Vancouver's CelticFest will return in 2025, but without its flagship downtown festival.
Organizers announced on Jan. 30, 2025 the annual festival will be back but in a smaller format, eliminating the free event in front of the Vancouver Art Gallery.
"Vancouver’s annual celebration of Celtic culture returns March 7th to 17th, 2025, with our 21st festival, but this year will be different," reads a statement from CelticFest.
The festival that highlights Irish culture around St. Patrick's Day is cutting its most prominent piece.
Over the past few years, CelticFest hosted two days of free events and entertainment on (or around) St. Patrick's Day at šxʷƛənəq Xwtl'e7énk Square (the art gallery's north square) featuring a stage with music, a beer garden and a market space with everything from Irish baking to Irish wolfhounds.
"We’re disappointed we’re not able to host the same downtown festival Vancouverites and visitors have come to expect," reads a statement from CelticFest's Alan Cosgrave.
A lack of funding is cited as the reason for the smaller festival.
"We received less funding from traditional sources than previous years and in the current economic climate sponsorships weren’t able to cover the extensive costs a large-scale event carries," continues Cosgrove.
While the big event isn't happening, CelticFest is still holding several other events.
"The headline event on Sunday, March 16th will feature Irish acoustic folk-rock band, Hermitage Green at The Vogue Theatre," reads a post from CelticFest.
A family day event is set for Saturday, March 15, "featuring art, music, dance, and tin whistle workshops for kids along with food trucks, bouncy castles and face painting fun!" It'll take place somewhere in East Vancouver; an exact location hasn't been released yet.
There will also be an Irish-themed variety show, an Irish comedy night and a night of traditional Celtic music with the Vancouver Welsh Men's Choir.
