Featuring a weekend of French-Canadian music, food and festivities in Coquitlam, Festival du Bois is Metro Vancouver’s premier Francophone festival.
The festival features French-Canadian, folk and world music performances as well as family-friendly entertainment. There are workshops, French-Canadian foods and other fun activities too.
In 2026 the festivities are on the Friday, Saturday and Sunday of March 6th to 8th. Last year’s headliner was Yves Lambert and his seven-piece Grand Orchestra. Many other great musicians were there too. 2026 details are to be announced.
Visit festivaldubois.ca for tickets and the festival’s official website.
This article includes the following information about Festival du Bois:
What to Expect | Festival Video | When and Where? | Admission | Activities | Contra Dance | Festival Schedule | Traditional Menu Items | Mackin House Museum | Other Information
Coquitlam’s Festival du Bois French Festival
Festival du Bois is British Columbia’s largest Francophone festival. It happens in Mackin Park, located at 1046 Brunette Avenue in Coquitlam. The venue is a 23-kilometre drive from downtown Vancouver. The park is also just across the street from Mackin House (which is a historic site and museum) and a block from Place des Arts (which is an arts centre).
Visit the official festivaldubois.ca website to learn about this event, or continue reading.
What to Expect
At Festival du Bois you’ll find activities for children, French-Canadian foods for sale, market vendors, workshops, and a variety of great musical performances throughout the weekend.
Popular foods available for purchase typically include poutine, crepes and traditional snow-hardened maple syrup candy. There are other tasty things too.
If you like French-Canadian folk music, or want a chance to practice your French, then you won’t want to miss this event! The festival is a lot of fun and very interesting, especially if you’re of French-Canadian heritage or interested in learning more about their culture. It’s a terrific event for people of all backgrounds.
Visit festivaldubois.ca for the festival’s official website.
Festival du Bois Video
Check out the following short video for an idea of what to expect at the festival. The video shows scenes of the festival from a few years ago. The band playing is the Sybaritic String Band which usually plays at the Contra Night Dance each year. The musician performing at the end is Shauit.
As you’ll see from this clip, the festival is a lot of fun. There are food trucks, family-friendly activities and entertainment spread out all around Mackin Park. There is so much to see and do.
When and Where is Festival du Bois?
Festival du Bois debuted in 1989 and happens in late winter or early spring each year. It usually happens in March, but it has happened slightly earlier or later on occasion.
In 2026 the festivities take place on the weekend of March 6th to 8th.
The festival is held in Mackin Park, at 1046 Brunette Avenue, just a few blocks from the Coquitlam IKEA store. The park is a 10-minute walk from IKEA and five minutes from Canadian Tire. You are actually encouraged to park at IKEA during the festival and then either take a free shuttle or walk to the venue.
Last year, there was a shuttle service that ran every 15 minutes between the IKEA parking lot and the festival at Mackin Park. The shuttle operated between 10:30 am and 9:00 pm on the Saturday and between 8:30 am and 6:00 pm on the Sunday. 2026 details are to be confirmed.
Visit festivaldubois.ca for the festival’s official website.
Festival du Bois Admission
Below are the admission prices for 2026 if you pay online as of mid-December, 2025. Tickets at the gate usually cost a bit more. The prices quoted below include all taxes and online fees.
- Friday (March 6th): Free but limited amount, so advanced registration is recommended
- Saturday & Sunday (March 7th or 8th):
- Adults (18+): $34 per day
- Students & Seniors: $23 per day
- Children (ages 12 and under): Free
There is also a pancake breakfast on the Sunday. Tickets last year cost $7 for children and $12 for adults. Pricing will likely be comparable in 2026.
Festival du Bois Activities
In 2026, the same as in other previous years, Festival du Bois takes place at Coquitlam’s Mackin Park. Some activities occur outdoors and others happen indoors in giant tents.
At the festival there are food vendors and community organization information stalls, as well as games and other activities for children. There is also typically an Opening Night Contra Dance party on the Friday night, though it’s unclear whether or not this event is happening in 2026. The dance took place indoors last year.
There is other live entertainment all weekend. Most of it is indoors, but some of it is outside. The headlining musical performer at last year’s festival was Yves Lambert who performed with his Grand Orchestre. The headliner act for 2026 has not yet been announced as of mid-December.
Visit festivaldubois.ca for the festival’s official website.
Opening Night Contra Dance
Last year’s Opening Night Contra Dance took place from 7:00 pm until 9:30 pm on the Friday at the festival’s Mackin Park venue at 1046 Brunette Avenue. Admission was free, but advanced registration was required.
