The Vancouver Hot Chocolate Festival is a local excuse for people to treat themselves to mugs of gourmet hot cocoa from some of the city’s best cafes.

In 2026, the Vancouver Hot Chocolate Festival runs from January 17th to February 14th.

NOTE: The same organization behind this late-winter festival has a new festival that debuted in the summer of 2025. Koolfest is like the Vancouver Hot Chocolate Festival, except that it features dozens of ice-cold exotic drinks instead of hot ones. In its inaugural year, Koolfest ran from July 19th until August 10th.

Hot Chocolate Festival in 2026

2026 marks the 16th anniversary of Vancouver’s Hot Chocolate Festival. The event runs from January 17th to February 14th, or Valentine’s Day. The festival features 234 flavours from 168 different locations in 2026.

In 2026, 100 vendors, including bakeries and chocolatiers across Metro Vancouver, are participating in the event. They offer extra special gourmet cups of hot chocolate on their menus. Even a few gelato and specialty ice cream shops join in, too.

Each place offers a special selection of hot chocolate creations during the festival. Ingredients include everything from white chocolate to dark chocolate, Belgian chocolate, exotic whipped creams, cookie crumbs and even ice cream.

It’s not really a “festival” (but still wonderfully delicious)!

The festival isn’t so much a “festival” as it is an excuse to indulge, warm yourself up, and try different cafes around town. In fact, often when you go to a venue, you have to look around for its Hot Chocolate Festival menu. It’s a pretty subtle “festival,” but the drinks are good and usually somewhat out of the ordinary.

Don’t expect parades, balloons, live entertainment, fireworks, or even children’s crafts and face painting at this festival. It’s not that kind of an event. Again, it’s an excuse for a unique cup of hot chocolate, but a good one.

Given that Vancouver’s winter can become dreary by the end of January and early February, any excuse to indulge in something like hot chocolate is welcome.

Festival Participants

Listed below are some of the participants taking part in the 2026 hot chocolate festival.

(Note: Exact details are subject to change.)

Downtown Vancouver Locations

Cadeaux Bakery – at 172 Powell Street in Gastown. It offers four special drinks in 2026. One drink is a roasted sesame tahini dark chocolate made with coconut milk, finished with a pistachio chocolate rim and served with a pistachio kataifi crunch (January 17th to 31st). Another is a sweet-and-salty white hot chocolate blended with vanilla and salted duck yolk, topped with Chantilly cream and gold, and served with a house-made fortune cookie (January 17th to 31st).
Mink Chocolates – at 863 West Hastings Street not far from Canada Place. There are two hot chocolates on offer this year, both available throughout the festival. One is a layered dark-chocolate drink with salted rosemary caramel and rosemary-vanilla whipped cream, served with a pecan salted-caramel truffle. The other is a dessert-style white chocolate drink blended with vanilla gelato and spiced masala chai, served with a chai-vanilla truffle.
Thierry – a chocolatier patisserie and cafe with three different locations. During the first half of the 2026 festival, one drink is a milk hot chocolate infused with tonka bean, topped with whipped cream and served with tonka almond nougatine and a coffee eclair (January 17th to 31st). Later in the festival, another option is a dark hot chocolate made with Li Chu chocolate from Vietnam, topped with Chantilly cream and black pepper.

VANCOUVER RESTAURANTS ON VALENTINE’S DAY

February 14th is the final day of the Vancouver Hot Chocolate Festival. On that same date, many restaurants offer special Valentine’s Day menus. See our article about Vancouver Restaurants on Valentine’s Day for details.

Elsewhere Within the City of Vancouver

Gem Chocolates – at 2029 West 41st Avenue (near Kerrisdale Park). During the 2026 festival, three hot chocolates are available throughout the event. One is a classic dark hot chocolate topped with a chocolate disk finished with Pop Rocks and pink cotton candy. Another is a Mexican-style hot chocolate with hints of chili, cinnamon, cayenne, and warm spices, served with a Diablo cookie. The third option is a white-hot chocolate made with exotic fruit and durian cream, served with durian mochi (January 17th to February 14th).
49th Parallel Coffee Roasters – with four different locations, including one in Mt. Pleasant and another in Kitsilano. For the 2026 festival, one option is a toasted marshmallow hot chocolate topped with toffee cold foam and served with a mini brioche doughnut (January 17th to 29th). Another is a white chocolate and raspberry cocoa with pink peppercorn, served with a raspberry-filled mini doughnut (January 30th to February 12th).
Beaucoup Bakery & Café – with a location at 2150 Fir Street in Kitsilano. For the 2026 Hot Chocolate Festival, the cafe is serving three drinks. One is a milk chocolate hot cocoa infused with toasted cornflake and oat milk, finished with black sugar syrup and served with a cornflake brown butter cookie (January 17th to 27th).
Bel Café – at 801 West Georgia Street. For the 2026 Hot Chocolate Festival, one drink is a milk hot chocolate with almond praline and raspberry whipped cream, served with a raspberry macaron (January 17th to 30th). The second option is a dark hot chocolate with cherry syrup and rose whipped cream, served with a cherry truffle (January 31st to February 14th).

