The event boasts of being British Columbia’s largest Caribbean festival, regularly attracting tens of thousands of visitors. It was previously held in North Vancouver before making the move to Coquitlam in 2022. The centrepiece of the festival is a carnival parade representing a number of Caribbean cultures, as well as an accompanying children’s carnival. Musical performers will take to the stage playing genres with a wide variety of Latin, African, and other influences, including reggae, calypso, and soca.
No festival would be complete without food, and Caribbean Days will offer a multicultural menu of food and drink from local vendors. Local businesses are also invited to apply for space in a crafts market where clothing, jewellery, art, and other items will be for sale.
Cultural festivals such as this provide an opportunity for local artisans to reach new customers, often using eye-catching banner printing or colourful products to stand out from the crowd. Caribbean Days will also feature an amusement park with attractions aimed at a family audience.
Marketing emphasizes the new location:
“Town Centre Park is a fabulous multi-use recreational complex boasting Lafarge Lake, a five-hectare man-made body of water anchoring this idyllic greenspace near the heart of urban Coquitlam.”
The 2023 edition of Caribbean Days will take place on July 29 and 30 at Town Centre Park in Coquitlam.