The second biggest shopping mall in Richmond after Richmond Centre, Lansdowne Centre is an older mall with the largest parking lot in all of Vancouver.
In this article you’ll find information about the mall and its various events.
NOTE: From March 29th until April 14th there are Amusement Rides in the parking lot at the mall. They are operating every day between those dates except for the Mondays and Tuesdays of April 2nd, 8th and 9th. See below for more details.
This article includes information about the following topics:
Mall Location & Hours | Events at the Mall | Lunar New Year | Spring Carnival | Drive-in Movies | Circuses | Other Information
Lansdowne Centre Shopping Mall
Lansdowne Centre is a pretty typical large-scale 1970s mall. It has big box anchor stores at each corner and 100-plus stores in between.
Built in the late 1970s, the mall has over 130 stores including a Winners, Toys R Us, HomeSense, Best Buy and a T&T (Asian-style) Supermarket.
What makes the mall of special interest is the fact that it hosts a number of special events each year. That includes summer drive-in movie nights which run on Wednesdays between August and September most years.
Mall Location and Hours
Located at 5300 No.3 Road, close to the Lansdowne SkyTrain Station, Lansdowne Centre is bordered by Alderbridge Road to the north and Lansdowne Road to the south.
The mall’s regular weekday hours are Sundays to Thursdays from 10:00 am to 7:00 pm and Fridays and Saturdays from 10:00 am to 8:00 pm.
Events at the Mall
Most years, in either January or February, Lansdowne Centre offers Lunar New Year entertainment on a weekend. February 10th in 2024 marks the Year of the Dragon. Celebrations at the mall happen on the same day.
Over the school Spring Break holidays each year, the mall’s giant parking lot is sometimes taken over by a chalk art festival with a carousel and train that children can ride. In the summer, the parking lot becomes home to free weekly outdoor movies. A couple of circuses also set up for shows at different times of the year.
See below for details about each of these seasonal special events.
Chinese New Year at Lansdowne Centre
Lansdowne Centre celebrates the Lunar New Year in January or February with a traditional Lion Dance and afternoon of activities.
In 2024, Chinese New Year’s Day (or Lunar New Year) is on Saturday, February 10th, which is also when the celebrations at Lansdowne Centre take place. The event is hosted by the Richmond Chinese Community Society. Activities this year include an artisan market, family portrait station and lion dancing. There’s also a LEGO dragon display to check out between February 3rd and 25th.
This year the opening ceremony includes a lion dance starting at 1:00 pm. From 11:00 am until 4:00 pm there is an artisan market. Between noon and 4:00 pm, anyone that can show they have spent at least $38 in a single transaction at the mall can get a free digital photo.
Click Chinese New Year for information about all the many Lunar New Year celebrations that take place in Metro Vancouver most years, including at Lansdowne Centre.
Spring Carnival at the Mall
Most years either during or after Spring Break in March West Coast Amusements (WCA) sets up its rides and carnival midway in the parking lot of Lansdowne Centre.
In 2024 the carnival took place at Lansdowne Centre from March 29th to April 14th (which was after Spring Break).
The Spring Carnival is a medium-sized fair with the typical assortment of rides, vendors selling candy floss and midway games. There is usually a Ferris wheel, Tilt-a-Whirl, kiddy rides and the usual selection of rides that go up and down and round and round.
Carnival Hours and Rates
Hours of operation for the rides in 2024 were the following (weather permitting):
- Friday, March 29 – from 12 to 10 pm
- Saturday, March 30 – from 12 to 10 pm
- Sunday, March 31 – from 12 to 10 pm
- Monday, April 1: from 12 to 10 pm
- Tuesday, April 2: Closed
- Wednesday, April 3: from 3 to 10 pm
- Thursday, April 4: from 3 to 10 pm
- Friday, April 5: from 3 to 10 pm
- Saturday, April 6: 12:00 to 10:00 pm
- Sunday, April 7: 12:00 to 10:00 pm
- Monday, April 8: Closed
- Tuesday, April 9: Closed
- Wednesday, April 10: from 3 to 10 pm
- Thursday, April 11: from 3 to 10 pm
- Friday, April 12: from 3 to 10 pm
- Saturday, April 13: from 12 to 10 pm
- Sunday, April 14: from 12 to 10 pm
For full details about the carnival, see our article about Amusement Rides at Lansdowne Centre in Spring.
Drive-in Movies
Numerous outdoor movies take place in the Lower Mainland during the summer each year. Most are free and they take place everywhere from parks to shopping malls to convention centres and municipal plazas.
Each summer Lansdowne Centre hosts a weekly evening outdoor movie in its parking lot. It’s one of the region’s free drive-in-style movie venues where people are welcome to watch from their cars or bring their lawn chairs.
Drive-in Movies at Lansdowne Centre usually take place on Wednesday evenings and feature free drive-in parking for up to 200 vehicles on a first-come, first-served basis. There is always lots of space for people to set up and watch from their lawn chairs too.
Similar to free outdoor movies at other venues, films featured at Drive-in Movie nights are usually popular films that are no longer showing in major theatres.
Drive-in Movies in 2023
In 2023 the movies took place on Wednesday nights from August 2nd to 30th. Here’s what was showing for free at dusk on Wednesday evenings last year:
- 2nd of August – The Super Mario Bros. Movie
- 9th of August – Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3
- 16th of August – Fast X
- 23rd of August – Top Gun: Maverick
- 30th of August – Puss in Boots: The Last Wish
Some weeks the Drive-in Movie feature presentation is perfect for kids and their families, and other days it’s more for adults and people who like action films or romance flicks. Over the course of the summer there is always something for everyone!
For a list of dozens of free summer films at other locations, click Vancouver Outdoor Movies.
Circuses at Lansdowne Mall
Two circuses set up their tents for shows outside Lansdowne Centre most years. The Royal Canadian Circus usually visits in the spring, while Circo Osorio is usually in town during the fall. Both circuses put on great shows that are fun for the whole family.
In 2024, Royal Canadian Circus shows happen in the Lansdowne Centre parking lot between May 16th and 20th. This year’s dates for Circo Osorio are to be confirmed.
To learn more about both touring circuses, see our articles about the Royal Canadian Circus and Circo Osorio.
Other Information
For more information about the mall, click Lansdowne Centre.
Other shopping malls in Richmond include Richmond Centre (which is the city’s largest) and Aberdeen Centre (which has arguably the most distinctive Chinese character).
Another shopping place of interest in the summer is the Richmond Night Market.
Other Metro Vancouver shopping malls you might be interested in include the following:
- The Amazing Brentwood (Burnaby)
- Guildford Town Centre (Surrey)
- McArthurGlen (Richmond)
- Metropolis at Metrotown (Burnaby)
- Pacific Centre (Vancouver)
- Park Royal (West Vancouver)
- Tsawwassen Mills (Tsawwassen)
Other topics of interest you might want to check out include the following:
- Best Places for Shopping
- The City of Richmond
- Metro Vancouver’s Top 100 Places
- Festivals & Events Calendar
- Chinese New Year Activities
- Summer Outdoor Movies
- The Lower Mainland at Spring Break
- Vancouver on a Budget
- Vancouver for Children
