The Vancouver International Children’s Festival is a festival for kids and their families on Granville Island from late May until early June.

In 2025 the festival ran from May 26th until June 1st. It’s scheduled to return from May 25th to 31st in 2026. Additional details about the next festival are to be confirmed.

It’s always a fabulous series of events and highly recommended. If you have young children, nieces & nephews, or grandchildren, you’ll want to attend this festival (and so will your kids and their friends). The shows and activities are both fun and educational.

For details about the festival, either continue reading or visit the official childrensfestival.ca website.

This article contains the following information about the festival:

Vancouver Children's Festival — (Photos by Tilly Nelson)

Vancouver International Children‘s Festival

The Vancouver International Children’s Festival showcases theatre, dance, music, puppetry, acrobatics, art, crafts activities and storytelling with artists from across Canada and from around the world. It’s a really good festival and fun for young children. It’s also actually the longest-running professional performing arts children’s festival in North America!

Admission to the Children’s Festival

Ticket prices for in-person events in 2025 were as follows.

One Show Day Pass – $13.50 for children and $23 for adults (included activity wristband).
Four-Pack Family Pass – $62 (included one show and activity wristbands for four family members).
Activity Wristband Only – $8 per person (purchased on-site).
Tree Baby Show – $6 for children and $23 for adults.
Pyjama Nights – $13.50 per person (special evening shows)
Club Origami – $13.50 per person
Variety Show (1.5 hours) – $27 per person.

(Note: Festival prices and other details were subject to change.)

Visit the Vancouver Children’s Festival website for tickets and full details about the events.

What to Expect

Thousands of children and their families participate in a wide variety of fun activities at the festival each year.

There are normally indoor theatre shows, various forms of outdoor entertainment, and activity tents with everything from paper folding to scavenger hunts. There are also venues where you can try out circus tricks or get your face painted. The main shows cost extra. The activities, though, are free with the price of admission most years.

The festival draws large crowds, especially when the weather is good. As many as 30,000 people attend the event during its week-long run, including school groups on weekdays.

Show Types & Accessibility

There are shows for all ages and for kids of all backgrounds and needs. When looking for shows to see, you can sort options by age appropriateness. Age categories include 0-2 years, 3-6 years, 7-9 years, 7-12 years, 9-12 years, ages 13 & old, and all ages.

You can also sort options by performance genre type, including dance, music, storytelling and theatre, or even shows performed by people of Indigenous, Black and People of Colour. There are also shows that have ASL interpreters, are blind/low-vision friendly, are low sensory, and wheel-chair accessible. Some of the shows are also especially appropriate for people who are deaf or hard of hearing.

See the Vancouver Children’s Festival website for tickets and full details about the events.

Activity Village

The Vancouver International Children’s Festival includes an Activity Village. It’s an area with creative things for kids to do. Examples of activities include a scavenger hunt, face painting station, mystery maze, photo station, and more. Admission is included with any event ticket.

For full details, visit the Vancouver International Children’s Festival website.

Festival Schedule

A variety of in-person events take place during the festival. Below was the 2025 schedule of events.

Monday, May 26th, 2025

I Wish I Was a Mountain – a live musical theatre show from the UK for ages 7 and over. The show took place at Performance Works on Granville Island from 6:30 pm to 7:15 pm.

Tuesday, May 27th, 2025

Club Origami – an interactive show that included time afterwards for free play with origami! It was for kids ages 1 to 6 at The Nest at 10:00 am and then again at 12:30 pm.
Whipped Up! – in this show babies from the audience became the stars, as they were brought up on stage and ordered around a diner’s server. Check it out at Carousel Studio at 10:00 am and 12:00 pm.
Kym Gouchie & Band – a musical performance by Indigenous artist Kym Gouchie aimed at kids ages 3 to 12. It was at Granville Island Stage from 10:30 to 11:20 am.
Luminarium – a cool visual show put on by Cause & Effect Circus which is a local circus group. The show was at Revue Stage from 10:30 to 11:20 am.
Where Have All the Buffalo Gone? – a Métis show that took the audience through their nation’s history from their emergence as a people through to the modern day. Aimed at those 9 and up, the show was at Waterfront Theatre from 10:30 to 11:25 am and 12:30 to 1:25 pm.
I Wish I Was a Mountain – a live musical theatre show from the UK for ages 7 and over. The show took place at Performance Works on Granville Island from 10:30 to 11:15 am and 12:30 to 1:15 pm.
Won’Ma Africa – an acrobatic show for all ages, Kalabanté Productions brought circus, dance and music from Africa to the Granville Island Stage at 12:30 pm.
Sing the World! with Ginalina & Friends – a concert that featured folk songs from over half a dozen different countries. It took place at Revue Stage at 12:30 and 6:30 pm.