More Places in the City of Vancouver

Butter Baked Goods – at 4907 MacKenzie Street (at 33rd Avenue). For the 2026 Hot Chocolate Festival, there are three hot chocolates available throughout the event. One is a cardamom dark hot chocolate with a hint of lemon, served with a chocolate-dipped cardamom shortbread.
Eternal Abundance – an organic vegan grocery store and cafe at 1025 Commercial Drive (a couple of blocks from Venables). For the 2026 Hot Chocolate Festival, one drink is a dark hot chocolate made with organic BC blackberries, orange, and a hint of spice, served with a blackberry oatmeal cookie (January 17th to 30th). The second option is a hojicha green tea hot chocolate topped with coconut whipped cream and served with a matcha blondie (February 1st to 14th).
Koko Monk Chocolates – a chocolatier at 1849 West 1st Avenue in Kitsilano. For the 2026 Hot Chocolate Festival, several rotating hot chocolates are offered at different times. One option is a mystery dark chocolate made with almond milk, served with a vegan chai gelato (January 17th to 26th).
Uno Gelato – at 2579 West Broadway and 1055 Canada Place. This year they are serving a trio of hot chocolates. Offering a red-wine–infused dark hot chocolate, a creamy white chocolate with cheesecake flavours, and a vegan dark hot chocolate with marzipan.

OTHER CHOCOLATE-THEMED EVENTS

If you like jogging and chocolate, another event to look forward to is the Vancouver Chocolate Run. It takes place around Stanley Park on March 7th in 2026. Participants choose to run 5 km, 10 km, or 0.65 km (for kids). It’s a fun event at a beautiful location. Plus, all runners receive a piece of chocolate and a souvenir finishing medal. See our article about the Vancouver Chocolate Run to learn more.

Also, if you like hot chocolate, be sure to check out the Holiday History & Hot Chocolate Tours with Forbidden Vancouver. They typically run in early January. If you miss them, though, there is also the Hidden History & Sweet Treats Tours which run for most of the year and are similar, but you get chocolates and pastry samples instead of hot chocolate.

Elsewhere in Metro Vancouver

Caffe Artigiano – a coffee and pastry shop at both 4010 Main Street in Vancouver and 3154 Highland Boulevard in North Vancouver. During the festival in 2026 it features hot chocolate flavours inspired by hazelnut and orange.
Chez Christophe – at 4717 Hastings Street in Burnaby and 1558 Johnston Road in White Rock. In 2026 the chocolatier is pouring two rotating drinks. A fruity hot chocolate available in the first half, followed by a campfire-inspired hot chocolate in early February.
Glenburn Soda Fountain & Confectionary – at 4090 Hastings Street in Burnaby. During the 2026 Hot Chocolate Festival, it offers four rotating hot chocolates, including a smoky dark hot chocolate and an espresso-infused white hot chocolate.
Mon Paris Patisserie – at 4396 Beresford Street in Burnaby. As part of the 2026 Hot Chocolate Festival, they ar serving tw drinks. One is a ruby chocolate hot chocolate and an almond and cherry hot chocolate. This year they also have a new location in Olympic Village at 1731 Manitoba Street.
Thomas Haas – a chocolate and pastry shop with locations at 2539 West Broadway in Vancouver and at 128-988 Harbourside Drive in North Vancouver. 2026 offerings include a maple-flavoured hot chocolate and an apple-flavoured one.

Tips & Advice

Below are some tips and suggestions to help you make the most of your Vancouver Hot Chocolate Festival experience.

TIP #1: Remember, it’s a season of exotic drink specials more than a festival. Don’t expect anything flashy – just mugs of extra-delicious hot chocolate.

TIP #2: Don’t drive across town for your hot chocolate, then drive back immediately. That would be silly. The drinks are good, but not that good. Instead, if you happen to be in an area and you love exotic chocolate treats, check out a participating place nearby. Or, if you see something you definitely want to try, explore the surrounding area before or after, or combine it with a trip elsewhere.

TIP #3: Note that some places offer a choice of “official festival drinks” throughout the full festival season. Others, though, offer just one drink per week, so you don’t get a choice. Of course, all venues offer regular menu items every day of the week, too.

TIP #4: Most places serve their drinks with a biscuit, macaron, scoop of gelato, or another small treat, but not all do.

TIP #5: Depending on your preferences, most drinks offered each season are delicious and decadent. Others, however, are arguably a bit weird (or at least not for everyone). Personally, I think I’ll leave the flower-scented hot chocolates to others (who I’m sure will appreciate them more than I do).

TIP #6: Don’t visit only the places above during the Hot Chocolate Festival, or just for their festival specials. Participating venues are some of the region’s finest cafes, chocolatiers and bakeries. Check out their full menu selection anytime of the year.