White Rock Sea Festival

The White Rock Sea Festival & Semiahmoo Days are great events that include live music, a parade and fireworks on the BC Day Long Weekend in August.

The events also include an outdoor movie, a kids’ zone, car show, boat tours and other family-friendly fun. The Sea Festival is organized by the City of White Rock. Semiahmoo Days is hosted by the Semiahmoo First Nation. Everything takes place at various locations along the waterfront in White Rock.

To learn about the event, continue reading or see the City of White Rock‘s website.

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White Rock Sea Festival

The White Rock Sea Festival is a fabulous event in a beautiful location. The waterfront in White Rock boasts over two kilometres of stunning sandy beach, numerous coffee shops and restaurants, and a lovely promenade walkway.

The festival offers everything from outdoor concerts and a vendor market to a wide range of family and child-friendly activities. This year it will likely take place from August 1st to August 3rd. Exact details, however, are to be confirmed.

Activities usually include fireworks, an outdoor movie night, salmon barbecue, a car show and live entertainment.

When is the Festival?

The White Rock Sea Festival takes place over the BC Day Long Weekend each year. In 2024 the festival happened on August 2nd to 4th. This year it will likely run from Friday, August 1st, to Sunday, August 3rd. Exact details, however, are to be confirmed.

On the Friday, an outdoor movie usually shows at dusk (with the park gates opening at 7:00 pm). Later, on the weekend, the live entertainment typically runs from 11:30 am until around 8:00 pm or even later on the Saturday and from noon until around 10:00 pm on the Sunday.

On the Saturday the torchlight parade starts at around 8:30 pm. On the Sunday the fireworks blast of at 10:15 pm or so. Exact details for 2025 are to be confirmed.

Where is the Sea Festival

White Rock is located about 50 kms (or one hour in good traffic) southeast of downtown Vancouver close to the Peace Arch border crossing with the United States.

The White Rock Sea Festival is held all along the waterfront, from the far end of East Beach near the Ocean Promenade Hotel at 15611 Marine Drive to the far end of West Beach a couple of kilometres away.

Much of the event takes place in the central part of the waterfront, not far from the pier and White Rock Museum at 14970 Marine Drive, but activities happen all over.

Sea Festival Night Parade — Torchlight Parade

Sea Festival Activities

There are lots of activities to enjoy at this year’s festival. The event begins with an outdoor movie on Friday. The rest of the weekend features kids activities, local vendors, an Environmental Zone, a torchlight parade on Saturday night and then a big fireworks finale event on the Sunday night.

Below was the schedule of the main events and activities at the White Rock Sea Festival last year.

Note: Times and details were subject to change.

Friday, August 2nd, 2024

Movie Night

9:15 pm – Kung Fu Panda 4 shows outdoors at Semiahmoo Park. Gates opened at 7:00 pm

Saturday, August 3rd, 2024

General Saturday Activities

11:00 am to 8:00 pm – Vendor Marketplace and Other Activities at Memorial Park
11:30 am to 5:30 pm – Environmental Zone at East Beach
12:00 pm to 4:00 pm – Kid’s Zone at Semiahmoo Park
8:30 pm – Torchlight Parade down Marine Drive

Spirit Stage in Semiahmoo Park

11:30 am – Opening Ceremony
12:00 pm – Semiahmoo First Nation: Kwel Eng Sen Kids Dance
12:30 pm – Enchanted Characters
1:00 pm – The Aristo-Cats
2:00 pm – Buddy & The Scarecrow
3:00 pm – Tess Anderson
4:00 pm – Bad Moon Risin’: Creedence Clearwater Revival (CCR) Tribute Band
5:00 pm – Perfectly Petty & Gold Dust Gypsy Duet
6:00 pm – Famous Players Band

P’Quals Memorial Park Stage

12:00 pm – Alexander Browne and his Boulevardiers
1:00 pm – Mood Indigo
2:00 pm – Bonnie Northgraves Trio
3:00 pm – The Tomcats
4:00 pm – The Odd Trio
5:00 pm – The Hits
6:00 pm – Vancity Vice
7:00 pm – Totally Twain: Shania Twain Tribute

Sunday, August 4th, 2024

General Sunday Activities

11:00 am to 8:00 pm – Vendor Marketplace and Other Activities at Memorial Park
11:30 am to 5:30 pm – Environmental Zone at East Beach
12:00 pm to 4:00 pm – Kid’s Zone at Semiahmoo Park
10:15 pm – Fireworks Finale (along the waterfront)

Spirit Stage in Semiahmoo Park

12:00 pm – Enchanted Characters
1:00 pm – Famous Players Duet
2:00 pm – Bargain Shop Club
3:00 pm – Nearly Neil (Bobby Bruce)
4:00 pm – Gift Shop: Tragically Hip Tribute Band
5:00 pm – Lawless
6:00 pm – BC/DC: AC/DC Tribute Band

P’Quals Memorial Park Stage

12:00 pm – JIMI
1:00 pm – Cory Curtis
2:00 pm – Devon Webber
3:00 pm – Anushka & Fiona
4:00 pm – Harris & DeBray
5:00 pm – ARIETTA Band
6:00 pm – Kunda
7:10 pm – Orchard Sky
8:30 pm – Fleetwood Magic: Fleetwood Mac Tribute Band

Tips & Advice

Below are some tips and advice on how to make the most of your experience at the White Rock Sea Festival.

TIP #1: Go at the very start of the day if you want to find parking anywhere near the beach. Take public transit if you can.

TIP #2: Take your swimsuit, hat, sunscreen, picnic, lawn chairs, sandcastle-building equipment, beach umbrella, water bottle and anything else you think you’ll need. Just remember, though, that parking will be a challenge and you may have to walk a fair ways.

TIP #3: The White Rock Farmers Market takes place on Sundays at Miramar Plaza up the hill in downtown White Rock from 10:00 am to 2:00 pm. It’s a great market and worth checking out while in the area. There’s also the White Rock Night Market on the last Fridays of May, June, July, August and September.

TIP #4: If you like cycling, don’t mind hills and have a bike rack, consider taking your bicycle(s) with you. Parking will likely be a long way away, but if at least the driver has a bike it’ll make it easier to get back and forth to your vehicle.

Other Information

For more information about the White Rock Sea Festival, see the City of White Rock’s website.

For further details about the resort town, click White Rock. Looking for other places to visit on the August long weekend? Then click BC Day Long Weekend. For ideas on other things to do in August, click the August Calendar.

To learn about other events with fireworks, see our article about Metro Vancouver Fireworks. For information about events with drone shows, check out our Lower Mainland Drone Shows article.

And for a list of other major Lower Mainland events throughout the year, click Festivals & Events.