This weekend's Metro Vancouver weather forecast doesn't include scorching heat. However, conditions are expected to stay dry, meaning you can enjoy all of the outdoor festivals.
Japan Market returns offering goods from over 70 vendors, while the Strathcona Blocks Party offers retail specials, food trucks, a beer garden, and a vendor market.
Two new exhibitions remain open at the Vancouver Art Gallery, with one that celebrates the B.C. clay community from the 1930s to the early 2000s.
The Richmond Night Market and downtown’s Junction Public Market will also continue to bring warm-weather vibes, tasty bites, and community fun.
Here are a few fun things to do in and around Metro Vancouver from June 13 to June 15, 2025.
Dancing on the Edge Festival
The Dancing on the Edge Festival (DOTE) is considered the "cornerstone of Vancouver’s contemporary dance season," featuring established and emerging dance makers at the Firehall Arts Centre and SFU Woodward’s.
The festival spotlights a wide range of talent, including Canadian premieres and works in progress. It will also include three full-length works, over its 10-day slate of performances.
When: June 12 to 21
Where: Firehall Arts Centre - 280 E Cordova St | SFU Woodward’s - 149 W Hastings
Cost: $25-$50 per performance.
Waitress
The Arts Club Theatre Company’s production of Waitress is on now through Aug. 3 at the Stanley Industrial Alliance Stage. Ashlie Corcoran directs the Broadway musical about a small-town waitress and expert pie-maker, Jenna, "who dreams of a new life outside of her tumultuous marriage."
Jenna faces an unexpected pregnancy and sees winning a pie-making contest's grand prize as a "lifeline." Grammy Award-winning Sara Bareilles created the score, and it is based on the 2007 indie film written and directed by Adrienne Shelly.
When: June 12-Aug 3
Where: Stanley Industrial Alliance Stage - 2750 Granville St
Cost: From $39
Riverdance
Irish dancers' fast-paced performances feature intricate footwork paired with Grammy Award-winning music, "has captured the hearts of millions worldwide."
When: June 10-15, shows at 2 p.m. and 7:30 p.m.
Where: Queen Elizabeth Theatre - 630 Hamilton St
Cost: $47-$157. Get tickets.
Vancouver Canadians baseball games
The Vancouver Canadians will play the Spokane Spiders (SPO) in four games this weekend, including four daytime ones.
When: Games on June 12 at 7:05 p.m., games on June 13-15 at 1:05 p.m. Saturday is Blue Jays Day and Sunday is Family Fun Day.
Where: Rogers Field at Nat Bailey Stadium - 4601 Ontario St
Cost: $27-$42. Get tickets.
Alley Oop Street Party
Binners’ Project is hosting an Alley Oop Street Party in the vibrant Alley Oop laneway.
The evening will feature live music, food, games, and creative drinks. It will recoqunize the work of the binners throughout the city, who work hard to earn a living through collecting recyclables.
When: June 14 from 6-11 p.m.
Where: Alley Oop laneway - 688 W Hastings St
Cost: $75. Get tickets.
Queer Arts Festival: Portals
The 18th edition of the festival runs from June 6 to 28, with everything from arts shows to screenings to jazz shows to a clothing swap. This year's theme is portals.
"Portals are gateways to transformation—liminal spaces of transition, possibility, and change," reads the festival's website.
One of the highlights is a special screening of the new series Long Live Kings, which looks at the local drag king scene.
When: June 6–28, 2025
Where: Centre A/Sun Wah Centre - 268 Keefer St (and other locations)
Cost: Ticket prices vary. Some are pay-what-you-wish
Strathcona Blocks Party
The Strathcona Blocks Party returns for its fourth year, celebrating community and local businesses in this vibrant Vancouver neighbourhood.
The party will feature retail specials, food trucks, a beer garden, and a vendor market. Attendees are encouraged to shop and explore the area on their visit.
For the first time, party-goers can check out the Learning and Exploring Zone, including a reading nook, musical exploration stations, arts and crafts, and kid's activities.
