Italian Day Crowd on Commercial

Italian Day on the Drive is an annual street party on Vancouver’s Commercial Drive that includes Italian food, music, festivities and thousands of people.

Last year the event was themed “Renaissance” and the festivities happened on June 11th. In 2024 the event takes place on June 9th. This year’s theme is “STORIA”.

Other things taking place on the same weekend include free events like Langley Community Day, the Shipyards Night Market in North Vancouver, and Fair in the Square in Vancouver. There’s also fun happening at Playland at the PNE.

This article contains the following information about Italian Day on the Drive:

Where and When | About the Event | Entertainment | Other Information

Italian Day on Commercial Drive

If you like street parties, live music, pasta and fun outdoor activities in the city, then you’ll want to check out Italian Day.

It’s reputedly the region’s largest street party event, attracting at least 200,000 participants most years.

No large street party took place on Commercial Drive in 2021 because of COVID-19. Italian Day on the Drive didn’t happen in June 2022 either. That being said, the organizers of the event hosted a smaller Italian-themed event in August that year. The large Italian Day street party returned last year and takes place again in 2024.

Where and When

Italian Day takes place on Sunday, June 9th in 2024.

The event runs along Commercial Drive in Vancouver’s “Little Italy” for the 14 or so blocks between Venables and Grandview.

About Italian Day on the Drive

At Italian Day on the Drive expect to see over 100 different market vendors and lots of green, white and red colours. As many as 20 patios open up, serving everything from pizza to pasta to gelato.

There are also usually cooking demonstrations, food samples, soccer games, a pasta eating contest, street performers, an Italian clothing fashion show, DJs and three different main stages offering live music and other entertainment including Jazz and opera. For children there are also crafts and other activity stations most years. There are usually lots of opportunities for adults to buy great espressos and cappuccinos as well.

At the time of writing, exact details about activities in 2024 are to be confirmed.

Commercial Drive during Italian Day on the Drive

Entertainment Lineup

Musicians and other performers entertain from three different stages over the course of the day along Commercial Drive. Below was the schedule for the 2023 event which happened on June 11th. Details about the live entertainment in 2024 are to be confirmed.

Grandview Park Main Stage

Grandview Park is located at 1657 Charles Street (on Napier Street between Charles and William Street).

Below was the schedule for the main stage at the park in 2023.

12:00 pm – Opening Ceremony with Emma Busse
1:00 pm – Luvinya
2:50 pm – Federico Fuoco & Fire
4:40 pm – Carmelina Cupo
6:10 pm – Gianni Fuoco + Cristina Barbosa
7:45 pm – Jany B Band
8:45 pm – Raffle Draw

2nd Avenue Stage

Below was the 2023 schedule for the stage located at the intersection of Commercial Drive and 2nd Avenue.

1:00 pm – Gruppo Trevigiano Veneto (Children’s Choir)
2:00 pm – The Boogie Men Duelling Pianos
4:30 pm – City Opera Vancouver (Trio)
5:30 pm – Emma Busse
6:10 pm – Luvinya
7:40 pm – Luna Rossa

Piazza Moda – Fashion Show & Entertainment Stage

This stage is located at the intersection of Commercial Drive and 3rd Avenue. Below was the schedule for 2023.

1:00 pm – Calabrese Folk Dancers
1:30 pm – Nadia Bruno
2:30 pm – Gaio Il Calzolaio
3:00 pm – Fashion Show
3:25 pm – Emma Busse
4:05 pm – Jany Barucci (duo)
5:30 pm – Federico Fuoco & Palma D’Andrea
6:30 pm – Fashion Show
6:50 pm – MRZ DJ exclusively

Other Information

Italian Day on the Drive is a fabulous family-friendly event well worth checking out. For more information, see the Italian Day website.

For other events at different times of the year, see Vancouver’s Festivals and Events Calendar. Events you’ll find there that are similar to Italian Day coming up in June include the various Car Free Day celebrations on Commercial Drive, Main Street and Denman Street, as well as Greek Day on Broadway in late June.

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