Robbie Burns Day celebrates the national poet of Scotland on January 25th. It’s commemorated in Vancouver with Scottish music, food and festivities.

There were a few events that happened in the Lower Mainland in 2024 to celebrate Robbie Burns Day. See below for details. Note: Sometimes events take place a week or more before January 25th, and sometimes they take places a few days or weeks after.

Robbie Burns Day

Robbie Burns Day (or Rabbie Burns Day) is named after a Scottish poet who was born on January 25th in 1759. Burns Suppers are normally held on or near the date of his birthday to celebrate his life and poetry. It’s not a national holiday in Scotland (in the sense that people don’t get a paid day off work). It’s an important occasion in Scotland, however. People also celebrate the day in other places around the world.

2024 Robbie Burns Day Celebrations in the Lower Mainland

The following events happened in 2024 in Vancouver and Coquitlam.

Robbie Burns Supper

The Vancouver Branch of the Royal Scottish Country Dance Society hosted a Burns Supper on Saturday, January 27th. It took place at the Scottish Cultural Centre at 8886 Hudson Street in Vancouver.

Tickets cost $110 (or $100 for members of the BC Highland Dance Association, BC Pipers Association, Gaelic Society of Vancouver, Sons of Scotland, Royal Scottish Country Dance Society, and St Andrew’s & Caledonian Society of Vancouver).

The event typically features traditional Scottish food, dancing and live music with Kilbirnie Station.

For details about this event, visit the Royal Scottish Country Dance Society‘s website.

Robbie Burns with Blackthorn

Place des Arts in Coquitlam celebrated Robbie Burns Day from 7:30 pm until 9:30 pm on Saturday, January 13th, in 2024. Performing at the event were the Celtic band Blackthorn and a special guest piper. Tickets cost $21 for adults and $16 for students and seniors.

The venue’s address is 1120 Brunette Avenue.

To register for the event next time it happens, visit the Place des Arts website.

Robbie Burns Night at the Port Coquitlam Legion

A Burns Night Fundraiser takes place at the Port Coquitlam Legion on January 25th. It includes bagpiping, Highland dancing, a raffle and haggis. Tickets cost $60 and can be purchased in advance from the bar staff at the Legion.

Click Burns Night at the PoCo Legion in 2024 for details.

Robbie Burns Dinner in Burnaby

The District 5050 Pipe Band Society hosts an annual Robbie Burns Dinner. In 2024 it happened at the Bonsor Banquet Hall in Burnaby on February 10th (so a couple of weeks after the official day).

This event includes traditional festive activities including Highland dancing and bagpiping. Performances this year were with the Greighlan Crossing Pipe Band and Michele Christie Highland School of Dance. At the event there is also a silent auction, 50/50 draw, whiskey tasting bar, and dancing to DJ music.

The Robbie Burns Dinner is a fundraiser for the Greighlan Crossing Pipe Band which plans to travel to Scotland this summer to play at the World Pipe Band Championships. Tickets to the dinner cost $90 for adults and $30 for children (ages 12 and under).

Tickets for the event can be requested via Google Forms or by e-mailing GCPB.events@gmail.com.

Past Robbie Burns Day Celebrations in the Lower Mainland

The following event has taken place in the past and may or may not return in 2025. Exact details, however, are to be confirmed.

SFU Robbie Burns Dinner

The SFU Pipe Band Organization hosted its annual dinner celebration in 2020 on January 25th at the Executive Plaza Hotel in Coquitlam. The event featured Haggis and other traditional Scottish foods, readings of poetry written by Robbie Burns, dancing, and performances by the SFU Pipe Band and Robert Malcolm Memorial Pipe Band. Tickets cost $80 and the event ran from 6:00 pm to 11:30 pm.

The event didn’t happen in 2023 nor 2024, but hopefully will again in the future.

For details about this event, click SFU Robbie Burns Dinner.

Other Information

Other Celtic-themed events that take place in the Lower Mainland include the following:

CelticFest Vancouver – a festival that takes place around St. Patrick’s Day.
BC Highland Games & Scottish Festival – a cultural and sporting event in Coquitlam in June.

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