Cloverdale Rodeo and Country Fair

Celebrated in Metro Vancouver with a parade, car show and other events, Victoria Day is a stat holiday that takes place on a Monday in May.

Major events on the May long weekend most years include the following:

Victoria Day Long Weekend

Victoria Day is always on the Monday before May 25th each year. So in 2025, the long weekend takes place from May 16th to 19th.

The holiday commemorates the birthday of Queen Victoria, the British monarch who was born on May 24th, 1819.

Events that happen on the May Long Weekend include the Cloverdale Rodeo, Royal Canadian International Circus, All British Field Meet Car Show at VanDusen Garden, Brewhalla Fort Langley and the Fort Langley May Day Parade. The Shipyards Night Market also happens every Friday this time of year. There is a Victoria Day Boat Party too.

British Car Show at VanDusen Garden

A major event that takes place most years on the Victoria Day long weekend is the Vancouver All British Field Meet. It features hundreds of classic British cars at VanDusen Garden. The car show happens on the Saturday, which in 2025 is on May 17th.

At the car show expect to see Rovers, Austins, Jaguars, MGs, Triumphs, Minis and various other beautiful British vehicles, plus hundreds of car fanatics. It’s an amazing event!

Click VanDusen Car Show for more information about the event in Vancouver.

British Cars at VanDusen Gardens — Vancouver All British Field Meet

Royal Canadian Circus

One of the Lower Mainland’s most popular attractions on the Victoria Day long weekend is the Royal Canadian International Circus. The Alberta-based circus brings acts from around the world to the Vancouver area each year in May or June.

The Royal Canadian International Circus is a great circus company and highly recommended. It returns to the Lower Mainland in 2025. The circus is in Richmond, at Lansdowne Centre, from May 15th until the 19th. It is also in Surrey earlier in the month.

(TIP: If you want to see the circus when it comes to town in 2025, and you want to save money, use the promo code VANSBESTPLACES and get 2-for-1 pricing on general admission.)

The Cloverdale Rodeo

The Cloverdale Rodeo and Country Fair takes place in Surrey at the Cloverdale Fairgrounds on the Victoria Day long weekend. In 2025 the event runs from May 16th until the 19th.

The Cloverdale Rodeo and Country Fair runs from the Friday to the Monday of the long weekend. It includes a rodeo with various cowboy competitions, amusement rides, farm animal displays and other carnival fair activities.

There are five rodeo shows over the weekend most years. One is usually on the Friday evening, two are on the Saturday and one is on the Sunday. The finals are typically on the holiday Monday.

Competitions at the rodeo include bareback riding, saddle bronc riding, bull riding, barrel racing and mutton busting. Also featuring at the Country Fair are a West Coast Lumberjack Show each day, skateboarding competitions with thousands of dollars’ worth of prize money, and country dancing each evening. Amusement rides are available throughout the weekend too.

To learn more about this event, see our article about the Cloverdale Rodeo and Country Fair.

Cloverdale Rodeo Bucking Bronco — The Cloverdale Rodeo

Cloverdale Rodeo Parade

The 2025 Cloverdale Rodeo Parade takes place on Saturday, May 17th. The parade is a really good one, comprising over 80 entries including floats and marching bands. The parade is free to watch and it runs between 56th Avenue and 60th Avenue.

See our article about the Cloverdale Rodeo for more information.

Tony n’ Tina’s Wedding Dinner Theatre Show

Tony n’ Tina’s Wedding is an immersive show in Vancouver. It takes place in the auditorium of the Royal Canadian Legion Branch 179 building. In May the event runs on the Friday and Saturday of the Victoria Day weekend.

The event is a dinner theatre show produced by Hammer Up Productions. It’s a comedy about an Italian-American wedding and reception. Things appear to be normal but quickly turn into a funny mess. The show is immersive and everyone is encouraged to dress up as they would to a real wedding. There’s music and dancing, plus dinner is included with admission.

For more information see our article about Tony n’ Tina’s Wedding Show.

Vancouver Boat Parties

Vancouver Boat Parties is a company based in downtown Vancouver that hosts nightclub-style parties that take place on boats cruising around False Creek and English Bay.

In 2025 there’s a Victoria Day Weekend boat party that happens on Saturday, May 18th. The party takes place on the Burrard Queen, a multi-level yacht that departs from 760 Pacific Boulevard at a little after 8:00 pm. The boat cruises around for three hours before returning to the dock before midnight.

At the event you can expect live DJs, plenty of dancing, drinks and a picturesque view of the downtown city lights from out on the water. Tickets start at around $40 for early bird pricing and go up to around $60 as spots fill up.

To learn more about this event and others like it, check out our Vancouver Boat Parties article.

Paw Patrol Show

PAW Patrol Live! “Heroes Unite” showed at the Queen Elizabeth Theatre on the Saturday and Sunday of May 18th and 19th in 2024. Five shows played during this show’s two-day run. Details about the show in 2025 are to be confirmed.