The event also has a live music stage, a vendor market curated by Made in the 604, mini-golf in the beer garden, custom hand-pressed tote bags, and tasty offerings from local favourites including Shameless Buns, Tacofino, and more.
Check out the full event schedule on the website.
When: June 14 from noon to 5 p.m.
Where: 600 to 900 Block of East Hastings in Vancouver
Cost: Free
Japan Market Summer Festival
Japan Market returns with a vibrant summer edition, featuring over 70 vendors offering Japanese street food, artisan crafts, and unique merch—plus cultural entertainment, workshops, and free photo ops with a samurai. The first 50 guests through the doors at 11 a.m. on both days will receive a $10 market voucher, so come early! Tickets are good for one day only, and children 15 and under get in free.
When: June 14-15 from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m.
Where: Vancouver Art Gallery North Plaza šxʷƛ̓ənəq Xwtl'e7énḵ Square - 850 W Georgia St
Cost: Admission is $4-9. Get tickets online.
5X Access, presented by 91 North Records
The annual 5X festival celebrating South Asian culture returns to Vancouver and Surrey from June 12 to June 14, 2025.
Guests who purchase the 5X All Access Pass also have access to the 5X Access exclusive industry mixer, where they can network with established and emerging South Asian artists, community leaders, and creators. The event will feature Raediamendz, Mrii, Kyle Bhawan, and others.
When: June 12, from 7-10 p.m.
Where: Surrey Pavilion - 13380 102a Ave, Surrey
Cost: Special event, invite only (available through purchase of 5X All Access Pass).
5X Art Party
The 5X Art Party brings emerging South Asian artists and creators together in an immersive experience combining art and live music, featuring Raediamendz, Mrii, and Kokaheena.
When: June 13, from 6-11 p.m.
Where: Beaumont Studios - 316 W 5th Ave, Vancouver
Cost: $30 early bird / $40 regular. Get tickets.
5X Blockparty
The flagship 5X Blockparty celebrates all things Panjabi culture and music. The outdoor event will be hosted by Parmvsthewrld and Neeti Sharma and feature several artists including:
- Talwiinder (in his debut B.C. performance)
- Gminxr (with special guests)
- G Sidhu
- Sahil Cheema
There will also be DJ sets from UK duo Panjabi Hit Squad and MTooray.
When: June 14, from 4-9 p.m.
Where: Surrey Civic Plaza - 13450 104 Ave, Surrey
Cost: Free RSVP / VIP $100. Get tickets.
Ongoing
Two new exhibitions at the Vancouver Art Gallery
Monsters in My Head is Japanese artist Otani's first solo presentation in North America, inviting visitors into an "enchanted dreamworld, where myths, memories and materials come together to form a landscape—one that is strange, yet deeply familiar."
Otani's work includes ceramic creatures in various scales that "emerge from earthen mounds, tree stumps and scattered stones.
"The mazelike installation—constructed from materials foraged from local parks and forests—echoes Otani’s creative process, which transforms natural elements (clay, wood, flora) into figures brimming with presence and personality," according to the exhibition description.
Written in Clay from the John David Lawrence Collection, invites visitors to explore the rich ceramic traditions of British Columbia. The exhibition has about 200 objects, and examines the materials and processes used by artists across the region. It focuses on the mentors, interlocutors, societies, and schools that comprised the clay community from the 1930s to the early 2000s.
When: May 25 - Nov. 9, 2025
Where: Vancouver Art Gallery - 750 Hornby St
Cost: B.C. Resident General $29. Youth, caregivers, and persons with disabilities are free.
Value: Rebecca Belmore at the Museum of Anthropology
The Museum of Anthropology will host the opening of its next major exhibition, Value: Rebecca Belmore, on Thursday, May 15. The exhibition will feature four installation works spanning the four-decade career of the internationally lauded Anishinaabe contemporary artist.