In addition to the above, there were also lots of fun things to do in the Activity Village.

Wednesday, May 28th, 2025

Club Origami – an interactive show that included time afterwards for free play with origami! It was meant for kids ages 1 to 6 and was at The Nest from 10:00 to 10:40 am and from 12:30 to 1:10 pm.
Whipped Up! – in this show babies from the audience became the stars, as they were brought up on stage and ordered around Dottie, a server trying to run an old-school diner. This show happened at Carousel Studio from 10:00 to 10:30 am and 12:00 to 12:30 pm.
Won’Ma Africa – an acrobatic show fun for all ages, Kalabanté Productions brought circus, dance and music from Africa to Granville Island Stage from 10:30 to 11:20 am.
Where Have All the Buffalo Gone? – a Métis show that took the audience through their nation’s history from their emergence as a people through the modern day. Aimed at those 9 and up, the show was at Waterfront Theatre from 10:30 to 11:25 am and 12:30 to 1:25 pm.
Kym Gouchie & Band – a musical performance by Indigenous artist Kym Gouchie aimed at kids ages 3 to 12. The performance at Granville Island Stage ran from 12:30 to 1:20 pm.
Luminarium – a cool visual show put on by Cause & Effect Circus which is a local circus group. The show was at Revue Stage from 10:30 to 11:20 am and from 12:30 to 1:20 pm.
Sing the World! with Ginalina & Friends – a concert that featured folk songs from over half a dozen different countries. The show took place at Revue Stage from 12:30 to 1:15 pm and from 6:30 to 7:15 pm.

In addition to the above, there were also lots of fun activities and things to see in the Activity Village.

Thursday, May 29th, 2025

Whipped Up! – in this show babies from the audience became the stars, as they were brought up on stage to order around Dottie, a server trying to run an old-school diner. This show took place at Carousel Studio from 10:00 to 10:30 am and 12:00 to 12:30 pm.
Won’Ma Africa – an acrobatic show fun for all ages, Kalabanté Productions brought circus, dance and music from Africa to Granville Island Stage from 10:30 to 11:20 am and from 12:30 to 1:20 pm.
Where Have All the Buffalo Gone? – a Métis show that took the audience through their nation’s history from their emergence as a people through the modern day. Aimed at those 9 and up, the show was at Waterfront Theatre from 10:30 to 11:25 am and 12:30 to 1:25 pm.
Liwanda Africa! – a cultural journey through many different parts of Africa featuring song, dance and traditional folk tales. It happened at Performance Works from 10:30 to 11:20 am and from 12:30 to 1:20 pm.
Sing the World! with Ginalina & Friends – a concert that featured folk songs from over half a dozen different countries. The show took place at Revue Stage from 10:30 to 11:15 am and 12:30 to 1:15 pm.

In addition to the above, there were also lots of fun things to do in the Activity Village.

Friday, May 30th, 2025

Club Origami – an interactive show that included time afterwards for free play with origami! It was for kids ages 1 to 6 at The Nest at 10:00 am and 12:30 pm.
Whipped Up! – in this show babies from the audience became the stars. It took place at Carousel Studio from 10:00 to 10:30 am and 12:00 to 12:30 pm.
Kym Gouchie & Band – a musical performance by Indigenous artist Kym Gouchie aimed at kids ages 3 to 12. It was at Granville Island Stage at 10:30 am.
Where Have All the Buffalo Gone? – a Métis show that took the audience through their nation’s history. Aimed at those ages 9 and up, it was at Waterfront Theatre at 10:30 am and 12:30 pm.
Liwanda Africa! – a cultural journey through many different parts of Africa that featured song, dance and traditional folk tales. It happened at Performance Works at 10:30 am.
Sing the World! with Ginalina & Friends – a concert that featured folk songs from over half a dozen different countries. It took place at Revue Stage at 10:30 am.
Won’Ma Africa – an acrobatic show fun for all ages, Kalabanté Productions brought circus, dance and music from Africa to Granville Island Stage from 12:30 to 1:20 pm.
I Wish I Was a Mountain – a live musical theatre show from the UK for ages 7 and over. The show took place at Performance Works on Granville Island from 10:30 to 11:15 am and 12:30 to 1:15 pm.
Luminarium – a cool visual show put on by Cause & Effect Circus which is a local circus group. The show was at Revue Stage from 12:30 to 1:20 pm and 6:30 to 7:20 pm.
The Libravian – an Irish show heavy on physical comedy happened at Performance Works from 6:30 to 7:15 pm.

