Big changes are in store for Vancouver Craft Beer Week with a new venue and all-inclusive ticketing for 2020.
The 11th annual VCBW Festival, which caps off a citywide 10-day celebration of craft beer, will take place at Concord Community Park in False Creek, moving from the PNE Fairgrounds where the festival has taken place for the past five years. Organizers say the new venue will be more central and more transit friendly.
“We are excited to be located in the middle of the city, on the waterfront,” Vancouver Craft Beer Week festival director Leah Heneghan explained in a press release on Thursday. “[VCBW will be] within walking distance of three SkyTrain stations and some great Vancouver breweries.”
While the new venue will have a smaller footprint than the previous PNE space—with the total number of breweries and cideries taking part down to 75 from 100—the festival will now be offering four tasting sessions over three days, June 5–7, 2020.
Next year’s festival will also be all-inclusive, with all beer samples included in the ticket price and no beer tokens to worry about. Which is amazing, so please behave yourself and don’t ruin this for everyone.
“We listened to feedback from our loyal fans and made substantial changes to our ticketing which is intended to add to the enjoyment of the event,” said Heneghan.
Early bird tickets go on sale at noon this Sunday (Dec. 1) with holiday pricing for the month of December. All-inclusive tickets (which include all of your beer) are $59 until the stroke of midnight on New Year’s Eve, after which they will be regularly priced at $69. The four tasting sessions will take place Friday, June 5 from 6–10 p.m.; Saturday, June 6 from 12–4 p.m. and 6–10 p.m.; and Sunday, June 7 from 1–5 p.m. Discounted tickets can be purchased at VancouverCraftBeerWeek.com, while supplies last.
VCBW was recently named Vancouver’s Social Event of the Year at the 2019 Golden Owl Awards and was winner of the 2018 Growler Craft Beer Readers’ Choice Award for Best Beer Festival/Event and the 2019 Georgia Straight Golden Plates winner for Best Beer Festival.