The exhibition challenges notions of collective value defined by colonial institutions and contemporary social structures. It features two of Belmore's most notable multimedia works – Fountain (2005) and Wild (2001). Fountain premiered at the 2005 Venice Biennale and will be exhibited with the artist's original installation specifications in Vancouver for the first time in 20 years. It features a short film displayed on a wall of falling water.
A fourth work – Ayum-ee-aawach Oomama-mowan: Speaking to their Mother (1991) – will arrive later this summer to be on display in MOA's Great Hall. The two-meter-wide wooden megaphone was created in response to the deadly 1990 Kanehsatà:ke Resistance in Oka, Quebec.
When: May 15-Oct. 19, 2025.
Where: UBC Museum of Anthropology - 6393 NW Marine Dr.
Playland
Following the opening of Vancouver's largest amusement park last weekend, locals can enjoy over 20 rides at a variety of thrill levels for children of all ages (and adults can enjoy them, too).
People can purchase Playland Season passes to get the "ultimate access" to the amusement park on public operating dates, at the cost of less than three admissions (on select dates, May to Aug 2025). Passholders also receive additional special perks.
When: May 17 to June 26 on Saturdays and Sundays from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. (the number of open days increases after June 26 for the summer season).
Where: Playland Amusement Park - 2901 E Hastings St.
Cost: Varies with ticket. Get tickets.
Junction Public Market
Vancouver's vibrant waterfront free public market returns to Granville Square for the 2025 season on May 1.
Now in its second year, the Junction Public Market features rotating pop-ups, local artisans, food vendors, a licensed patio, live entertainment, and special events planned throughout the spring and summer.
The popular warm-weather event runs in a unique shipping container marketplace in Granville Square, located between Waterfront Station and Canada Place.
The Sipping Container bar will feature a list of local brews, wines, and pre-mixed drinks, with a patio overlooking the Vancouver waterfront and North Shore.
When: May 1 to Sept. 28. Vendors: Tuesday to Sunday from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Licensed patio: Tuesday to Sunday from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m.
Where: Granville Square - 200 Granville St., between Waterfront Station and Canada Place, Vancouver
Cost: Free admission
Richmond Night Market
Richmond hosts one of the largest outdoor markets in North America and has up to 150 retail stalls and 130 food vendors, as well as entertainment and carnival games. This year it is adding a 600-foot zipline ride by to celebrate its 25th anniversary (available starting May 19).
Also, to celebrate 25 years, the market will also offer happy hour specials and admission discounts. Every night, drinks will be under $7 and food under $10 at every food stall, while admission will be $5 after 10 p.m. General admission is $7 for anyone older than 7 but under 60; kids up to 7 and those 60+ get in for free. A Zoom Pass, which gives you the ability to skip the line, is $35.
When: April 25-October 13
Where: 2431 No. 3 Rd, Richmond
Nuxalk Strong: Dancing Down the Eyelashes of the Sun
The Nuxalk Strong: Dancing Down the Eyelashes of the Sun is the first exhibition dedicated entirely to the Nuxalk nation who lived over 14,000 years on the central northwest coast in Bella Coola.
The exhibition showcases the Nation's rich culture and what it is doing to revitalize its language, self-governance, stewardship, and ceremonial practices.
Visitors can also see how the community works to "safeguard Nuxalk belongings, treasures, and ceremonies – including the return of a significant collection of masks, regalia, and cedar bark weavings at the exhibition closes in 2026."
Nuxalk Strong features treasures and artworks housed at the Museum of Anthropology, as well as loans from private collections and six participating museums: Royal British Columbia Museum (Victoria), Burke Museum (Seattle), Glenbow Museum (Calgary), Manitoba Museum (Winnipeg), and Museum of Vancouver.
When: Feb. 21, 2025, to Jan. 5, 2026
Where: MOA at the University of British Columbia - 6393 NW Marine Dr, Vancouver
Cost: Free
With files from Lindsay William-Ross, Brendan Kergin, and Valerie Leung.
