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Vancouver Father’s Day Activities

May 15, 2023

The Father’s Day weekend in Metro Vancouver includes festivals, live music events, and other family-friendly festivals and activities in mid-June.

Events that take place most years include ScotFestBC in Coquitlam, Old Car Sunday in Mission, and Capilano Mall Foodie Fest on the North Shore. There is also Playland at the PNE and Vancouver Canadians baseball games at Nat Bailey Stadium. In 2024 there were also special free activities at places like the Museum of Surrey, plus the Father’s Day Run for Prostate Cancer at Burnaby Lake.

Continue reading to learn about events that happen on the Father’s Day weekend. Or, for suggestions on what to give dad, see our article about Father’s Day Gift Ideas.

Below is information about the following Father’s Day Events:

Father’s Day in the Lower Mainland

Below is a list of festivals and events that typically take place on the Father’s Day weekend. These activities likely happened again in 2024.

In addition to festivals, there are also lots of fun activities for dads to do with their families in the Lower Mainland. Top choices include Whale Watching Adventures, walking tours with Forbidden Vancouver or Historical Chinatown Tours, outdoor adventure games with Vancouver Mysteries, and ziplining and ropes course opportunities with WildPlay in Maple Ridge. The rides at Playland at the PNE also operate on weekends in June.

For baseball fans, the Vancouver Canadians play all weekend at Nat Bailey Stadium. And for lovers of Shakespeare and live theatre, there are plays at Bard on the Beach.

ScotFest & BC Highland Games

ScotFestBC is a great cultural event that happens on the Father’s Day weekend in June most years. In 2024 it took place in its usual format at Coquitlam’s Town Centre Park on the weekend of June 14th and 15th. The event returns in 2025 and happens on June 20th and 21st.

ScotFestBC features a wide variety of events and things to see. There is live music, dancing, a beer garden, market vendors, pipe bands, workshops and family-friendly activities. Also at the event are the BC Highland Games where athletes compete in all kinds of sports including the Stone Putt and Caber Toss.

To learn more about the event, see our article about ScotFestBC: The BC Highland Games or visit the website scotfestbc.com.

A Highlander at ScotFestBC in Coquitlam — ScotFestBC BC Highland Games

Pops & Hops at the Improv Centre

The Improv Centre on Granville Island is a theatre specializing in comedy improv. The last couple of years the centre had a special Pops & Hops Father’s Day-themed show where all the jokes were about dads.

2024 was no different! Pops & Hops began at 2:00 pm on June 16th, and included alcohol served on a waterfront patio.

To learn more about the venue and its show, see our article about The Improv Centre at Granville Island.

Baseball at Nat Bailey Stadium

The Vancouver Canadians played baseball against Spokane at Nat Bailey Stadium every day between June 12th and the 16th in 2024. This year on the Father’s Day Sunday it was Family Fun Sunday, which meant that kids under the age of 12 could run around the bases after the game was done.

Capilano Foodie Fest

In 2024 North Vancouver’s Capilano Mall celebrated its fourth annual Foodie Fest event on June 15th and 16th. From 11:00 am until 4:00 pm on both days there were food trucks and other vendors selling tasty treats in the mall’s parking lot. There was also live entertainment, and admission was free.

Performing on the Saturday were Nikita Afonso and Scott Crompton and on the Sunday it was Jada Leroux and Lucas Furseth. The event also featured complimentary face painting, glitter tattoos and balloon twisters.

(Note: There might be a Foodie Fest event at the mall in 2025 or there might be something different. Exact details are to be confirmed.)

For more details about the event, visit the Capilano Mall website or see our article about Capilano Mall Foodie Fest.

Sasquatch Days

Sasquatch Days is a two-day community festival at Harrison Hot Springs. At the event there are war canoe races and a salmon BBQ. Live entertainment and craft activities are typically included as well. Admission to the event is free.

The festival usually runs on the Saturday and Sunday of the Father’s Day Weekend. In 2024, however, it happened a week later, on June 22nd and 23rd.

Click Sasquatch Days for more information.

Old Car Sunday in Mission

Old Car Sunday in the Park takes place on Father’s Day most years in Mission. The venue is Fraser River Heritage Park at 7494 Mary Street. The event attracts hundreds of collectible and vintage automobiles and their owners, and thousands of car fans.

Old Car Sunday usually happens on the Sunday and admission for spectators is by donation. To participate with your vehicle costs about $20 if paid online in advance. The 2024 event took place on Sunday, June 16th.

Click Old Car Sunday to learn more about the car show.

TREAT DAD TO AN EVENING WITH SHAKESPEARE!

The Bard on the Beach Shakespeare Festival runs from June 11th until September 21st in 2024. This year’s plays include Hamlet, Twelfth Night, The Comedy of Errors and Measure for Measure. See our article about Bard on the Beach for details about the festival.

Father’s Day Brunches & Dinners

A great way to treat your dad, grandfather or father-in-law is to take him out for one of many Father’s Day Brunches and Dinners. A number of restaurants in the Lower Mainland offer special menus for the occasion.

In North Vancouver at the Shipyards, for example, the Pier 7 Restaurant & Bar had both brunch and dinner options available this year. The restaurant’s brunch menu featured braised short rib benny, whereas the dinner menu featured a three-course meal with options such as seafood chowder, spot prawn ravioli and cheesecake. This oceanfront restaurant also has a patio with stunning views of downtown Vancouver on the other side of the water.

