TAIWANfest Vancouver

TAIWANfest is a festival celebrating Taiwanese food, music and culture in downtown Vancouver on the Labour Day Long Weekend in September.

In 2024 the main events happen from the Saturday to Monday of August 31st to September 2nd. A few events, however, do also happen on August 15th, 29th and 30th.

For the festival’s official website, visit vancouvertaiwanfest.ca.

Some of the highlights of the festival this year include the following (all of which are free on the Pancouver Stage in šxʷƛ̓ənəq Xwtl’e7énk Square which is the North Plaza outside the Vancouver Art Gallery).

¡Sinophone! – Music is Connection with Tennyson King on Saturday, August 31st, from 4:15 until 5:15pm.
¡Sinophone! – Road to… with the Taiwanese Indie band Lilium on August 31st and September 1st from 5:30 until 6:30 pm
Third Culture Collective: Becoming Us on Monday, September 2nd, from 1:30 until 6:00 pm.

Most of the festival’s events are free. There is, however, the ticketed Flamenco de Formosa event which tells the story of Taiwan through Spanish Flamenco Dance on September 1st.

In addition to the above, there are lots of other performances and things to see too, most of which are free. See below for details.

This article contains the following information about TAIWANfest:

Vancouver’s TAIWANfest Taiwanese Festival

TAIWANfest is a cultural festival that features concerts and other live entertainment as well as talks, films and an artist market. It also has visual arts exhibits, family-oriented activities and a street party with food and market stalls.

Another event organized by the same organization behind TAIWANfest is LunarFest which happens during the Lunar New Year season in January or February. LunarFest is also very interesting and features a number of events and artistic displays.

For the festival’s official website, click TAIWANfest Vancouver.

When is TAIWANfest?

TAIWANfest takes place on the Labour Day Weekend in September. In 2024 the festival happens on the Saturday, Sunday and Monday of August 31st to September 2nd. All three days there are activities along Granville Street between noon and 6:00 pm. On the Saturday and Sunday, there are also activities in the North Plaza outside the Vancouver Art Gallery from noon until 10:00 pm. On the holiday Monday, the activities and performances in the plaza run from noon until 6:00 pm.

Where is TAIWANfest?

The festival’s in-person activities take place at various venues in downtown Vancouver. The main locations include šxʷƛ̓ənəq Xwtl’e7énk Square (outside the Vancouver Art Gallery), on Granville Street, the Vancouver Playhouse and the Annex theatre.

The Vancouver Art Gallery’s address is 750 Hornby Street. Officially called šxʷƛ̓ənəq Xwtl’e7énḵ Square, the plaza is the large open square along West Georgia Street between Hornby and Howe streets. in the plaza during TAIWANfest there is live entertainment on the Pancouver Stage. There is also a beer garden, food vendors and an artist market.

The Granville Street activities happen along the 500, 600 and 700 blocks of the street. In this area there are community organization information booths, food trucks, art displays and DJ music. There are also market vendors including a number that are Dutch-themed. (Interestingly, the Netherlands had a colony in Taiwan in the 1600s and continues to have strong economic and diplomatic relations with the island.)

The Vancouver Playhouse’s address is 600 Hamilton Street. It’s in the same building as the Queen Elizabeth Theatre. The Annex is adjacent to the Orpheum Theatre, at 823 Seymour Street, which is between Robson Street and Smithe Street.

On the Monday in 2024 there is also a talk at the Central Branch of the Vancouver Public Library. The library’s address is 350 West Georgia.

For the festival’s official website, click TAIWANfest Vancouver.

Festival Activities

There are a fair number of things to see along Granville Street during the Taiwanese Cultural Festival. Admission is free for the street party which runs each day.

At the festival you’ll likely see people in the street playing Chinese games. There are also educational booths with information about Taiwan, as well as vendors selling everything from Asian food to Oriental clothing, bubble tea and products from other parts of the world. There are also live performances throughout the weekend.

TAIWANfest Schedule

Below are just some of the schedule highlights of the festival in 2024. For a full list of what the event offers this year, check out the TAIWANfest Program.

(Note: Times and other details are subject to change.)

Saturday, August 31st, 2024

12:30 pm – Nahuali Folklore Society (Vancouver Art Gallery Plaza) (Free)
2:00 pm – Hope Talk: How Minnanese Survived Abroad During the Age of Exploration? (Vancouver Public Library, Central Branch)
3:15 pm – Vancouver Okinawa Taiko (Vancouver Art Gallery Plaza)
4:15 pm – ¡Sinophone! – Music is Connection with Tennyson King (Vancouver Art Gallery Plaza) (Free)
5:30 pm – ¡Sinophone! – Road to… featuring the Taiwanese Indie band Lilium (Vancouver Art Gallery Plaza Plaza) (Free)
7:00 pm – SaySiyat azem – Soul of SaySiyat (ANNEX) (Free)
7:00 pm – TECTONIC: live DJ music, street dancing, and cultural dialogue through EDM as curated by Nancy Lee. (Vancouver Art Gallery Plaza) (Free)

In addition to the above, there is the Artists Market in the plaza outside the Vancouver Art Gallery and activities between the 500 and 700 blocks of Granville Street from 12:00 until 6:00 pm.

