The Harrison Festival of the Arts is a 10-day festival at Harrison Hot Springs in the Fraser Valley that features an artisan market, workshops and concerts.
In 2023 the 44th annual festival takes place from July 7th to 16th. Other music-related festivals happening around the same time elsewhere in the Lower Mainland include Carnaval del Sol in Vancouver and Uptown Live in New Westminster. The Fort Langley Jazz & Arts Festival takes place soon after too, on July 20th to 23rd. All of these festivals are so much fun and highly recommended!
Harrison Festival of the Arts
For over 40 years Harrison Hot Springs has been celebrating this fabulous family-friendly event each summer with both national and international artists.
The festival includes live music of all kinds, visual arts displays, an artisan market, art workshops and an evening of live theatre. There is also a special day for children.
Many of the activities at the Harrison Festival of the Arts are free or by donation, while others are ticketed. Concerts take place outdoors by the waterfront and each evening there is a live performance of some kind at the Harrison Memorial Hall located at 290 Esplanade Avenue.
Festival Details
The 2021 Harrison Festival of the Arts was named Farm Edition. The event was hosted at Holberg Farm in Agassiz instead of Harrison waterfront and mostly featured artists from Vancouver and BC.
In 2022 the festival ran from July 8th to 17th back at its usual location at Harrison Hot Springs. Activities that year were similar to pre-pandemic years. There was live music on the beach, an outdoor artisan market, evening shows in a hall, and more.
In 2023 the festival runs from Friday, July 7th, until Sunday, July 16th.
Festival Ticket Information
The waterfront artisan market at the Harrison Festival of the Arts is free and concerts on the outdoor stage are free. However, organizers of the beach concerts ask you to buy a Festival Button for a “donation” of at least $2 if you can. Other events and activities cost more.
In 2022 individual tickets were about $28.50 for adults and $25.50 for youth and seniors for most of the indoor concerts. The one evening of live theatre and the Literary Café both cost between about $15 to $18.
TIP: If you plan to attend all or at least most of the shows at the Memorial Hall, with one taking place each evening, then buy a Hall Pass which gives you access to all performances. Hall Passes in 2023 cost $185 for adults and $165 for students and seniors.
Arts Festival Venues
The Harrison Festival of the Arts takes place in Harrison Hot Springs which is a beautiful lakeside resort town a couple of hours east of Vancouver in the Fraser Valley. Harrison Hot Springs is a small place with natural hot springs, restaurants, hotels and magnificent views of the mountains and stunning Harrison Lake.
The outdoor concerts take place in the park between the main boulevard and the lake at the festival, as does the artisan market a little further down the way. Workshops are at the Memorial Hall at 290 Esplanade Avenue during the day, and ticketed shows are at the same location each evening.
The festival’s art exhibition takes place at the Ranger Station Art Gallery at 98 Rockwell Drive.
Harrison Festival Activities
Events and activities at the Harrison Festival of the Arts include outdoor concerts, an artisan market, workshops, visual art exhibits, evening shows and a Children’s Day.
Music on the Beach
In 2022, between one and four concerts took place outdoors by the waterfront each day during the festival. Artists and times may have changed, but the plan was for an evening concert each weekday evening at 7:00 pm and three or four concerts in the afternoons on the Friday and both Saturdays and Sundays.
A Festival Button is recommended as admission to the Music on the Beach venue and the cost is a minimum $2 donation.
Different bands perform all different kinds of music genres. The 2023 festival lineup is pending. In 2022 the schedule was the following:
Saturday, July 9th, 2022
- 12:00 pm – Festival Opening ceremony
- 1:00 pm – Uzume Taiko
- 2:20 pm – Kym Gouchie
- 3:40 pm – Jocelyn Pettit & Ellen Gira
- 5:00 pm – Zimbamoto
Sunday, July 10th, 2022
- 1:00 pm – Rocket Revellers
- 2:20 pm – Orchid Ensemble
- 3:40 pm – Forró do Cana
- 5:00 pm – Afro-Cuban Dimension
Monday, July 11th, 2022
- 7:00 pm – Kongero
Tuesday, July 12th, 2022
- 7:00 pm – Saltwater Hank
Wednesday, July 13th, 2022
- 7:00 pm – Sinnoi
Thursday, July 14th, 2022
- 7:00 pm – Tamar Ilana & Ventanas
Friday, July 15th, 2022
- 2:00 pm – Christine Tassan et Les Imposteurs
- 3:00 pm – Tamar Ilana & Ventanas
- 7:00 pm – Daiquiri Queens
Saturday, July 16th, 2022
- 1:00 pm – Daiquiri Queens
- 2:20 pm – North Atlantic Drift
- 3:40 pm – The Blue and Gold
- 5:00 pm – Kizaba
Sunday, July 17th, 2022
- 1:00 pm – North Atlantic Drift
- 2:20 pm – Cookin’ With Brass
- 3:40 pm – Kizaba
- 5:00 pm – Puuluup
Waterfront Artisan Market
There is an artisan market along the waterfront where local and other BC artists and artisans have all sorts of artwork and products for sale on both weekends of the festival. Note: The market only takes place on the weekends – not weekdays.