This production is an interactive live stage show, which means the audience gets to play along. Playgoers get to be honorary members of the pack and heroes for the day as they help the puppies.

PAW Patrol Live! “Heroes Unite” tells the story of Ryder and the puppies of PAW Patrol. The team is facing a challenge. Mayor Humdinger clones Robo Dog. What follows is mayhem around the world. PAW Patrol has to figure out a way to capture the clones and rescue Robo Dog. Here’s where audience participation comes in. Be a super hero and lend a paw to catch and rescue.

To learn more about last year’s shows, click PAW Patrol Live! “Heroes Unite” 2024.

Fort Langley Hawaiian Luau and May Days Parade & Festival

Fort Langley celebrates Victoria Day on the holiday Monday with a parade and community fair in the town and special events at the fort.

Celebrating its 103rd anniversary this year, the Fort Langley May Day Parade likely starts at 11:00 am on Monday.

The parade usually goes along Mavis, then Glover Road, 88th Avenue, Trattle Street and St. Andrews before finishing at the Fort Langley Community Park. Fair events at the park include the piping in of the town’s May Queens, as well as May Pole dancing and live entertainment. It’s a small community event, but fun (especially for people from the area).

Dovetailing with the fair in the town, over at the Fort Langley National Historic Site, the Victoria Day activities typically include historic weapons, coopering and blacksmithing demonstrations.

In 2024 there was a special Hawaiian Luau at the historic site on Saturday, May 18th as well. It was a celebration of the Hawaiian Islands and their connection with the fort, presented in collaboration with The Spirit of the Pacific Cultural Society. The event featured Hawaiian-themed workshops, presentations, performances and other things to do a couple days before the community’s May Day festivities. On the holiday Monday, the Fort also had special activities. Details about the Hawaiian Luau in 2025 are to be confirmed.

For more information about the events at the fort over the weekend, see our article about the Fort Langley National Historic Site. Click Fort Langley May Day for more information about the Victoria Day celebrations in town.

Fort Langley Parade and Community Hall — Fort Langley May Day Parade

Fort Langley Beer Festival

In addition to the May Days Festival and Hawaiian Luau at the Fort in Fort Langley, on the long weekend there is also Brewhalla Fort Langley. In 2025 the craft beer and music festival takes place at Fort Langley Park on Saturday, February 17th.

If you are 19 years of age or older and like beer, wine, cider and/or craft beverages like gin, whisky or vodka, Brewhalla Fort Langley is a fabulous event to attend! For full details, and to book your tickets, visit brewhalla.ca.

Playland at the PNE

Playland at the PNE opens for the season on Saturday, May 17th in 2025. It’s Vancouver’s main amusement park that runs on select dates throughout the summer.

The venue is a fun place for all ages, as there are all sorts of rides. Some are for little children, whereas the more serious experiences are for folks over 48 inches tall. The attraction was open on both the Saturday and Sunday of the long weekend this year.

TIP: Last year early-bird prices for season passes were available up until May 20th (which was Victoria Day). After that, prices went up by $20! This may or may not be the case again in 2025.

To learn more about the amusement park, see our article about Playland at the PNE.

Engine 374 Anniversary Event

Engine 374 is a restored locomotive that’s usually available to check out indoors at the Roundhouse Community Centre in Yaletown. It’s an important part of Vancouver’s history, as it was the first train to arrive in the city on May 23rd, 1887.

To commemorate the date, the train is moved outside for one day each year in May. The anniversary celebrations include musical performances, speeches and complimentary drinks and snacks. In 2025 the event takes place on Sunday, May 18th.

For more details about the small event, see our Engine 374 Anniversary article.

Fraser River Discovery Centre

The Fraser River Discovery Centre in New Westminster hosts special activities in celebration of Asian Heritage Month. They ran from the Saturday until the Monday of the long weekend in 2024. Visitors could learn all about how Asian Canadians have made the Fraser River Basin a better place. All activities were included with general admission. (Details about the activities in 2025 are to be confirmed.)

To learn more about the facility, see our article about the Fraser River Discovery Centre.

Other Weekend Activities

On the Victoria Day weekend there are also the following events most years:

Pro-D Day WildPlay Camp – in 2024 the ropes courses and ziplining attraction in Maple Ridge had a day camp for kids on Friday, May 17th.
Victoria Day at Burnaby Village Museum – Queen Victoria’s birthday is celebrated with extra live entertainment at the museum most years.
Shipyards Night Market – the night market has free admission, a beer garden, live entertainment, food trucks and lots of artisan vendors. It takes place at the waterfront in North Vancouver on Fridays between 3:00 pm and 10:00 pm.
Vancouver Comic Arts Festival – a comic and art-related event at the Roundhouse Community Centre in Yaletown. It normally happens on the Saturday and Sunday of the long weekend.