German-themed beer festivals take place in the Lower Mainland each fall including Oktoberfest events in Vancouver, Surrey and elsewhere.
The fall is definitely a great time for beer. So many fun beer-themed events happen in September, October and November!
On the North Shore in 2024 there is Vancouver’s North Shore Craft Beer Week which runs from November 1st until the 15th. Other regular events include an Oktoberfest celebration with the Maple Meadows Rotary in September, Oktoberfest for Ridge Meadows Hospice in October and a number of events at the Vancouver Austria Club.
See below for details about these and other similar events. 2024 details for some are to be confirmed as of the end of August.
Click any of the following for information about a specific event venue:
Vancouver Austria Club | North Shore Craft Beer Week | Maple Meadows Rotary | Junction Public Market | Oktoberfest for Ridge Meadows Hospice | Harvest Haus | Parallel 49 | Vancouver Alpen Club
The following events took place in previous years, but don’t look like they’re returning in 2024:
Cloverfest Surrey | Harrison Beer Festival | Hastings Racecourse
Oktoberfest Events in the Lower Mainland
Oktoberfest is a German festival traditionally held in late September and early October. The largest and most famous Oktoberfest in the world is the one in Munich, Germany, but ones in Metro Vancouver are pretty fun too!
Oktoberfest events invariably involve copious amounts of beer as well as German-style pub foods like sausages and sauerkraut, not to mention German accordion and polka music. If you like beer and/or dressing up in lederhosen, then Oktoberfest can be a lot of fun!
Austria Vancouver Club
The Austria Vancouver Club hosts Oktoberfest events at their venue at 5851 Westminster Highway in Richmond on the Saturdays of September 28th, October 5th and October 26th in 2024. Their place is in northwest Richmond just south of Sea Island and the Vancouver International Airport. Their Oktoberfest events include food, music and dancing. All are welcome.
The Austria Vancouver Club has numerous events throughout the year. Check their website or Facebook page for upcoming activities.
To learn more about the club’s Oktoberfest events, and the organization behind it, see our article about Oktoberfest at Austria Vancouver Club or visit the Austria Vancouver Club website.
Vancouver’s North Shore Craft Beer Week
Although also not officially marketed as an “Oktoberfest” event, Vancouver’s North Shore Craft Beer Week is a fabulous beer-themed series of events in the fall. In 2024 it runs from November 1st until the 15th. The Wrap Up Party is on Friday, November 15th, at the Pipe Shop in North Vancouver’s Shipyards District. Over the course of the preceding days there are special events at a variety of breweries in the area.
The North Shore has some fabulous breweries, like Deep Cove Brewery, plus so many more. Vancouver’s North Shore Craft Beer Week is a great excuse to visit the region, explore North Shore parks and nature, and enjoy some of the region’s fine brews!
To learn more about this event visit the Vancouver’s North Shore Craft Beer Week website.
Oktoberfest by Maple Meadows Rotary
Another Oktoberfest event is organized by the Golden Ears Sunrise, Meadowridge and Haney Rotary Clubs. Last year the event took place on Saturday, September 9th. It was held at Golden Ears Cheesecrafters in Maple Ridge. The dining establishment is located at 21973 132 Avenue, and the event ran from 4:00 until 11:00 pm.
This event is for adults only. Tickets cost about $20 per person. There is live entertainment, dancing and lots of food to enjoy. Whether or not this event is happening in 2024 is unclear as of the end of August.
For more information, see the Maple Meadows Rotary website.
Oktoberfest at the Junction Public Market
New for 2024, there are Oktoberfest celebrations at the Junction Public Market. The market features a shipping container theme at 200 Granville Street in Vancouver.
On the last weekend of the market’s inaugural season, there’s a special ticketed Oktoberfest event for adults only. It takes place on the Friday to Sunday of September 27th to 29th. There’s live music, beer and European food on all three days. Event hours are from 11:00 am to 9:00 pm. Tickets cost $12 in advance or $15 at the door. Each ticket includes one beer ticket.
To learn more about the market, check out our Junction Public Market article.
Oktoberfest for the Ridge Meadows Hospice Society
The Oktoberfest fundraising event for the Ridge Meadows Hospice Society takes place on Friday, October 18th in 2024. It runs from 6:00 to 11:30 pm at Albion Community Centre in Maple Ridge.
General admission tickets cost $75 each. The event includes a traditional German dinner, a 50-50 draw, both silent and live auctions, music, dancing and more. Proceeds from the event benefit the Ridge Meadows Hospice Society which is a great cause.
For more information, see the Ridge Meadows Hospice Society website.
Vancouver Harvest Haus
Harvest Haus used to be Vancouver’s largest and arguably most impressive Oktoberfest event, taking place in a giant tent “Festzelte” structure that held up to 1000 people.
