The Downtown Farmers Market is a small to medium-sized market that takes place on Wednesday afternoons in the plaza outside the Vancouver Art Gallery.

2025 Downtown Farmers Market at the Vancouver Art Gallery

Formerly known as the Yaletown Farmers Market, the Downtown Farmers Market used to run in the late afternoon from June until the beginning of October in the plaza outside the Queen Elizabeth Theatre. In recent years, however, it happens in the North Plaza outside the Vancouver Art Gallery.

The Downtown Farmers Market happens on Wednesdays between 2:00 pm and 6:00 pm. The market opens for the 2025 season on June 4th and runs until December 17th. In celebration of Indigenous History Month and the market’s new partnership with Indigenous Tourism BC, there’s a special opening ceremony during the first market of the season. Many Indigenous vendors are participating throughout the month as well.

What to Expect

At the Downtown Farmers Market you can expect the usual assortment of fruits and vegetable stalls, but also vendors selling art, toys, clothing, unique gifts and other interesting handcrafted items. There is also usually live music.

The Downtown Farmers Market isn’t one of the Lower Mainland’s biggest summer markets by vendor numbers, at least not since it moved from its former Yaletown location. It’s also far from the busiest.

The market offers a good selection of products for sale, and its location, in the heart of downtown Vancouver, is convenient (although parking in the area is expensive). The market only has around 24 vendors, though, which is slightly fewer than average compared to most other places.

At its peak in the summer there have been up to about 36 vendors at the market in recent years, and by mid-fall, in early October, there can still be about 20 or so stalls.

About the Downtown Market

The Yaletown Farmers Market used to be one of the Lower Mainland’s busiest summer farmers markets, taking place in the 1200 block of Mainland Street in Yaletown. At that location it attracted thousands of shoppers on sunny days. In June of 2016, however, the popular market changed its name and location.

The new market was named the Downtown Farmers Market. Although it happened in the plaza outside the Queen Elizabeth Theatre, it was only about five blocks north of its original location. It also included many of the same vendors.

Downtown Market Parking

Being an urban market, the Downtown Farmers Market is conveniently located close to shops and restaurants. Parking isn’t as convenient – or as inexpensive – as it is at other markets, however. Public transit is great, though, and there are both street parking spots and parkade lots in the area.