Sinophone - Road to ... with Lillium Band — Sinophone – Road to … with Lillium Band

Sunday, September 1st, 2024

12:00 pm – Identity: Lost and Found with Director Q&A (ANNEX)
1:00 pm – When the Flowers Bloom – a documentary film. (Vancouver Art Gallery Plaza) (Free)
2:00 pm – Identity: Lost and Found – a documentary film. (ANNEX) (Free)
2:30 pm – CantoPOP to TaiwanPOP with Hidden Gem Dance Studio (Vancouver Art Gallery Plaza) (Free)
4:00 pm – Don’t Cry, Dancing Girls – a documentary film. (ANNEX) (Free)
4:00 pm – Beyond Boundaries: A New Era of Tradition: an event featuring both fashion and music. (Vancouver Art Gallery Plaza) (Free)
5:30 pm – ¡Sinophone! – Road to… featuring the Taiwanese Indie band Lilium (Vancouver Art Gallery Plaza) (Free)
7:00 pm – TECTONIC: live DJ music, street dancing, and cultural dialogue through EDM as curated by Nancy Lee. (Vancouver Art Gallery Plaza) (Free)
7:30 pm – Flamenco de Formosa: The story of Taiwan through Spanish Flamenco Dance (Vancouver Playhouse). (Tickets cost between $23 and $59.)

In addition to the above, there is the Artists Market in the plaza outside the Vancouver Art Gallery and activities between the 500 and 700 blocks of Granville Street from 12:00 until 6:00 pm.

Taiwanese Band at TAIWANfest — Lillium at TAIWANfest in 2024

Monday, September 2nd, 2024

12:00 pm – Harmonia and Aeldearre Quartet present “The Lion and the Sun” (Vancouver Art Gallery Plaza) (Free)
1:30 pm – Becoming Us – CRAYON (Vancouver Art Gallery Plaza) (Free)
3:30 pm – Hope Talk: Barefoot and High Heels (ANNEX)
4:15 pm – Becoming Us – Shinlok (Vancouver Art Gallery Plaza) (Free)
5:15 pm – Becoming Us – Kei Valentines (Vancouver Art Gallery Plaza) (Free)

In addition to the above, there is also Third Culture Collective: Becoming Us which runs from 1:30 until 6:00 pm on the Pancouver Stage outside the Vancouver Art Gallery. Throughout the afternoon the Third Culture Collective presents five music acts that explore the enigma of Hongkongers feeling a sense of rootlessness, where, although having historic ties with both China and Great Britain, they don’t feel they belong to either.

Also again today, there is the Artists Market in the plaza outside the Vancouver Art Gallery and activities between the 500 and 700 blocks of Granville Street from 12:00 until 6:00 pm.

TAIWANfest Artist Market

The festival has its first-ever artist market in 2024. It happens all three days, from August 31st until September 2nd, between noon and 6:00 pm. The market features 20 or so artists and artisan vendor stalls in šxʷƛ̓ənəq Xwtl’e7énk Square outside the Vancouver Art Gallery. To learn about the artists participating at the event, see the TAIWANfest website.

TAIWANfest Films

TAIWANfest presents the following four documentary films in 2024, all of which are free to see:

A Performance in the Church (on August 30th) – in the Montalbano Family Theatre on Level 8 of the Vancouver Central Library from 3:30 until 5:15 pm.
Identity: Lost and Found (on September 1st) – at the ANNEX from noon until 2:00 pm.
When the Flowers Bloom (on September 1st) – on the Pancouver Stage at šxʷƛ̓ənəq Xwtl’e7énk Square (in the north plaza outside the Vancouver Art Gallery) from 1:00 until 2:15 pm.
Don’t Cry, Dancing Girls (on September 1st) – at the ANNEX from 4:00 until 5:30 pm.

TAIWANfest Video

For a good idea of what to expect at the next TAIWANfest event, check out the video below. It shows scenes from the 2024 festivities outside the Vancouver Art Gallery. The band featured in the video is Lilium.

Festival Tips & Advice

Below are some tips and suggestions to help you make the most of your Vancouver TAIWANfest experience.

TIP #1: Bring along a good appetite as there are a good number of tasty Asian treats for sale (as well as a few foods from other parts of the world too).

TIP #2: The live performances are a highlight of the festival. Be sure to stay for some of the performances.

TIP #3: Take public transit if you can. Granville Street is so convenient to get to by public transit from most parts of the Lower Mainland, plus traffic in the area will be busy.

For the festival’s official website, click TAIWANfest Vancouver.