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Vancouver’s PNE Fair

Flower Pot Characters at the PNE

The PNE Fair is one of the biggest summer events in Vancouver with concerts, rides and all sorts of entertainment options.

For the fair’s official website, visit pne.ca.

 

This article includes the following information about the PNE Fair:

Ways to Save | Location & Admission | Live Entertainment Schedule | Ticketed Summer Night Concerts | Free Concerts and Entertainment | Other Fair Events | Rides | Other Information

 

The PNE Fair in Vancouver

The PNE Fair is a big end-of-summer event each year. While there are PNE events during other seasons, the summer fair is by far the biggest. It runs for a couple of weeks from mid-August until the beginning of September.

In 2025 the fair runs from August 16th to September 1st. For full details on every part of the PNE, check out our Pacific National Exhibition article or visit the official pne.ca website. Or, to learn more about the what the summer fair was like last year and likely will be this year, continue reading below.

 

The PNE Fair

 

Location and Admission

The PNE takes place in Hastings Park at 2901 East Hastings Street. This year the fair opens on Saturday, August 16th, and closes on the Labour Day Monday of September 1st.

Prices for admission to the venue at the gate in 2024 were $25 for adults (19+), $16 for seniors and teenagers, and $9 for children between the ages of 4 and 12. If you purchased your tickets in advance online, however, you could save between $2 and $10 depending on your age and the day of your visit. Children ages 3 and under are always free.

Guests who want to also go on the Playland rides have to buy a ride pass which, costs around either $44 or $55 depending on which rides they want to go on. This is in addition to the above gates prices.

 

Blondie
Blondie (at her PNE concert in 2017)

 

Live Entertainment Schedule

There’s a variety of live entertainment every day at the PNE Fair. Most of the performances during the day are free to attend with general admission. Some concerts at night, however, cost extra.

 

Summer Night Concerts

One of the fair’s highlights each year is the Summer Concert Series. Tickets for the special night concerts include general admission to the PNE. Below is the concert schedule for 2025.

 

Bachman-Turner Overdrive in Vancouver
Bachman-Turner Overdrive at the PNE Fair

 

Free Concerts and Entertainment

Admission to the PNE Fair includes access to lots of different shows and concerts. There’s live music on the Freedom Mobile Stage, along with dog shows at the Agrodome and performances by drag queens at Rollerland.

 

Music in the Park

Below were the artists who performed on the Freedom Mobile Stage in 2024. They played at 7:00 pm and 8:30 pm each day.

  • Saturday, August 17th, 2024: Scott Helman
  • Sunday, August 18th, 2024: Nick Gilder & Sweeney Todd
  • Tuesday, August 20th, 2024: Tanner Olsen Band
  • Wednesday, August 21st, 2024: CHOIR! CHOIR! CHOIR!
  • Thursday, August 22nd, 2024: Whitehorse
  • Friday, August 23rd, 2024: Queer As Funk
  • Saturday, August 24th, 2024: Eagle Eyes: Eagles Tribute
  • Sunday, August 25th, 2024: Bobby Bruce’s Nearly Neil & The Solitary Band: 30th Anniversary
  • Tuesday, August 27th, 2024: Tim & The Glory Boys
  • Wednesday, August 28th, 2024: Side One
  • Thursday, August 29th, 2024: Julio Avila Cuban Band
  • Friday, August 30th, 2024: Trilojay with Tiffany Rivera and Marie Hui
  • Saturday, August 31st, 2024: ABRA Cadabra – A Tribute to the Music of ABBA
  • Sunday, September 1st, 2024: Tyler Shaw
  • Monday, September 2nd, 2024: R&B Allstars: The Last Dance Tour

 

PNE Remix Inferno
PNE Remix Inferno

 

Remix Inferno

After the Music in the Park concerts finish each night, there were more performances to enjoy. Remix Inferno shows took place on the same Freedom Mobile Stage at 9:45 pm. It’s an energetic celebration with pyrotechnics and musical mashups.

 

SuperDogs

Fun dog shows are held at the Agrodome every day. Presented by Global Pet Foods SuperDogs, Hollywoof: A Night At The Pawscars features talented furry friends. The dogs perform amazing and entertaining tricks for all to see. The daily shows ran at 1:00 pm, 3:00 pm, 5:30 pm and 7:30 pm last year.

 

For the Love of Drag

The Coca-Cola Stage at Rollerland is where you’ll find even more live entertainment. For the Love of Drag shows took place in 2024 at 3:15 pm, 4:45 pm and 6:00 pm each day. Drag queens paid tribute to rock legends such as Freddie Mercury, David Bowie and Tina Turner.

 

For the Love of Drag
For the Love of Drag

 

Other Fair Events

The PNE has a lot to offer each year. There are daily exhibits and attractions throughout the park to enjoy. Last year’s list included a public market with close to 100 vendors, canoe carving demonstrations from Indigenous artists, cooking demonstrations, a huge number of baby farm animals, and much more. 2025 should be very similar.

There are other special events during the fair as well. The schedule for some of these in 2024 was as follows:

  • 4-H Festival – a chance to learn a lot about agriculture, geared especially towards children and teenagers (August 17th to 18th).
  • Canoe Cultures – demonstrations of Indigenous carving techniques and displays of completed canoes.
  • Blue’s Dance Party – an interactive sing and dance party with Blue the Bear happened daily at 1:30 pm and 4:00 pm.
  • Safeway Cooking Stage – chefs led daily demonstrations at 2:00 pm, 4:00 pm and 6:30 pm.
  • School of Rock – performances by students took place at Festival Park (August 23rd to 24th).
  • TNT Dunk Squad – daily performances full of slam dunks and aerial stunts.
  • XPOGO Stunt Team – daily shows that featured extreme pogo skills.

 

The PNE Fair

 

PNE Prize Home Lottery

One of the biggest drawcards each year at the fair is the PNE Prize Home Lottery. Tickets for the lottery are purchased online and there are multiple draws with different prizes. Prizes that were up for grabs in 2024 included cars, cruise trips and thousands of dollars in cash. The grand prize was a $2.35 million home in Langley.

There are multiple draws for smaller prizes done in the build-up to the finale. There is also a 50/50 draw with tickets that are sold separately. The 50/50 draw winner last year walked away with $825,115!

 

Flags and Roller Coaster at the PNE

 

PNE Rides

There are nearly 30 rides available in the amusement park section of the PNE. They include old favourites like the Hellevator, Enterprise and Log Flume.

There’s a new ride at Playland as of 2024! It’s called the ThunderVolt and it replaced the old corkscrew roller coaster from a few years ago. This new ride seats 12 riders at a time and it’s the fastest fully electric roller coaster in the country. The track is 380 metres long and includes an 18-metre drop.

For guests who want to go on all the rides (including the ThunderVolt), the Thrill Pass is the must-purchase item. Those looking for the more kid-friendly rides can choose the Fun Pass which is around $10 cheaper.

For more details about all the rides, check out our Playland Rides article.

 

PNE Thundervolt Coaster

 

Other Information

For more information about the annual event, see our article about the Pacific National Exhibition or go to the PNE website.

(Note: The PNE Fair was a cashless event last year. That meant you could pay for things like admission tickets, food, souvenirs and midway games with your debit or credit card, but not with cash. Whether or not that will be the case is TBC.)

Other events hosted by the Pacific National Exhibition include the following:

Other articles that might be of interest include the following:

 

Kids' Farm at the PNE Fair