Spring is a busy time in Vancouver with holidays like St. Patrick’s Day, Easter, Victoria Day and Mother’s Day. There is also Spring Break for school children.
What To Do in Vancouver in Spring
There is plenty to do in Vancouver in spring. The spring season months are March, April and May. During these months the City of Vancouver and surrounding municipalities host various special events and festivals.
Temperatures in Vancouver in spring usually range from around 5 to 15 degrees Celsius depending on the month and time of day. It can get rainy during this season so don’t be surprised if you need a jacket and other rain gear. Interestingly, May sometimes has better weather, both warmer and drier, than June!
Indoor and Outdoor Activities
If the weather is cooperating, spring is a great time to get outside and enjoy the many outdoor activities Vancouver has to offer. Check out our articles about Outdoor Recreation in Vancouver or Parks & Nature.
Other great places to explore in spring can be found in our articles about Hiking in the Lower Mainland, Vancouver’s Top Golf Courses and Best Places for Jogging, Walking & Cycling. By May, Vancouver’s Best Beaches and Lower Mainland Campgrounds also become popular.
With spring, as well as increasingly nicer and warmer weather, there are also days with rain and other less-than-ideal weather. This is Vancouver after all! For ideas on what to do when it’s rainy and miserable outside click Vancouver Indoor Activities.
Spring Skiing at Vancouver Ski Hills
Most of the ski hills across the Lower Mainland offer skiing well into spring. One or two are sometimes even open into May! The five ski hills near Vancouver are listed below along with their average closing dates. (Note: 2023/24 has been a terrible ski season. All resorts will likely close earlier than usual this year.)
- Grouse – on Vancouver’s North Shore. The mountain’s last day is usually around the end of April.
- Cypress – on the North Shore in West Vancouver. The resort typically closes in early to mid-April.
- Mt. Seymour – in North Vancouver towards Deep Cove. The last day of spring skiing is typically around the second weekend in April.
- Sasquatch Mountain – in the Fraser Valley near Harrison Hot Springs. Last day of the season is usually around the first weekend in April.
- Whistler Blackcomb – in the Sea to Sky region. Whistler Mountain often closes in mid to late April while Blackcomb frequently remains open until around the Victoria Day Long Weekend (which is usually the third week in May).
Holidays During Spring Months
Springtime in Vancouver is full of holidays and cultural festivals. The months of March, April and May contain statutory holidays and other special-occasion dates. For a full list of events throughout the year click Vancouver Festivals and Events.
March Events in Vancouver
The following are March holidays and other special dates of significance in Vancouver (as well as in the rest of Canada and the world in some cases):
- International Women’s Day – a day to celebrate women on March 8th each year.
- Persian New Year – Norooz/Nowruz is celebrated in West Vancouver with a fire festival.
- Spring Break – children get a couple of weeks off school beginning in mid-March.
- St. Patrick’s Day – an Irish holiday celebrated on March 17th each year.
- CelticFest Vancouver – an Irish and St. Patrick’s-themed festival in mid-March.
- Festival du Bois – a francophone festival with music and cultural activities in Coquitlam in early March.
- Vancouver International Auto Show – a car-themed trade show at the Vancouver Convention Centre.
In addition to the above, Easter sometimes happens in March, as is the case in 2024. Fun places to celebrate the holiday at include the following:
- Britannia Mine – the museum offers a scavenger hunt and other special activities on the Easter Long Weekend.
- Fantasy Farms – kid-friendly activities run as part of Peteys Easter Eggstravaganza for about two weeks leading up to Easter. There are also Easter-themed events on select nights for adults only.
- Taves Farms – the farm’s family-friendly Easterfest event runs from the Friday to Sunday of the Easter Long Weekend most years.
- Maan Farms – Baby Animal Easter Days and Breakfast with the Easter Bunny run on the long weekend. There’s also a Bunnies & Booze event for adults on one night.
For more ideas of things to do during the third month of the year, see our Vancouver March Calendar.
April Events in Vancouver
The following are holidays and other special dates of significance in April:
- April Fools’ Day – on April 1st each year practical jokes are customary.
- Earth Day – on April 22nd each year (and often celebrated on the weekend just before or after).
- International Pillow Fight Day – a funny day when whoever wants to can show up outside the Vancouver Art Gallery at a specific time in early April and join a massive 30-minute pillow fight. (Note: This event doesn’t always take place. It does, however, some years.)
Easter happens in April most years too, but not in 2024. Some Easter-themed events still run on the first day of April, including Hoppy Heights at Capilano Suspension Bridge.
More April Events
In addition to the above, other events that usually happen in April in the Vancouver region include the following:
- Vancouver Cherry Blossom Festival – a series of events celebrating spring and cherry blossom season. Events include the Sakura Days Japan Fair, the Big Picnic and several others.
- Richmond Cherry Blossom Festival – a one-day event celebrating cherry blossom season at Gary Point Park in early April.
- Surrey Vaisakhi Parade – a large festival celebrating the Punjabi New Year in Surrey in late April.
- Vancouver Vaisakhi Parade – a large festival celebrating the Punjabi New Year in South Vancouver in mid-April.
- 420 Vancouver – an event originating as an annual protest against cannabis laws years ago. Today it’s simply a celebration of everything to do with marijuana on April 20th each year.
- Abbotsford Tulip Festival – an event at Lakeland Flowers featuring the largest display of tulips in Canada. It usually begins in April and continues until mid-May.
- Harrison Tulip Festival – an amazing flower festival with 10 million tulip bulbs and beautiful mountain views in Agassiz (which is close to Harrison Hot Springs).
- Botanica Tulip Festival – a flower festival that’s carbon neutral with 1.5 million tulips in Chilliwack. It also has a Ferris Wheel from Tuesdays to Sundays in the first three weeks of the season.
- Sweet Spring at Greendale Acres – a spring flower festival with baby farm animals and lots of activities for kids in Chilliwack.
- Vancouver Sun Run – a 10-kilometre race in mid-April.
- Whistler World Ski & Snowboard Festival – a series of snow sports and arts events at Whistler in mid to late April.
For additional details, check out our April Calendar of Events.
May Events in Vancouver
The following are holidays and other special dates of significance in May:
- Cinco de Mayo – a Mexican holiday that takes place on May 5th each year.
- Mother’s Day – a special day celebrating mothers on the second Sunday of May.
- Victoria Day – a statutory holiday commemorating the late Queen Victoria on a Monday in late May.
Other festivals and events taking place in the Lower Mainland in May most years include the following:
- Cloverdale Rodeo – a rodeo and country fair in Surrey on the Victoria Day long weekend.
- Fort Langley May Day Fair and Parade– a community festival in Fort Langley in mid-May.
- Ladner May Days – a community festival in Delta on a weekend in late May.
- Royal Canadian International Circus – the circus usually comes to town for a few weeks in May.
- Vancouver All British Field Meet – a car show featuring hundreds of British-made automobiles at VanDusen Garden on the Saturday of the Victoria Day long weekend.
- Vancouver Marathon – a running race that goes from Queen Elizabeth Park to downtown Vancouver in early May.
- Whistler Go Fest – an outdoor-themed festival with sports activities and live music in mid-May.
For more ideas of things to do in Vancouver in May, check out Vancouver’s Best Places’ May Calendar.
Other Information
Other articles that might be of interest include the following:
- Top Spring Activities for Children
- Spring Break in Vancouver
- Vancouver Summer Activities
- Lower Mainland Winter Activities
- Vancouver’s Best Places in Autumn
- Vancouver on a Budget
- March, April and May Calendars of Events
- Vancouver Festivals & Events
