Lunar New Year Festival Website Promotes Diverse Celebrations in Vancouver, Richmond this February

(Source: The Metro Vancouver Convention and Visitors Bureau)

January 22, 2018 (Vancouver & Richmond, BC, Canada): Whether you call it Chinese New Year, Spring Festival or Lunar New Year, there is no denying it is one of the world’s most celebrated annual events.

Richmond and Vancouver have long been known for their abundance of Spring, Chinese New Year and Lunar New Year celebrations. With festivities ranging from parades to lantern festivals to culinary extravaganzas, the Lower Mainland has been named one of the top places in the world to celebrate Chinese New Year by Travel + Leisure, Fodor’s, MSN and other media.

And now, a new website aims to make it easy for locals and visitors to discover the wealth of events taking place in both Vancouver and Richmond over the Lunar New Year period.

The new website - LunarFestival.com - was created by Tourism Vancouver and Tourism Richmond with counsel from the Asian-Canadian Special Events Association (organizers of LunarFest and TaiwanFest), Dr. Sun Yat-Sen Classical Chinese Garden, River Rock Casino Resort and other partners.

“We are very pleased to be partnering with Tourism Richmond on this initiative” said Ty Speer, Tourism Vancouver’s president and CEO. “It further showcases the year-round vibrancy of our region and is a platform with which to invite the world to join us in our destination to celebrate the Lunar New Year."

“There’s such a wealth of events and festivities happening during the Lunar New Year in both Richmond and Vancouver,” said Bruce Okabe, Chief Executive Officer of Tourism Richmond. “Creating a one-stop shop for visitors and locals to plan their Lunar New Year experience made sense. As the festival grows in programming and recognition, we’ll be able to provide better and better destination experiences for locals and travelers worldwide.”

Event producers are able to upload their events onto the LunarFestival.com website with a few clicks. There are already more than 30 events and performances listed.

Some highlights include:

• 45th Annual Vancouver Chinatown Spring Festival Parade – Feb. 18

• Temple Fair at Dr. Sun Yat-Sen Garden – Feb. 18

• Lanterns in the Garden at the Dr. Sun Yat-Sen Classical Chinese Garden – Various dates

• Lunarfest at Oakridge Centre – Feb. 8-26

• Chinese New Year Flower and Gift Fair at Aberdeen Centre – Feb. 9-18

• Chinese New Year of the Dog 2018 Arts Festival – Feb.10-23

• Lulu Island Winery Guided Tour – Feb. 15-25

• Tibetan Lunar New Year Celebration at Thrangu Monastery – Feb. 16.

• LunarFest and Ballet Productions Canada Society’s “The Butterfly Lovers” – Feb. 16

• Celebrating Chinese New Year of the Dog 2018 at International Village – Feb. 16-18

• Lunar New Year Celebration at River Rock Casino Resort – Feb. 16

• Lunar New Year Celebrations at Granville Island – Feb. 17

• Lunar New Year at Lonsdale Quay Market – Feb. 17

• Lunarfest: A Celebration for Dogs! (…And Dog Lovers), Vancouver Art Gallery – Feb. 18

• Flyover Canada Flight of the Dragon – Jan. 18 - Feb. 18

• Lunarfest 2018 at the Vancouver Art Gallery Plaza – Feb. 18 & 24-25

This year, the Lunar New Year begins on February 17, 2018, but festival events begin from the start of the month.