For a list of other restaurants on the North Shore, see our articles about places to eat in North Vancouver and West Vancouver.

Dinner Options in Vancouver

There are also lots of restaurants to take dad to in the City of Vancouver. An example is the P2B Restaurant & Bar at the Pinnacle Harbourfront Hotel. This restaurant has an outdoor patio that’s really nice. At the restaurant on Father’s Day, there’s a burger and beer special, as well as complimentary beer or house wine with either the grilled New York striploin or grilled ribeye steak.

For lists of other places to check out, see our articles about Bars & Restaurants in Vancouver and Father’s Day Meals in the Lower Mainland.

Pride Night at Britannia Mine

Squamish Pride and Britannia Mine celebrated the 2SLGBTQIA+ community with Pride Night on Friday, June 16th in 2023. Old Town, New Queens Pride Night is an evening of drag performances and other fun activities at the historic mining museum at Britannia Beach (which is about a 40-minute drive north of West Vancouver).

The event took place again in 2024, but it was on Saturday, June 22nd, so the weekend after Father’s Day.

Welcoming the Sun in Richmond

The Gulf of Georgia Cannery has a special Welcoming the Sun event to celebrate National Indigenous People’s Day (which takes place on June 21st). The event in 2024 happened at the cannery on June 15th, which was a few days before National Indigenous Peoples Day, but on the Saturday of Father’s Day Weekend.

At the event there is live entertainment and other activities. Admission on the day is also free.

Father’s Day at Burnaby Village

Burnaby Village Museum is always an interesting place to visit in the summer months, especially because it’s free! Father’s Day is an especially interesting time to visit, though, as the venue usually hosts vintage motorcycles and classic cars.

In 2024 the place was open from 11:00 am until 4:30 pm on Father’s Day. Admission was free as always. Activities included a scavenger hunt, carnival games for kids, demonstrations, and various exhibits to explore.

Click Burnaby Village for more information about the attraction.

Kilby Historic Site

Father’s Day Rendezvous happens at Kilby Historic Site on the Father’s Day weekend most years.

2024’s Father’s Day event was only on the Sunday. It ran from 11:00 am until 3:00 pm. There were several activities to try, such as water witching, wooden toy making and more. There was also both a butter-making and an ice cream-making competition for all ages at 1:00 pm.

To learn more about the venue, see our article about Kilby Historic Site.

Surrey Fest Downtown

Surrey Fest Downtown is a community event at Central City Plaza. On the day, community organizations set up stalls and there is usually live entertainment on a stage. The 2024 event happened on the Saturday from 11:00 am until 4:00 pm.

To learn more, see our article about Surrey Fest Downtown.

Longest Day Road Race

The PH&N Investment Services Longest Day Road Race is a family-friendly running event that raises money for the Greater Vancouver Food Bank at UBC. In 2024, the race took place on Friday, June 14th. The event features five-kilometre and 10-kilometre races as well as a one mile run for kids. It also includes an after-party with food, music and a beer garden. To learn more about this event visit the thunderbirdstrack.org website.

Father’s Day Walk Run for Prostate Cancer

The Father’s Day Walk Run for Prostate Cancer is an annual fundraising event hosted by Prostate Cancer Foundation Canada. The walk and run can be done either in-person or online, which means you can participate from anywhere in Canada. In 2024 the event was on Sunday, June 16th. The local in-person option takes place at Burnaby Lake Park.

For more information or to donate, see the Father’s Day Run website.

GearUp4CF Bike Ride

GearUp4CF is a 112-kilometre non-competitive bike ride from South Surrey to Abbotsford and then back again. It’s a fundraising event to help Cystic Fibrosis Canada in its search for a cure for a disease affecting many Canadians including children. In 2024 the event happened on Saturday, June 15th. For full details about the event and to donate or register, click gearup4cf.com.

Playland Amusement Park

Playland is Vancouver’s main amusement park. In 2024 the rides operated on select dates between May 18th and August 16th. The attraction was open on both the Saturday and Sunday of the Father’s Day weekend. In fact, Saturday was Playland Eras Night, which was when the attraction had a Taylor Swift theme.

To learn more about the amusement park, see our article about Playland Rides.

Other Ways to Celebrate Father’s Day

In addition to all the above special events, there are many other ways to celebrate Father’s Day including the following:

Spend the day at the beach – if the weather is good then a fabulous way to spend the day is at one of Vancouver’s Best Beaches. Popular spots include White Rock, Jericho, Kitsilano, Boundary Bay, Stanley Park and more.
Go for a hike – take dad and the family on any of Vancouver’s Best Hiking Trails at some of the region’s best parks.
Take dad out to a restaurant – go out for brunch, lunch or dinner at any of Vancouver’s Best Restaurants (or at least order take-out or delivery).
Spend time with dad on a boat – rent paddleboards, kayaks or canoes at Alice Lake, Cultus Lake, Deep Cove, Deer Lake or any one of numerous other places in Metro Vancouver and the surrounding area.
Take dad fishing – great fishing spots include North Vancouver’s Rice Lake and in West Vancouver off the pier at either Ambleside or Dundarave. Many of the Lower Mainland’s other waterfront locations are great places too.