Expert recommendations of the top events—with tips on how to best experience these celebrations.
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Vancouver International Children’s Festival
May. Local kids wait all year for this festival, held for eight days in Vanier Park; dance and drama productions, roving entertainers, and puppeteers; face painting, juggling lessons, and lots of music. Tel. +1 604 708 5655. www.childrensfestival.ca
Vancouver International Jazz Festival
June. Held over ten days at various venues throughout the city; world’s top names in jazz come to perform; includes a two-day dancing street festival in Gastown and Yaletown. Tel. +1 604 872 5200. www.coastaljazz.ca/index.cfm?page_id=3
Bard on the Beach Shakespeare Festival
June (starts May 29 in 2008)-Sept. “Watching Shakespeare with the Coast Mountains as a backdrop is one of the joys of summer.”—Andrew Hempstead, author, Moon Handbooks Vancouver & Victoria. Under giant white tents in Vanier Park; summer-long series of favorite Shakespeare plays. Tel. +1 604 739 0559 or 877 739 0559 outside Canada. www.bardonthebeach.org
Vancouver Folk Music Festival
July. Locals cherish the “Folk-Fest,” held over three days at Jericho Beach Park; several stages for music, spoken word, song, and dance; food and crafts vendors. Tel. +1 604 602 9798. www.thefestival.bc.ca
Vancouver International Fringe Festival
September. Ten-day festival celebrates the best in eclectic live theater; most performances are held at Granville Island. Tel. +1 604 257 0350. www.vancouverfringe.com
Vancouver International Film Festival
September-October. Spans 17 days beginning in late September. Special subgenres include "Dragons and Tigers: The Cinemas of East Asia", "Climate for Change", and "Canadian Images"; held at several venues, including the festival’s Vancity Theatre. Tel. +1 604 685 0260. www.viff.org
