The 13th annual Rogers Santa Claus Parade will hit the streets of Downtown Vancouver on Sunday, December 4, 2016 at 12:00pm in support of the Greater Vancouver Food Bank Society. This festive event, including many local organizations and businesses, is the largest Christmas parade celebrated in Western Canada and is considered a kick-off to the holiday season.
Rogers Santa Claus Parade in Vancouver
Starting out at 12:00pm, the parade will begin at West Georgia Street and Broughton, travel east along West Georgia, turn south on Howe and finish at Howe and Davie. Over 300,000 spectators flock to this event each year so be sure to arrive early to stake out your viewing spot.
A very special part of the Rogers Santa Claus Parade is celebrating the “Spirit of Giving.” Each year, on parade day, volunteers collect non-perishable food items and monetary donations on behalf of the Greater Vancouver Food Bank Society. For every $1 donated, the Food Bank can purchase $3 worth of food.
You can also enjoy many activities around the Coast Capital Savings Christmas Square, in the 800 block of Robson (Robson Square), that will be open form 10:00am to 12:00pm. The square will have a gingerbread decorating station, face painting, letters to Santa station, and an entertainment stage featuring exciting music and dancing performances. That is where you can also drop off your donations to the Greater Vancouver Food Bank Society.
Most Needed Items for the Food Bank
Canned fish or meats
Canned beans, kidney, black bean, chickpeas
100% nut butters
Pasta and rice
Canned vegetables, pasta sauces
Canned fruit, packed in its own juice or water
Whole grain breakfast cereals
Hearty soups, stews and chili
Follow the parade on Facebook and Twitter with #RogersSantaClausParade for the latest updates.
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Check out the full November event listings here and if you have an event to include, please send it in by email for a free listing. Follow Miss604 on Twitter for more daily updates.
Surrey’s Bear Creek Park Christmas Train opens for the season on December 9th, presenting a miniature railway tour winding through a holiday forest.
Bear Creek Park Christmas Train
Location: Bear Creek Park (13820 88 Ave, Surrey) Dates: Friday, December 9 to Sunday, January 1, 2017 (closed Christmas Day) Times: Open 10:00am to 4:00pm – last train leaves the station at 4:00pm Admission: Adults & Children $10.00 each + tax
From December 9th to 24th, Santa Claus will be hanging out at the train station. Families can visit and receive a candy cane, and enjoy activities before or after their train ride through the forest with Eddy the Engine.
Follow the Bear Creek Park Train on Facebook for more information.
The Bear Creek Park Train area is also home to an 18 hole mini golf course around the forest. It compliments the seasonal train offerings that take place at Christmas, Easter, and Halloween.
The City of Surrey is set to kick off the Christmas season with the return of the Surrey Tree Lighting Festival on November 19th with free family fun and of course the lighting of a 55-foot Christmas tree – one of the tallest Christmas trees in Canada.
Surrey Tree Lighting Festival
Where: City Hall Plaza (13450 104 Ave, Surrey) When: Saturday, November 19, 2016 12:00pm to 7:00pm Admission: Free!
The public is invited to join Mayor and Council for a day of children’s activities, concert performances and the 6:30pm lighting of the tree.
Presented by Coast Capital Savings, the event features a variety of activities including road hockey, a mini Christmas Train, face painters, kids’ crafts, ice-carving demonstrations, Ferris wheel rides and live music. Canadian youth performer Tyler Shaw will headline a free concert featuring Jocelyn Alice. The performance lineup also includes Juno award-winning Norman Foote, Sweet Scarlet, Mooncoin Show Band, Ginalina, Colin Bullock, plus dance, glee club and choral group performances.
Stop by the Photo Booth with Coast Capital Savings, Storyville at City Centre Library, the Safeway Treat Zone, Toddler Town, Food trucks, Crafts with the Downtown Surrey BIA, Surrey Art Gallery Crafting, Letters to Santa Station, Shooting Star Ferris Wheel, Berry-Go-Round, Christmas Market, Mini Christmas Train, Road Hockey Zone, Giant Snow Globe, Ice Carving Demos and more! A full schedule is available online and includes a visit from Santa at 12:55pm.
The Surrey Food Bank, Surrey Christmas Bureau, Sophie’s Place and the Surrey Fire Fighters’ Charitable Society will be on site collecting donations.
Follow the City of Surrey’s events team on Facebook and Twitter for more information.
Miss604 is a Proud Sponsor of the Surrey Tree Lighting Festival
Vancouver Opera presents a new family-friendly production of Engelbert Humperdinck’s beloved fairytale opera Hansel and Gretel, featuring the enthralling larger-than-life puppet creations and costume design of world-famous Calgary-based Old Trout Puppet Workshop.
Vancouver Opera Presents Hansel & Gretel
The master artisans of Old Trout Puppet workshop have created an enchanting fairy-tale world of visual surprises for ages 6+. Larger-than-life puppets, stunning design and an irresistible new orchestration will make Vancouver Opera’s new production the ideal holiday treat for the whole family.
Hansel and Gretel, Taylor Pardell Pascale Spinney. Photo by Emily Cooper.
Long ago, in a fairy-tale house, two children find themselves on a magical adventure. Lost in the woods and pursued by a witch, Hansel and Gretel must use all their wits and trickery to avoid a terrible fate.
Vancouver Opera’s production will include astonishing puppets as well as other playful surprises in this family-friendly holiday treat. Engelbert Humperdinck’s familiar dramatic score, adapted for the intimate Playhouse, will thrill seasoned opera-goers and charm new audiences with familiar tunes that beautifully evoke the forest setting and the opera’s colourful characters and creatures.
Hansel and Gretel will be performed at the Vancouver Playhouse from November 24 to December 11, 2016 with performances at 7:30pm. November 27th and December 11th will have 2:00pm performances, and November 30th and December 7th will have 12:30pm performances. Tickets are available now through the Vancouver Opera box office online or by calling (604) 683-0222.
This production has been abridged from its original length to appeal to young and adult audiences alike. Singers from Vancouver Opera’s prestigious Yulanda M. Faris Young Artists Program bring fresh energy to this delightful holiday production. The performances will be sung in English, in a new adaptation by stage director Brenna Corner with the lyrics projected above the stage as they are sung.
Russian composer Anatoly Korolyov has been commissioned to create an intriguing and charming new reduced orchestration of Humperdinck’s score, which perfectly suits the intimate Vancouver Playhouse. The sensational 24-year-old Scottish-born conductor Alexander Prior will lead a youthful cast of emerging opera stars, a chorus of fourteen children, and a 14-member ensemble of the Vancouver Opera Orchestra which includes strings, woodwinds, brass, percussion, a saxophone and an electric guitar.
Win Tickets
I have a pair of tickets to give away to a performance of Hansel and Gretel on Tuesday, November 29th at 7:30pm. Here’s how you can enter to win:
RT to enter to win tickets to Hansel and Gretel at @VancouverOpera from @Miss604 http://owl.li/5Uj1305YOw4
Follow Vancouver Opera on Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram for more information. I will draw one winner at random from all entries at 12:00pm on Monday, November 14, 2016. Tickets are non-refundable; cannot be exchanged for another performance.
From December 9th to 24th, Santa Claus will be hanging out at the train station. Families can visit and receive a candy cane, and enjoy activities before or after their train ride through the forest with Eddy the Engine.
The public is invited to join Mayor and Council for a day of children’s activities, concert performances and the 6:30pm lighting of the tree.