In addition to the above, there were also lots of fun activities and things to see in the Activity Village.

Saturday, May 31st, 2025

Club Origami – an interactive show that included time afterwards for free play with origami! It was meant for kids ages 1 to 6 and was at The Nest from 10:00 to 10:40 am and from 12:30 to 1:10 pm.
Whipped Up! – in this show babies from the audience became the stars, as they were brought up on stage to order around Dottie, a server trying to run an old-school diner. This show happened at Carousel Studio from 10:00 to 10:30 am and 12:00 to 12:30 pm.
Won’Ma Africa – an acrobatic show fun for all ages, Kalabanté Productions brought circus, dance and music from Africa to Granville Island Stage from 10:30 to 11:20 am and 1:00 to 1:50 pm.
Sing the World! with Ginalina & Friends – a concert that featured folk songs from over half a dozen different countries. The show took place at Revue Stage from 10:30 to 11:15 am.
The Libravian – an Irish show heavy on physical comedy at Performance Works from 11:30 am to 12:15 pm.
Luminarium – a cool visual show put on by Cause & Effect Circus which is a local circus group. The show was at Revue Stage from 1:30 to 2:20 pm and 4:00 to 4:50 pm.
I Wish I Was a Mountain – a live musical theatre show from the UK for ages 7 and over. The show took place at Performance Works on Granville Island from 2:30 to 3:15 pm.
Variety Show – a combination of various 2025 performers at the Granville Island Stage from 6:30 pm to 8:00 pm.

Visit the Vancouver Children’s Festival website for tickets and full details about the events.

Sunday, June 1st, 2025

Club Origami – an interactive show that included time afterwards for free play with origami! It was meant for kids ages 1 to 6 and was at The Nest from 10:00 to 10:40 am and from 12:30 to 1:10 pm.
Whipped Up! – in this show babies from the audience became the stars, as they were brought up on stage and could have ordered around a server trying to run an old-school diner. The show took place at Carousel Studio from 10:00 to 10:30 am and 12:00 to 12:30 pm.
Sing the World! with Ginalina & Friends – a concert that featured folk songs from over half a dozen different countries. The show took place at Revue Stage from 11:00 to 11:50 am and from 1:30 to 2:20 pm.
Won’Ma Africa – an acrobatic show fun for all ages, Kalabanté Productions brought circus, dance and music from Africa to Granville Island Stage from 10:30 to 11:20 am and 1:00 to 1:50 pm.
I Wish I Was a Mountain – a live musical theatre show from the UK for ages 7 and over. The show took place at Performance Works on Granville Island from 11:30 am to 12:15 pm.
Luminarium – a cool visual show that was put on by Cause & Effect Circus which is a local circus group. The show was at Revue Stage from 2:30 to 3:20 pm.
The Libravian – an Irish show that was heavy on physical comedy happened at Performance Works from 2:30 to 3:15 pm.

In addition to the above, there were also lots of fun activities and things to see in the Activity Village.

Tips & Advice

Below are some tips and advice to help you make the most of your experience at the Vancouver International Children’s Festival.

TIP #1: Don’t wait until the last minute to buy tickets for the best shows as they’ll likely fill up. Some shows sell out weeks in advance!

TIP #2: If the weather is good consider combining the festival with a family cycling excursion along the False Creek Seawall. Parking can be a challenge during the event. Consider parking elsewhere. That way you can enjoy a scenic bike ride. Other options include using public transit, and/or catching one of the False Creek Ferries or Aquabus to Granville Island. That alone can be tons of fun!

TIP #3: While at Granville Island pop into the Public Market and explore the island with its gardens, toy stores and play areas. On the day we went a couple of years ago there were dozens of adult Canada geese and their goslings wandering around. This made for some extra fun photos of our own – so don’t forget your camera!

Other Information

For more information, see the Vancouver Children’s Festival website. And for information about a similar event in Surrey, check out Surrey Sparks Stages.

Check out Vancouver’s Best Places for Children for other ideas on what to do with your kids.

Other articles that might be of interest include the following:

To learn about a similar event a couple of hours north of Vancouver, click Whistler Children’s Festival.