The Vancouver Thai Festival is a free event showcasing Thai food, music and culture outside the Vancouver Art Gallery on a weekend in late July.
The 2020 Thai Festival was cancelled because of the COVID-19 pandemic. Unfortunately, the 2021 festival was also cancelled. Organizers hoped that the event could return in 2022. It doesn’t look like it did though. Whether it happens again in the future one day is to be determined.
Thai Festival in the Art Gallery Plaza
In 2019 the Thai Festival took place on the Saturday and Sunday of July 13th and 14th. It ran from 10:30 am until 10:00 pm both days. 2022 dates and details are to be confirmed.
Sponsored by the Royal Thai Consulate, the event happened every year between 2014 and 2019.
Festival Venue
The Thai Festival used to take place in the North Plaza outside the Vancouver Art Gallery which is located at 750 Hornby (at the corner with Georgia Street). At the festival there was a stage where dances and other performances took place, and in the plaza there were a number of food stalls and other vendors.
What to Expect
Vancouver’s Thai Festival was a small to medium-sized festival. In years with good weather, there could be up to about 500 or more people there at a time, and as many as half a dozen food vendors selling everything from Thai curries to other tropical dishes.
The Thai Festival was an opportunity for local Thai dancers and other performing arts groups to share their talents and culture with the general public Vancouver.
At the festival you could expect to see lots of dance groups, colourful costumes, people speaking Thai and delicious spicy smells.
If you were downtown, like Thai food and want some culturally-interesting free entertainment, then the Thai Festival was worth checking out. Again, it wasn’t a huge event, but the food was tasty and the performances were enjoyable.
Other Information
To learn more about the event, click Thai Festival (where you’ll find the poster for the event from a few years ago).
For a list of other festivals, see Vancouver’s July Calendar or Festivals & Events Calendar. For a list of other free events taking place this same month, click Free Events in July.
Other articles that may be of interest include:
- City of Vancouver
- Vancouver Summer Activities
- Shows and Entertainment Calendar
- ExplorASIAN Festival in May