The Contra Dance is a family-friendly event that involves a style of folk dancing in lines of couples. The Sybaritic String Band which specializes in contra dancing, provided the entertainment last year.
The Contra Dance is open to people of all ages. It’s a family-friendly event that was recommended for adults and “children who like dancing with adults” (which meant there aren’t separate little kids’ activities). It’s a lot of fun.
A few hundred people attend the Contra Dance event most years. Instructions are provided in English, mixed with a bit of French, and then everyone does a particular dance. New instructions were then provided for a new dance, participants go through the steps, and then everyone dances once again.
The dances are simple, fun and lively. People mostly dance in pairs and are encouraged to switch partners from time to time.
Check out the following video to see what the Contra Dance is all about. Hopefully the event takes place again in 2026!
Visit festivaldubois.ca for the festival’s official website.
Festival Schedule
Artists who performed at the festival last year were La Déferlance, LeFLOFRANCO, Kutapira, Yves Lambert et Le Grand Orchestre, La Patente and Jocelyn Pettit. Other artists included Alouest, The Sybaritic String Band, Isabelle Kirouac, Micah, Profaqua, Will’s Jams and Danièle et Michelle. The performance lineup in 2026 is to be confirmed.
For an idea of what to expect at the event, below is last year’s Festival du Bois schedule for the Saturday and Sunday. (Note: Exact details were subject to change.)
Saturday, March 8th, 2025
On the Main Stage/Grand Chapiteau
- 12:00 pm – Festival Opening
- 1:15 pm – La Patente
- 2:15 pm – Alouest
- 3:20 pm – Jocelyn Pettit Band
- 4:20 pm – La Déferlance
- 5:20 pm – LeFLOFRANCO
- 6:30 pm – Yves Lambert et Le Grand Orchestre
Visit festivaldubois.ca for the festival’s official website.
In the Petit Chapiteau/Children’s Tent
- 12:00 pm – Profaqua
- 1:00 pm – Will’s Jams
- 2:00 pm – Micah
- 3:00 pm – Madam Diva
Workshops at Mackin House
- 12:30 pm – Micah
- 1:30 pm – Jocelyn Pettit
- 2:30 pm – LeFLOFRANCO
- 3:30 pm – Collage Trad
Visit festivaldubois.ca for the festival’s official website.
Sunday, March 9th, 2025
On the Main Stage/Grand Chapiteau
- 9:00 am – Mass
- 10:00 am – Pancake breakfast
- 10:30 am – Jocelyn Pettit Band
- 11:45 am – La Patente
- 1:00 pm – Kutapira
- 2:00 pm – La Déferlance
- 3:15 pm – LeFLOFRANCO
In the Petit Chapiteau/Children’s Tent
- 12:00 pm – Profaqua
- 1:00 pm – Will’s Jams
- 2:00 pm – Micah
- 3:00 pm – Madam Diva
Workshops at Mackin House
- 12:30 pm – LeFLOFRANCO
- 1:30 pm – Alouest
- 2:30 pm – Kutapira
There is typically lots of food available at the festival. There are food trucks and various vendors, plus a canteen-style venue in the Grand Chapiteau.
In recent years the menu at the food station in the Grand Chapiteau has included things like pea soup, pork & beans, a slice of tourtière (meat pie) and sugar pie. Other common menu items included bread with pork pâté and a “Lumberjack Plate” with an assortment of items. Beer is also available at the festival’s bar.
Visit festivaldubois.ca for the festival’s official website.
Mackin House Museum
If you’re at Festival du Bois anyway, walk across the street and visit the Mackin House Museum while you’re there.
Built in the early 1900s, the heritage building was the home of the General Manager of Fraser Mills which at one time was the largest sawmill in the British Empire. Admission to the museum is by donation. Expect to stay for just a few minutes, unless there during a performance.
The Mackin House Museum is open Tuesdays to Thursdays as well as Saturdays. Hours vary depending on the day. As of the last time we checked, on Tuesdays and Wednesdays the attraction is open from 11:00 am until 5:00 pm. On Thursdays it’s open from 2:00 pm to 8:00 pm and on Saturdays from 10:00 am until 4:00 pm.
Other Information
Click the Festival du Bois website for more information about the festival in Coquitlam, including the schedule of performances.
Check out our Festivals and Events Calendar for other Lower Mainland festivals throughout the year.
Check out Place des Arts if you like art, dancing, theatre or music. Place des Arts is an arts centre in Coquitlam located about a block from Mackin Park. It offers workshops and classes on a wide variety of subjects.
See our March and April calendars of events for other things to do in the spring.
