer.
- Mr. Bannock – a food truck serving traditional Indigenous foods.
Other Information
See the Squamish Arts Festival website for more details about this fun cultural event in Squamish.
To learn more about the area, click Squamish or the Sea to Sky region.
For a list of other events in the Lower Mainland, see Vancouver’s July Calendar or Festivals & Events Calendar.
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Another website that you might be interested in is WhatToDoInWhistler.ca.