On both Saturdays of the festival in 2022 the market was open from 11:00 am until 6:00 pm and on Sundays from 11:00 am until 5:00 pm. The market also ran from noon until 7:00 pm on Friday, July 15th.
For more information about the market and the list of vendors in 2022, see the Artisan Market page.
Harrison Festival Workshops
There are usually a number of interesting workshops to choose from at the Harrison Festival of the Arts. In previous years, workshops included Aboriginal drum making, dance lessons and yoga on the beach. Costs varied by workshop but ranged from a minimum $2 donation up to around $130 to make a large drum.
In 2022 there were workshops scheduled for each day of the festival. See below for details.
Friday, July 8th, 2022
- 8:30 am – Yoga on the Beach
Saturday, July 9th, 2022
- 8:30 am – Yoga on the Beach
- 1:00 pm – Sound Medicine
Sunday, July 10th, 2022
- 8:30 am – Yoga on the Beach
- 11:00 am – Lecture/Demo: Chinese Instruments
- 1:00 pm – Afro-Cuban Percussion
Monday, July 11th, 2022
- 8:30 am – Yoga on the Beach
Tuesday, July 12th, 2022
- 8:30 am – Yoga on the Beach
- 11:00 am – Swedish Folk’appella
Wednesday, July 13th, 2022
- 8:30 am – Yoga on the Beach
Thursday, July 14th, 2022
- 8:30 am – Yoga on the Beach
Friday, July 15th, 2022
- 8:30 am – Yoga on the Beach
Saturday, July 16th, 2022
- 8:30 am – Yoga on the Beach
- 11:00 am – Cajun Dance
- 1:00 pm – Indigenous Drum Making
Sunday, July 17th, 2022
- 8:30 am – Yoga on the Beach
- 11:00 am – Traditional Irish Session
Visual Art Exhibits
The visual art exhibits take place at the Ranger Station Art Gallery at 98 Rockwell Drive which is located at the far eastern end of the village a short walk from the water. Admission is by donation and the gallery’s hours during the festival are from 9:00 am to 5:00 pm each day.
In 2022 the exhibit ran from July 8th to 24th. During non-festival days, the gallery is open on weekdays from 10:00 am to 4:00 pm and on weekends from 12:00 pm to 4:00 pm.
Evening Shows in the Hall
In 2022 there was a different ticketed performance at Harrison Memorial Hall each evening. Shows took place at 8:30 pm each day except Sundays when they were at 7:30 pm.
The schedule of evening shows in 2022 was as follows:
Friday, July 8th, 2022
- 7:30 pm – A Concert for Phyllis
Saturday, July 9th, 2022
- 8:30 pm – Five Alarm Funk
Sunday, July 10th, 2022
- 7:30 pm – DJ Shub Presents War Club Live
Monday, July 11th, 2022
- 8:30 pm – Literary Café
Tuesday, July 12th, 2022
- 8:30 pm – Evening of Theatre
Wednesday, July 13th, 2022
- 8:30 pm – John Boutté
Thursday, July 14th, 2022
- 8:30 pm – Lennie Gallant
Friday, July 15th, 2022
- 8:30 pm – Lorraine Klaasen
Saturday, July 16th, 2022
- 8:30 pm – Blackie & The Rodeo Kings
Sunday, July 17th, 2022
- 7:30 pm – Balaklava Blues
Children’s Day
In 2022 a special kids-focused Children’s Day took place on the Wednesday of the festival from 11:00 am to 4:00 pm outdoors at Harrison Memorial Hall. Admission was about $6 each.
At the Children’s Day venue there are usually live performances by family-friendly entertainers and a wide range of activity stations featuring everything from drama opportunities to arts and crafts to puppetry and wall climbing.
The 2022 edition included a scavenger hunt with some prizes available for those who completed it, and performances from the theatrical Ideas Bobert as well as musicians Podorythmie and Penny Pom Pom.
For the latest information see the Children’s Day page.
Other Information
Harrison Hot Springs is a beautiful town to visit in a stunning location any time of the year. When there’s a festival in town, however, it becomes even more interesting. The Harrison Festival of the Arts is one that’s definitely worth checking out.
TIP #1: Assuming good weather, weekends are when the festival is by far the most interesting (and crowded) because that’s when there are more outdoor concerts and the waterfront artisan market takes place.
TIP #2: Harrison Lake is stunning. Take your swimsuit, suntan lotion and boat if you have one, even if it’s just inflatable.
Boats of all kinds are also usually available for rent at Harrison Hot Springs, but you might want to reserve in advance if wanting one during the festival, especially if going on a weekend.
Harrison also has a giant waterpark with inflatable slides and things to jump off out on the lake. Be warned – if your kids see it they’ll want to try it out. Also, unless you don’t mind really long lines, a sunny weekend when there’s a festival in town might not be the best time to try the bouncy water toys out.
For details see Harrison Waterpark.
Other Information
For more information on the festival, visit the Harrison Festival of the Arts website.
Click Harrison Hot Springs for more information on the resort town and festivals there at other times of the year.
For a list of other events taking place in July visit Vancouver’s Monthly Calendar and for details on other major events at different times of the year see Vancouver’s Festivals & Events Calendar. Events you will find there include other free festivals like Carnaval del Sol in Vancouver and the Harmony Arts Festival in West Vancouver.
