Christmas at Canada Place in Vancouver includes holiday illuminations, displays and activities along the Canadian Trail on the Promenade Deck in December.
This holiday season, the lights and displays are up from December 2nd, 2022, until January 2nd, 2023. The attraction once again features its Woodward’s Windows and Avenue of Christmas Trees. There are also the usual Christmas-y light displays on the building’s landmark sails and light sculptures along the promenade.
There were supposed to be free drone shows as well, which would have been new for 2022. Hundreds of drones were scheduled to fly over Canada Place at 6:00 pm on December 2nd and 3rd. Unfortunately, both shows were cancelled due to unexpected interference.
Canada Place at Christmas
Over the Christmas season at Canada Place there is an avenue of decorated trees, historic Woodward’s Christmas displays and colourful lights. It’s all fairly festive, mostly outdoors and free!
Hours & Location
Canada Place is located at the north end of Howe Street at 999 Canada Place. Its Christmas activities happen mostly along the western side of the Promenade Deck on the Canadian Trail.
Christmas at Canada Place ran daily between December 3rd and January 2nd in the 2021/22 season. The activities run every day (including holidays) from December 2nd to January 2nd in the 2022/23 season.
Canada Place Xmas Activities
Things to see and do at Christmas at Canada Place include admiring the decorated Christmas trees and handcrafted Woodward’s displays.
Avenue of Christmas Trees
Spread out along the Promenade Deck at Canada Place is one of Vancouver’s best collections of decorated Christmas trees. They are put together by different businesses and organizations in the community.
In 2021 there were over fifteen sponsors that put together trees. They included the Port of Vancouver, BC Ferries, Canada Post and more. 2022 will likely be similar.
Historic Woodward’s Displays
Woodward’s was a large iconic department store in Vancouver for many years, until it went bankrupt and closed. While open, every year starting in the 1960’s, the store showcased an impressive selection of Christmas displays in its windows each December. People came from far and wide to admire them.
Sadly, when Woodward’s closed in the early 1990’s, the Vancouver tradition of seeing the displays came to an end. Fortunately, Canada Place purchased the displays and has been featuring them in its own Christmas exhibits annually for over the past 20 years. The handcrafted displays include Santa’s Workshop and a Candlestick Factory, among other things.
Other Canada Place Activities
Beginning in 2017, the North Point at Canada Place is lit up with thousands of LED bulbs each Christmas. The highlight of the display is Chrismoose, a 15-foot tall moose made out of lights.
In addition to the regular activities, in 2022 there were also going to be free Bright Skies drone shows to enjoy. The spectacles were going to take place at 6:00 pm on December 2nd and 3rd in 2022. There were going to be over 300 drones in the sky each day. However, both drone shows were cancelled at the last minute due to unexpected interference and safety concerns.
Not free and part of the official Christmas at Canada Place activities, but also very interesting, festive and highly recommended, is the Christmas at FlyOver Canada attraction located right at Canada Place.
Other Attractions in the Area
In addition to festive things to see at Canada Place in December there are other magical Christmas-y things to do in the area too. The Vancouver Christmas Market is just on the other side of the Vancouver Convention Centre from Canada Place. It runs from late November until December 24th each year.
Just a few blocks away from Canada Place, at the Hyatt Hotel at 655 Burrard Street, there is often a Gingerbread Lane where you can admire dozens of amazing gingerbread houses until around December 31st.
Other Information
For more information on Christmas at Canada Place, see the Canada Place website.
For more ideas on places to see Christmas decorations in the Lower Mainland, check out Top Things to do at Christmas, including the Gingerbread Lane at the Hyatt Regency at 655 Burrard Street, just a 10-minute or so walk away.
And for a list of more fun festive things to do on specific days in December, check out Vancouver’s December Calendar.
