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Vancouver Island ToursBritish Columbia, Canada

Public holiday

Canada Day in Victoria's Inner Harbour

The national holiday. Victoria's celebrations centre on the Inner Harbour and the Parliament lawns, with a day of performances and fireworks over the harbour after dark; the city publishes the programme each June. Nanaimo, Courtenay, Campbell River and the smaller towns hold their own.

Annual, dates set by the organiser
When
Thu 1 Jul 2027
Exact times set locally; all-day listing
Recurrence
Every 1 July
Where
Inner Harbour and Legislature lawns, Victoria
Victoria
Tickets
Free to attend
Organiser
City of Victoria
Last verified
6 Sept 2026

The harbour causeway is closed to traffic and packed by evening; the fireworks are best seen from the Legislature lawns, the causeway or across the water from Laurel Point. Whale-watching and harbour boats run as normal during the day but book ahead.

1 July is high season everywhere on the island: ferry reservations, Tofino rooms and Telegraph Cove cabins should all be arranged well before.

More on the calendar

10Oct
Public holidayAnnual, dates set by the organiser

Thanksgiving long weekend

Canada's Thanksgiving falls on the second Monday of October. On the island it coincides with the salmon runs, the last grizzly departures from Campbell River and the first autumn storms on the Pacific coast; ferries and accommodation fill for the three days.

Sat 10 – Mon 12 Oct 2026
Island-wide
Free to attend

Checked 6 Sept 2026

15Oct
Wildlife & natureAnnual, dates set by the organiser

Salmon run at Goldstream Provincial Park

Every autumn tens of thousands of chum salmon return to the Goldstream River, twenty minutes from downtown Victoria, to spawn and die in the shallows beside the trail. Bald eagles follow. It is one of the most accessible salmon runs on the coast and free to watch.

Thu 15 Oct – Thu 10 Dec 2026
Victoria
Free to attend

Checked 6 Sept 2026

Full calendar