Home Christmas Events Vancouver and Lower Mainland Santa Claus Christmas Parades

Vancouver and Lower Mainland Santa Claus Christmas Parades

November 24, 2019

Communities across Metro Vancouver and the Lower Mainland host family-friendly Santa Claus parades close to Christmas time to celebrate the holiday season.

This article contains information about the following parades:

Santa Claus Parades Around The Lower Mainland

Santa Claus parades are a great way to experience family-friendly fun and get into the holiday spirit. A number of Christmas parades take place in communities across the region. All of them are free to attend and most accept donations for worthy charitable causes.

Christmas parades on Santa’s schedule usually include ones in Vancouver, Surrey, Aldergrove, Maple Ridge, Langley, Bowen Island, Chilliwack, New Westminster and Richmond.

Due to COVID-19, almost all Lower Mainland Christmas parades were cancelled in 2020 and 2021. Most are scheduled to return in 2022, but not all of them.

Check out our list of parades below to learn more about each and to find one in or near your community.

Christmas Parades in 2022

Winter holiday parades that take place most years are listed below. Many Christmas parades are happening in 2022. Details about some are to be confirmed.

Aldergrove Christmas Light Up Parade

In 2022 the Santa Claus parade in Aldergrove begins at 6:00 pm on Saturday, December 10th. There are usually large trucks with lights, tractors and floats participating in the parade.

This year, there’s a pre-parade gathering at 5:00 pm as well. It’s hosted at Aldergrove Plaza and includes food, beverages and live entertainment.

Read our Aldergrove Christmas Light Up Parade article for more information.

Santa and Mrs. Claus in Aldergrove — The Claus Couple in Aldergrove

Chilliwack Rotary Christmas Parade

A Christmas parade that takes place on Saturday, December 3rd, in 2022. It begins at 5:30 pm and loops through downtown Chilliwack. The parade starts and ends just in front of the Chilliwack Senior Secondary School, located at 46363 Yale Road.

Visit the Chilliwack Rotary Christmas Parade website for more information.

Langley Magic of Christmas

The two-day Christmas festival runs on the weekend of December 3rd and 4th in 2022. Activities on both days take place outdoors at the Timms Community Centre at 20399 Douglas Crescent. Festivities run from noon until 8:00 pm on the Saturday and from 10:00 am until 4:00 pm on the Sunday.

At the event there are Christmas-themed crafts and workshops, plus chances to write letters to Santa Claus and see him on site. This year, there are also ice carving demonstrations, a beer garden, a marketplace, live music and more to enjoy.

For the most up-to-date information, click Langley Magic of Christmas.

Light Up Bowen Lantern Festival

The Christmas-themed community event on Bowen Island ran from 5:30 until about 8:00 pm on Saturday, November 30th in 2019. It included a small parade from the Village Square down to the Union Steamship Marina. At the festival there were also lantern decorations, carol singing, a Nativity play and various other family-friendly activities. Santa Claus arrived at the event by boat.

In 2022 Light Up Bowen is scheduled to take place on Saturday, December 3rd. Additional details are to be confirmed.

Click Tourism Bowen Island for more information.

Maple Ridge Christmas Festival

A free community Christmas event and evening parade take place at the Memorial Peace Park in Maple Ridge. The events didn’t happen in their normal formats in 2020 and 2021. However, both the parade and festival return on December 3rd in 2022.

This year, the festival runs from 4:00 until 8:00 pm. It features food trucks, decorations, light displays, market vendors and more. The parade takes place at 6:00 pm on the same day. It usually includes a few floats, a marching band, people on horses, a fire truck and Santa.

For more information click Maple Ridge Christmas Festival.

Mission Candlelight Parade

The parade takes place along First Avenue and Lougheed Highway in downtown Mission. In 2022 the event begins at 7:30 pm on Friday, December 2nd.

The procession starts from Railway Avenue and proceeds west until Haig Street. Dozens of local retailers are usually open late on parade night.

Click Mission Candlelight Parade for additional information.

New Westminster Santa Claus Parade

The parade along Columbia Street ran between 11:00 am and 12:00 pm from start to finish, on Sunday, December 15th in 2019. It featured marching bands, politicians waving from cars, decorated floats and Santa Claus. The parade ran for only a few blocks, from around Fourth Street until Eighth, and lasted for about 45 minutes or so.

This event didn’t happen in 2021 and, as far as we can tell, it’s not taking place in 2022 either (although exact details are to be confirmed).

For more information, check out our New Westminster Santa Claus Parade page.

Richmond Santa Claus Parade

The Christmas parade in Richmond took place on Christmas Eve of 2019 in Steveston Village from 6:00 until about 8:00 pm. The procession started at the corner of Regent Street and 6th Avenue. It was a free event although donations of cash and non-perishable food to the Richmond Food Bank were greatly appreciated.

It doesn’t look like the parade is happening in 2022, although exact details are to be confirmed.

Squamish Santa Claus Parade

The Christmas parade that was on Saturday, November 30th in 2019, featured close to four dozen floats and other entries along Cleveland Avenue from 5:00 pm onwards in Squamish.

This family-friendly event featured carolers and floats decorated by local people and businesses. Folk also visited the Ledge Community Coffee House at 38055 Cleveland Avenue where they took photos with Santa and Mrs. Claus and enjoyed live music.

This event didn’t appear to happen in 2021. In 2022 the Squamish Holiday Parade is set to take place on Saturday, December 3rd. Other details are to be confirmed.

For the latest information click Squamish Events.

Surrey Santa Parade of Lights

The Christmas parade happens in Cloverdale on the night of Sunday, December 4th, in 2019. The parade was inspired by a soft drink commercial from 1997 and features a variety of lit-up trucks, cars and other vehicles.

Read our Surrey Santa Parade of Lights article for details.

Vancouver Santa Claus Parade

The parade in downtown Vancouver is an annual event that attracts hundreds of thousands of people in years with good weather.

In 2019 the parade took place on Sunday, December 1st. Pre-parade activities happened in the plaza outside the Vancouver Art Gallery from 10:00 am until noon. The parade itself started at around 12:00 pm and went along Georgia Street and Howe Street. Folk were invited to bring a donation for the Greater Vancouver Food Bank Society, but the event itself was free.

Unfortunately, this event has been cancelled for 2022. Hopefully it returns in 2023.

For more information, check out our Vancouver Santa Claus Parade article.