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Vancouver Mother’s Day Gift Ideas

April 15, 2023

Wondering what to do for Mother’s Day in Vancouver and what to get Mom? Then check out our list of gift ideas and experiences that will make her day special!

For a list of events that are happening on the weekend of May 12th to 14th in 2023, click Mother’s Day in Vancouver or see our article about What’s Happening This Weekend.

For a list of places to take Mom for a tasty meal, see our article about Vancouver Mother’s Day Brunches.

If you want ideas on experiential gifts to get your mother, continue reading.

What to Get Mom for Mother’s Day in 2023

Below are 21 ideas on things to give your mom (or grandmother, mother-in-law, or some other special person in your life). Some of the ideas are great for moms to do with their adult children. Others are fun for moms and grandmas to do with little kids. A couple of the ideas are tangible gifts, but most are experiences.

Places to Visit on or Before Mother’s Day

Here are some things you can do with your mother either on the Mother’s Day Weekend or just before:

Take mom to the Kilby Historic Site for their Afternoon Tea on Sunday, May 14th. It’s a beautiful place and very interesting.
Treat your mother to the VIP Night for Moms at the Westcoast Wellness Show in Langley on May 12th, or for just a look around at the show on May 12th or 13th. The 2-day event happens on the Friday and Saturday just before Mother’s Day Sunday. Consequently, it’s a great place to find a special gift for your mom, or to give her tickets for as an early gift.
Take your mother to the Art Vancouver art show at the Vancouver Convention Centre. It runs from Thursday, May 4th, until Sunday, May 7th (so it’ll have to be an early gift). Enjoy all the hundreds of pieces of beautiful art made by BC-based artists, and maybe even buy something for your mom or even yourself!
Go to the Spring Fling event on May 10th at Hycroft (which is a historic manor). Either take Mom with you, as an early experiential gift, or go with a group of friends to have fun while shopping for a gift to give Mom on the following weekend. Spring Fling features artisan vendors, a silent auction, live music and dancing in one of Vancouver’s most beautiful heritage building.

Instead of taking Mom out for brunch (or as well), take her to the Coquitlam Community Block Party for some delicious food truck foods and live music. Hosted by the Greater Vancouver Food Truck Festival, the event happens on the Saturday and Sunday of May 13th and 14th at Town Centre Park.
Check out a show at the Improv Centre at Granville Island. There might not be any shows on the Sunday of May 14th. The theatre does though have live comedy shows on every Wednesday, Thursday, Friday and Saturday in May this year. On May 14th there is also a special Moms & Margaritas show in the afternoon.
The films at FlyOver Canada are lots of fun. In May, in addition to the regular multi-dimensional film that takes you all across Canada, there is Windborne which is a special feature film about the Canadian Rockies. For Mother’s Day, tell Mom you’ll take her on a trip across Canada and/or the Rocky Mountains!
The Marvel Avengers S.T.A.T.I.O.N. exhibition is in town until at least the last weekend of May. The attraction is open from Wednesday to Sunday each week and makes for a fun family-friendly outing in Burnaby. If Mom enjoys the Marvel superhero movies, she’ll love this exhibition.
Treat your mother to brunch at one of Vancouver’s Best Brunch Buffet Venues. There are some great places to choose from (assuming they aren’t already all booked up).

Tickets to Buy and Future Places to Take Her

The following are places and events you can buy Mom tickets for now and then take her to on a later date in May or this summer. The first list is of events happening later in May. The second is of events taking place in the summer.

Upcoming Things to Do With Mom in May

Treat your mother and the family to tickets to the Royal Canadian International Circus. There are shows in Vancouver over the Mother’s Day weekend, from May 11th until the 14th, in a giant Big Top at Concord Pacific Place. There are also shows in Surrey the week before and in Richmond the week after. (TIP: Use the promo code VANSBESTPLACES when buying your tickets online and you’ll get a 2-for-1 deal on general Admission!)
Buy tickets to the All British Field Meet at VanDusen Garden. The car show features hundreds of classic and vintage British vehicles on Saturday, May 21st. If she likes collectible cars, or beautiful gardens, she’ll love this event (and you will too)!
Spoil your mother with tickets to local concerts. The Chor Leoni Men’s Choir hosts The Turning concert at St. Andrew’s Wesley on May 11th. Their Vanman Summit Concert, meanwhile, is at the Chan Centre at UBC on May 13th. On May 13th there’s also a performance by the Goldenpearl Ensemble at Place des Arts in Coquitlam. The three musicians perform traditional Chinese music and more. There are also Elton John and Billy Joel Tribute Concerts in West Vancouver, Mission and South Surrey in late May.
Buy mom and the family tickets to the Cloverdale Rodeo which takes place this year on the May Long Weekend. In addition to the rodeo shows, there are also amusement rides, concerts and other family-friendly things to see and do.
Take your mother and the family to see a baseball game with the Vancouver Canadians. The season has already started and the games run until September. For a special treat, get tickets to one of the fireworks nights!

