There’s something really magical about being in Downtown Vancouver’s 1,000 acre woods during the holidays while millions of lights glitter all around, surrounded by festive music. While there won’t be any vintage trains running during Bright Nights in Stanley Park this year, there will be plenty of festive family fun all for a great cause!
Bright Nights in Stanley Park
When: December 1, 2022 to January 1, 2023
4:00pm to 10:00pm nightly.
Closed December 5; December 6; December 25
Where: Pipeline Road in Stanley Park (follow signs to Miniature Railway)
Admission: By donation.
In addition to a wide array of light displays, the 25th anniversary of Bright Nights will include fan favourites like the vintage fire truck, giant red reindeer and the tunnel of lights in the plaza. There will be firefighters welcoming guests, plenty of candy canes, and the barn will be transformed into Santa’s workshop for the first time since 2019. Food vendors on site will offer a wonderful selection of comfort food like churros, pretzels, popcorn and hot chocolate.
Bright Nights is the single largest fundraising event for the Burn Fund. Proceeds fund burn survivor programs year-round, including Burn Camp and the Home Away Program, which provides accommodations to survivors, fire fighters and their families who must travel to Vancouver for medical treatment. The Park Board has donated more than $2.5 million to the Burn Fund since the event partnership began in 1998.
In addition to admission by donation, the Bright Nights 50/50 returns as a fundraiser and extension of the event. Tickets go on sale November 17, 2022.
The Stanley Park Train is still being assessed following the recent inspection by Technical Safety BC earlier this fall. As mentioned in the Ghost Train news release, safety is the number one priority for the Park Board and a complete analysis of the mechanical issues is needed to determine next steps.
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VanDusen Botanical Garden has announced the 38th annual VanDusen Festival of Lights will be returning from November 25, 2022 to January 2, 2023. The incredible light installation will feature over one million lights covering 15 acres!
VanDusen Festival of Lights 2022
When: November 25, 2022 to January 2, 2023
4:00pm to 10:00pm; closed December 25th
Where: VanDusen Botanical Garden (5251 Oak St, Vancouver)
Tickets must be purchased online in advance for a designated entry time. Tickets are not sold on-site.
Wander through one of Vancouver’s favourite gardens, transformed by a spectacular winter display. The Laburnum Walk, Rose Garden, Japanese Maples, and other beloved garden highlights will be embellished with dazzling lights for the season, sure to get visitors in the holiday spirit.
The new Glacial Passage will brighten indoor halls with an arctic lounge featuring artisanal icy treats. In addition to the themed lighting displays and photo-worthy light tunnels, this year the garden welcomes back the unforgettable Dancing Lights on Livingston Lake.
The Park Board is also pleased to announce this will be the 21st year of working with Make-A-Wish Canada as the charitable partner for the event. Since 2001, the event has raised $593,948 for Make-A-Wish and has set a goal of raising an additional $60,000 this year. Visitors are encouraged to visit Make-A-Wish at the Scottish Shelter to donate and light a candle.
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It began in 2014 as a simple, beautiful, elegant way to bring light to the West End during its darkest season. This year, re-envisioned Lumière Festival will embrace all of Downtown Vancouver with its warmth while shining a light on local artists. Returning November 17-27 with the theme: Dream the Future, elements of light, art and storytelling will be woven together to redefine winter as a season of inspiration and connection.
Chris Davis, AJ Simmons, Feven Kidane
Lumière Festival Vancouver 2022
When: November 17-27, 2022
Where: Various public locations in Downtown Vancouver, the West End (English Bay, Jim Deva Plaza, Denman Street), Yaletown (Roundhouse Plaza, Bill Curtis Square, Helmcken Plaza), Gastown (Maple Tree Square)
Admission: Free!
Follow Lumière through Downtown Vancouver, the West End, Yaletown and Gastown, and discover 55+ artists and performers, illuminated Dream beacons, pop-up performances, workshops and demonstrations, as well as neighborhood parades throughout the course of the festival.
Each night, at a new location, festival Dreamers will come together and celebrate with light, music, art and dance; no two nights will be the same during this free family-friendly celebration.
Kicking off the Lumière Festival is an open air spectacle at šxʷƛ̓ənəq Xwtl’e7énḵ Square (formerly: Vancouver Art Gallery North Plaza) on the evening of Thursday, November 17, 2022, and wrapping up in iconic Morton Park on November 26, 2022, is another outdoor stage showcasing artists, light and performances.
Featured artists include two-time Western Canadian Music Award winning soul, jazz and R&B singer Krystle Dos Santos, explosive, high-energy dance band Queer As Funk and Vancouver event band Trilojay. Visual artists include Zachery Cameron Longboy, Lee Rosenbaum, and Jed Mangahis. Dancers from Harbour Dance, Mozaico Flamenco and many more of Vancouver’s best will be Dreaming throughout Lumière.
This fall, the three-time Grammy Award-winning Soweto Gospel Choir returns to Vancouver as one of two Canadian stops on its North American tour. Presented by Caravan World Rhythms, the group will perform their new concert, “HOPE: It’s Been a Long Time Coming”, which draws from music that inspired and supported South Africa’s Freedom Movement and the American Civil Rights Movement.
Soweto Gospel Choir Photo by Stephen Garnett
Soweto Gospel Choir in Vancouver
When: Saturday, November 12, 2022 at 8:00pm
Where: Queen Elizabeth Theatre (630 Hamilton St., Vancouver)
This timely celebration of human resilience will uplift weary audiences after recent years of increasing political and social struggle around the world.
The Soweto Gospel Choir was formed in 2003 in Soweto (South West Township), a town outside of Johannesburg and home of Nelson Mandela and South Africa’s democratic movement. They came together just as South Africa was coming out of apartheid. Since then, they have performed at some of the country’s biggest events, such as the first of the 46664 AIDS benefit concerts and the 2010 FIFA World Cup, including singing for leaders like Mandela and Archbishop Desmond Tutu.
With this history woven tightly into the choir’s fabric, “HOPE: It’s Been a Long Time Coming” commemorates South Africa’s Freedom Movement and the American Civil Rights Movement through music that inspired and strengthened these events. Audiences will hear South African struggle songs and traditional music, alongside familiar tunes like Marvin Gaye’s “What’s Going On,” Sam Cooke’s “A Change is Going to Come” and Ben E. King’s “Stand By Me”.
The 24-piece Soweto Gospel Choir is comprised of some of South Africa’s best vocalists. They have long been renowned for their energizing concerts across the globe and have shared the stage and collaborated with some of the biggest names in contemporary music, including U2, Stevie Wonder, Celine Dion, Red Hot Chili Peppers, and Josh Groban. They perform a range of African gospel, freedom songs, and international classics, through heartfelt renditions that are at once both distinct and familiar. Their arrangements showcase powerful solos and exuberant harmonies, supported by percussion, clapping, and traditional South African dancing.
A new month is here and with it comes another giant event list, more festivals, more markets and attractions, and these fun things to do in Vancouver this weekend will kick it all off!
Things to do in Vancouver This Weekend November 4-6
