Sakura Days Japan Fair

The Vancouver Cherry Blossom Festival‘s Sakura Days Japan Fair showcases Japanese food and cultural activities at VanDusen Botanical Garden in April.

In 2024 the Sakura Days Japan Fair takes place on the Saturday and Sunday of April 13th and 14th. The Vancouver Cherry Blossom Festival, meanwhile, includes this and other events between March 29th and April 25th this year.

If you like flowers, other events you’ll likely want to see this spring are the Harrison Tulip Festival and Abbotsford Tulip Festival. Both of those are amazing and feature millions of multi-coloured flowers. There is also the Sweet Spring Flower Festival at Greendale Acres in Chilliwack. This third event features far fewer flowers, but is still very pretty. It also has an incredible amount of kid-friendly activities.

This article contains the following information about the Sakura Days Japan Fair:

Video | Admission | Event Schedule | Other Information

Japan Festival at VanDusen Garden

At the event there is usually traditional Japanese music and live performances, as well as a tea ceremony, woodworking demonstrations and more. There is also lots of traditional Japanese festival-style food most years including okonomiyaki (a kind of savory cabbage pancake), yakisoba (fried noodles) and other tasty treats.

If you plan to visit VanDusen Garden in the spring, do so during the Sakura Days Japan Fair. You won’t be disappointed. The garden is still usually about a month away from its beautiful best, but the Japanese activities and entertainment are definitely worth seeing. And when the cherry blossoms are in full bloom, the place is very pretty.

It’s hard to predict when the cherry blossoms will be at their peak at VanDusen garden. Some years they are fully in bloom during the Sakura Days Japan Fair and other years they aren’t. It’s a bit of a hit and miss and depends on the weather each season.

Sakura Days Japan Fair Video

For an idea of what to expect at the event, check out the following video. It shows scenes of the Sakura Days Japan Fair in March 2022.

Sakura Days Admission

The cost for the Sakura Days Japan Fair normally depends on whether you have a membership with VanDusen Garden.

In 2024 online ticket prices for the public are the following:

Adults: $19.90
Seniors (ages 65+): $15.41
Youth (ages 13-18): $15.41
Children: (ages 5-12): $7.06
Little Kids: (ages 0-4): Free

Prices for the Sakura Days event are not a lot more than regular admission at VanDusen Garden, so it’s not unreasonable, especially if you like Japanese culture. Members of VanDusen Garden save up to about $7 per ticket.

Note: Admission rates and other details are subject to change.

Vancouver Okinawa Taiko Drummers — Vancouver Okinawa Taiko

2024 Event Schedule

In 2024 the Sakura Days Japan Fair runs on the Saturday and Sunday of April 13th and 14th. The event is on from 10:00 am until 6:00 pm on the Saturday, and from 10:00 am until 5:00 pm on the Sunday. Below is the entertainment schedule for both days. Exact details are subject to change.

Saturday, April 13th, 2024

11:15 am – Vancouver Eishin Ryu Iaido Club (Cherry Stage)
11:15 am – Martial Arts of Archery by Vancouver Kyudo Club (Floral Stage)
11:50 am – Haiku Reading by Poet Sophia Conway (Floral Stage)
12:00 pm – Opening Ceremony: Speeches and Kagamiwari (Cherry Stage)
12:45 pm – English Rakugo Show & Workshop by OKEICHAN and Shinobue Performance by Keiko (Floral Stage)
12:45 pm – The Sakura Singers (Cherry Stage)
1:20 pm – Otowa Ryu Japanese Dance (Cherry Stage)
2:00 pm – Haiku Reading by Poet Sophia Conway (Floral Stage)
2:25 pm – APPARE Yosakoi Vancouver (Floral Stage)
2:30 pm – Keita Kanazashi & Chie Hanawa (Cherry Stage)
3:20 pm – Satoha Shitoryu Karate do of Canada (Cherry Stage)
3:25 pm – Dub Beets (Floral Stage)
4:20 pm – APPARE Yosakoi Vancouver (Cherry Stage)
4:25 pm – Bushido (Floral Stage)
5:00 pm – Martial Arts of Archery by Vancouver Kyudo Club (Floral Stage)
5:20 pm – SDJF Ondo Parade (Cherry Stage)

For the full schedule of workshops and activities click vcbf.ca.

BOYish7 at Sakura Days — BOYish7 at VanDusen Garden

Sunday, April 14th, 2024

11:00 am – Southern Wave Okinawan Music and Dance Society (Cherry Stage)
11:00 am – Koto Meets Harp & Piano – Pico & Chihiro (Floral Stage)
11:35 am – GO Taiko (Cherry Stage)
11:50 am – Samurai Sword Performance by “Kengido” (Floral Stage)
12:15 pm – Shorinji Kempo (Cherry Stage)
12:45 pm – English Rakugo Show & Workshop by OKEICHAN and Shinobue Performance by Keiko (Floral Stage)
12:55 pm – Tomoe Kai (Cherry Stage)
2:00 pm – World Soran! (Floral Stage)
2:00 pm – Keita Kanazashi & Chie Hanawa (Cherry Stage)
2:45 pm – Ko Nakamura (Floral Stage)
2:50 pm – Tenrikyo Joyous Stars (Cherry Stage)
3:10 pm – Kisyuu Japanese Calligrapher (Cherry Stage)
3:35 pm – BOYiSH7 (Floral Stage)
3:45 pm – Wailele Wai Wai (Cherry Stage)
4:30 pm – Ko and Hans Duo (Floral Stage)
4:40 pm – Vancouver Okinawa Taiko (Cherry Stage)