Places to Take Mom in the Summer

Treat Mom to an evening of live Jazz at the Odlum Brown Fort Langley Jazz & Arts Festival. Buy your tickets now for the concerts which take place between July 20th and 23rd. There is also the Fort Langley Big Band Swing Dance on May 12th with the Dal Richards Orchestra. Wouldn’t that be a fun surprise for Mom!
Buy Mom tickets to see Tina Turner or Queen Tribute Concerts when they are in the Lower Mainland on June 6th, 7th, 11th and 24th.
Get your mother tickets to see a play at Bard on the Beach or Theatre Under the Stars. If she likes Shakespeare, she’ll love Bard. And if she like musicals, she’ll like the TUTS shows at Stanley Park.
Treat Mom to one of the special venues at the Celebration of Lights fireworks nights on July 22nd, 26th or 29th. That’s an experience she’ll remember for a long time!

Other Special Experiences for Mom

Below is a list of experiential gifts you can give your mother. The first list is of places and activities in the City of Vancouver. The second is a list of activities elsewhere in the Lower Mainland and further afield.

Experiential Gifts in the City of Vancouver

Go on a guided walking tour with Forbidden Vancouver. They have tours in Gastown, the West End, Stanley Park and elsewhere in downtown Vancouver. They are both very interesting and a lot of fun.
Play an outdoor adventure game with Vancouver Mysteries. They have in-person games in downtown Vancouver as well as online games hosted by a live person that you can play from anywhere in the world.
Sign up for a walking tour with Vancouver’s Historical Chinatown Tours and enjoy Chinese dumplings while you’re there.
Go to a local museum or attraction. Interesting ones include the Fraser River Discovery Centre (which is especially good for young children) and MONOVA: The Museum of North Vancouver. Britannia Mine Museum is also an exceptional place. Or, if you use the promo code BESTVANCOUVER, you can save 25% on admission to the Vancouver Maritime Museum.
Book a room at a downtown Vancouver hotel. It can be for yourself, or your mom, or the whole family. TIP: If you book the hotel through the website StayVancouverHotels.com you can get your choice of a variety of different perks including tickets for different free activities.

Things to Do Elsewhere in the Region

Go to a Local Farmers Market, buy some fresh produce and picnic ingredients, and then go enjoy the day with your mom and other family members at a nearby park. Farmers markets that are open on Sundays this time of year include ones in Ambleside, Coquitlam, Kitsilano, Steveston and White Rock. There are lots of markets on Saturdays too.
If your mom lives in Victoria, go visit her there. Or, if you live in Victoria and she lives in the Lower Mainland, invite her to Victoria for a holiday. There is no better place to be in Canada on the Victoria Day Long Weekend than in Victoria, especially if you like parades. The Victoria Day Parade there is Canada’s biggest and it takes place on Monday, May 22nd.
Spend the day with Mom at a local farm attraction, like at Maan Farms in Abbotsford. They have awesome kid-friendly things to do. Maan Farms also has award-winning wines. Other farms that usually have special Mother’s Day activities include Greendale Acres in Chilliwack and Taves Family Farms in Abbotsford. With Greendale Acres, they have their Sweet Spring activities happening from mid-April until May 14th in 2023. And on Mother’s Day, moms get free admission! The Abbotsford Tulip Festival at Lakeland Flowers might also still be happening, depending on the weather and growing conditions in mid-May.
Treat Mom and the family to a day of adventure on the ropes courses and ziplines at WildPlay in Maple Ridge. That’s an experience she definitely won’t forget! It’s so much fun! (TIP: Use the promo code VBP15 and save 15% on the attraction’s adventures.)