January is a month full of annual favourites and new, fun activities. Get ready for Dine Out, Chinese New Year and more!
Ongoing through January 3
Bright Nights at Stanley Park
What: Stanley Park's Bright Nights is an annual Vancouver holiday tradition where over a million twinkly lights transform the forest into a winter wonderland.
Where: Stanley Park, Vancouver
Cost: $8; $5 for seniors & kids 2-18
Ongoing through January 4
VanDusen Botanical Garden's Festival of Lights 2008
What: The gorgeous VanDusen gardens turn festive with elaborate light decorations, a Candy Cane Tree, Gingerbread Walk and much more.
Where: VanDusen Botanical Garden, 5251 Oak St., Vancouver
Cost: $11; $8 for seniors & youth; $6 for kids 6 - 12; $25 for families
Ongoing through January 4
Beauty and the Beast
What: The Arts Club Theatre Company’s new holiday tradition, Disney’s musical Beauty and the Beast is a favourite for kids and adults alike.
Where: Stanley Theatre, 2750 Granville St., Vancouver
Cost: $25 - $74
Ongoing through January 7
Banner Years - Hidden Hockey Treasures
What: BC Sports Hall of Fame and Museum presents this exhibit representing BC great hockey heritage.
Where: BC Sports Hall of Fame and Museum, Gate "A" at BC Place Stadium,
777 Pacific Boulevard South, Vancouver
Cost: $10; $8 for students, seniors and kids 5 - 17; group rates available
Ongoing through January 11
WACK! Art and the Feminist Revolution
What: The first comprehensive, international exhibit exploring the dynamic of art and feminism from 1965 to 1980 comes to the Vancouver Art Gallery.
Where: Vancouver Art Gallery, 750 Hornby Street, Vancouver
Cost: $17.50; $7 for kids 5 – 12
Thursday, January 1
89th Annual Polar Bear Swim
What: The annual Polar Bear Swim Club—and anyone who wants to join them—take a cold plunge into English Bay every New Year’s Day since 1920. Highlights include a 100-yard swim race and lots of costumes. Register or just watch at the English Bay Boathouse; registration is 12:30pm – 2:30pm; the race starts at 2:30pm.
Where: English Bay Boathouse, English Bay Beach, Downtown Vancouver
Cost: Free
Saturday, January 10 – Sunday, January 11
Burn the Floor
What: Burn’s 20-person dance troupe are award-winners who combine a rock-and-roll style arena show with a Broadway theatricality. Features artists from around the world and a blend of Rumba, Cha-Cha, Samba, Salsa, Waltz, Tango, Quickstep, Swing and Jive.
Where: Queen Elizabeth Theatre, Hamilton St. and Dunsmuir, Vancouver
Cost: $29.50 - $69.50
Wednesday, January 14 - Sunday, February 1
Dine Out Vancouver
Saturday, January 17
Indie I Do – Vancouver’s First Alternative Wedding Show
What: The first trade show of its kind in Canada, this alternative wedding show features “local independent, edgy, and innovative exhibitors,” to give couples more individual choices for their weddings.
Where: Heritage Hall, 3102 Main St., Vancouver
Cost: $15 in advance; $20 at the door
Tuesday, January 20 – Sunday, February 8
PuSh International Performing Arts Festival 2009
What: One of Vancouver’s signature festivals, the PuSh Festival is 20 days of groundbreaking work in the live performing arts: theatre, dance, music and other, hybrid forms of performance.
Where: Various sites around Vancouver; see site for details
Cost: Various; see site for details
Saturday, January 24 – Thursday, February 5
Carmen
What: The Vancouver Opera performs one of the most famous and beloved operas of all time, Bizet’s Carmen.
Where: Queen Elizabeth Theatre, Hamilton St. and Dunsmuir, Vancouver
Cost: $23.25 - $144.25
Sunday, January 25
Gung Haggis Fat Choy Robbie Burns 250th Birthday & Chinese New Year's Eve
What: A cross-cultural literary, music and food celebration, this 12th-annual dinner merges BC's Scottish and Chinese history and culture into a celebration that combines Chinese New Year with Scotsman Robbie Burns’ birthday. This is the dinner that inspired the CBC TV performance special and the SFU Gung Haggis Fat Choy Festival.
Where: Floata Chinese Restaurant, #400-180 Keefer St., Vancouver
Cost: $65; $54.50 for students; $44 for kids under 13
Monday, January 26
Chinese New Year, Korean New Year & Vietnamese New Year
It’s the Year of the Ox!
Ongoing Vancouver Events
Thursday, September 25 - Sunday, February 15
The Unnatural History of Stanley Park
What: In celebration of 120th birthday of Vancouver’s oldest and largest park, Vancouver Museum has created an exhibition that uncovers the history of human interaction at Stanley Park, in conjunction with 36 interpretive panels in the park.
Where: Vancouver Museum, 1100 Chestnut St., Vancouver
Cost: $11; $7 for kids under 17; Family Passes for $32