Now, Harvest Haus is held at the PNE Forum on a slightly smaller-scale than it used to, but still featuring German food, beer, live music and other entertainment. The 2024 Harvest Haus happens on October 4th and 5th. Regular tickets are priced between $30 and $65 depending on when you buy them.
For more information about the Vancouver Oktoberfest event, click Harvest Haus.
Parallel 49
The Parallel 49 Brewing Company hosts an annual Oktoberfest event at 1950 Triumph Street in East Vancouver. The celebration usually features a large beer garden, traditional German dishes and live entertainment. Oktoberfest outfits are encouraged and there are daily giveaways as well.
In 2023 the event began on September 18th and ran daily until October 9th. 2024 dates are TBC.
For more information about last year’s Oktoberfest event, visit the Parallel 49 Brewing Company Instagram page.
Oktoberfest at the Vancouver Alpen Club
The Vancouver Alpen Club is a local cultural organization at 4875 Victoria Drive. They usually host an Oktoberfest event and boast the largest selection of German beers and wines in Vancouver. The event here is for folk ages 19+ and, as should be expected, it features German beer, food and music.
Dates for the club’s Oktoberfest Vancouver event in 2022 were October 21st and 22nd. Hours on both days were from 6:00 pm until 12:00 am. General admission for the Vancouver Alpen Club event were about $35 plus taxes. Tickets with reserved seating cost about $45 last year.
In years when the event does take place, activities include beer drinking (of course), dancing, singing, German games and the optional wearing of lederhosen and other traditional German attire.
The Vancouver Alpen Club venue has a capacity of about 350 people and most years all nights sell out (although a small number of tickets are still usually available at the door).
Unfortunately, due to ongoing renovations, the next event will likely only take place in 2026. For more information about the event from previous years, click Oktoberfest Vancouver.
Past Vancouver Oktoberfest Events
The following events have taken place in the Lower Mainland in the past, but not in the last few years. They may or may not take place again in the future.
Cloverfest in Surrey
Cloverfest was a fundraising Oktoberfest event in Surrey that was put on by the Cloverdale Chamber of Commerce and the Cloverdale Rotary Club.
In 2018 the event took place on Saturday, October 13th, from 4:00 until 9:00 pm at Shannon Hall at the Cloverdale Fairgrounds. The address was 17607 60th Avenue in Surrey.
Cloverfest hasn’t happened since then. Hopefully the event returns in the future, but at this point it doesn’t look likely to return.
Tickets for Cloverfest in 2018 were $25 in advance, $40 for VIP tickets and $35 for regular admission at the door. The price for general admission included 2 beverage-tasting tokens, a souvenir sampling cup and a fun evening with live music. VIP admission included 10 beverage tasting tokens, a sampling cup, priority line access and a fun evening with live music.
For more information click Cloverfest.
Harrison Beer Festival
The Harrison Beer Festival was a community event that took place in late October at St. Alice Hall beside the Harrison Hot Springs Resort at 100 Esplanade Avenue. The popular 2-day event included a Cask Night, Beer Festival and Oktoberfest Dance.
In 2019 the Harrison Beer Festival took place on the Friday and Saturday of October 25th and 26th. The event appears to have still taken place in 2020, although in a different format from usual.
The festival has not returned since. As of 2024 it appears like it probably won’t happen again in the future.
Oktoberfest at Hastings Racecourse
Oktoberfest celebrations took place a couple times on a Saturday at Hastings Racecourse at the PNE. In 2019 it happened on Saturday, September 28th, from 1:00 to 6:00 pm in the Eclipse Lounge. Because of COVID-19, the event didn’t happen in 2020 and hasn’t returned since.
Tickets in 2019 cost around $33 including online fees. For that you got a souvenir beer stein, 2 drink tickets, 1 food voucher, $5 to bet and access to the live horse racing.
With your ticket you also got access to a couple of exclusive Oktoberfest sitting areas. One was the German Haus where there is live music, a selection of sausages and a variety of craft beers (including a pumpkin one) for sale. The other area was the Wine Haus where you could find wine for purchase.
The venue for the Oktoberfest event was the Hastings Racecourse at the PNE at 188 North Renfrew Street which you can get to via Gate 6 or Gate 9.
For more details about the event and venue, see the Hastings Racecourse website.
Other Information
Other articles that might be of interest include the following:
- Vancouver’s October Calendar of Events
- Vancouver’s Festivals & Events Calendar
- Halloween in the Lower Mainland
- Fall Activities in the Lower Mainland
- Vancouver’s Best Places in Autumn
- German Restaurants in the Lower Mainland
- North Shore Craft Breweries
