2011 - Year of the Rabbit
Vancouver Chinatown Spring Festival Celebration
Sunday, February 6th, 2011

Chinese New Year Parade

The Chinese New Year Parade, Vancouver Chinatown's signature event, will return on February 6th, 2011. With lion dances, cultural dance troupes, marching bands and more, this parade is a cultural extravaganza not to be missed. Come see the sights, sounds and festivities of Chinese New Year to celebrate the Year of the Rabbit!

2011 Parade Highlights

The Chinese New Year Parade celebrates the new year of the Chinese lunar calendar and is a fun-filled event for everyone to enjoy. According to the City of Vancouver, the parade is one of the three largest non-commercial annual parades of Vancouver. The parade features the largest assembly of traditional lion dance teams in Canada with dozens of colourful and energetic lions from the various local fraternal and martial arts organizations. Other highlights include multicultural dance troupes representing the diverse segments of our Canadian cultural heritage, the Vancouver Police Department Motorcycle Drill Team, marching bands and various community groups. The parade is expected to have some sixty non-commercial entries, bringing over 3,000 participants from various community and cultural groups. It is not surprising that the parade draws over 50,000 spectators along the route each year plus many more seeing it through TV coverage.

2011 Parade Schedule

The 2011 parade will start at 12:00 noon sharp on Sunday, February 6th, 2011, and will take two hours to complete.

Parade Route

The parade route is about 1.2 Km long. The starting point is at the Millennium Gate on Pender Street (between Shanghai Alley and Taylor Street), the parade will proceed east along Pender Street, turn south onto Gore Street, turn west onto Keefer Street and then disperse at Keefer and Columbia. See map here

Parade Broadcast

Coverage of the parade will be broadcast on Sunday, February 6, 2010, 9:00 pm - 10:00 pm on:

• Cable Channel 4 - Shaw TV
• Digital Channel 116 - Shaw Multicultural Channel

2011 Year Of Rabbit Vancouver Chinatown Spring Festival

Looking for more after the parade? Come join us at this cultural fair to see more Chinese New Year performances. To be held at the Chinese Cultural Centre Courtyard (50 East Pender Street) between 2 and 4 pm, this celebrative event will feature multicultural performances, special lion dance grand finale and martial arts demonstration.

Chinese New Year Banquet

The annual Chinese New year Banquet will once again be held at the Floata Seafood Restaurant, featuring lion dances, greetings by the fortune god and a variety show with singing, cultural dances and more. Reception starts at 6 pm in Chinese. The restaurant is located at #400, 180 Keefer Street. Tickets are $35 each.

Admission

All events from the 2011 Vancouver Chinatown Spring Festival are open to the public. The Chinese New Year Parade and the 2011 Year of Rabbit Vancouver Chinatown Spring Festivalshow have free admission.

The Organizers

The inaugural Chinese New Year Parade was organized by the Chinese Cultural Centre of Greater Vancouver in 1974. An instant success, the parade has since become an annual signature attraction for the Chinatown of Vancouver. Since 1979, the Chinese Benevolent Association of Vancouver has taken the role as the lead organizer. As the number of parade entries and participants have grown over the years, so has the parade planning committee. For the 2011 parade, the six co-organizers are: Chinese Benevolent Association of Vancouver, Chinese Cultural Centre of Greater Vancouver, Vancouver Chinatown Merchants Association, S.U.C.C.E.S.S., Chinese Freemasons Vancouver Branch and Shon Yee Benevolent Association.

Questions

If you have any questions, please e-mail us.