top of page
Canada’s Largest Bubble Tea Festival

About Canada Bubble Tea Festival

Quick Facts:

​

Founded: 2022

Founder: Eric Yang

Location: Metro Vancouver, Canada (Flagship Festival)

Attendance: 80,000+ visitors since launch

Bubble Tea Brands: 15+ annually

Type: Independent bubble tea festival

Focus: Food culture, community celebration, and industry collaboration

​

Canada Bubble Tea Festival is also commonly referred to as Vancouver Bubble Tea Festival

What is the Canada Bubble Tea Festival?

The Canada Bubble Tea Festival is the largest independent bubble tea festival in Canada, founded in Metro Vancouver, Canada. Founded by Eric Yang, whose connection to bubble tea began in Taiwan in the late 1980s while helping in his family’s small restaurant.

 

The festival celebrates the creativity, culture, and innovation of the global bubble tea industry while bringing together local communities, brands, and fans of bubble tea.

 

Since its launch in 2022, the Canada Bubble Tea Festival has welcomed over 80,000 visitors across multiple editions and has become one of the most recognized Asian lifestyle festivals in Canada.

 

Each year, the festival features:

  • Bubble tea brands from across the region

  • interactive tasting experiences

  • cultural performances

  • family-friendly activities

  • industry collaborations

 

The event attracts bubble tea enthusiasts, families, young professionals, and cultural explorers who come together to celebrate one of the world’s most beloved drinks.​

Celebrating a Drink Global Culture

Bubble tea, originally created in Taiwan in the 1980s, has grown into a global cultural phenomenon.

 

In Canada, bubble tea has become an important part of the Asian-Canadian food culture and youth lifestyle.

 

The Canada Bubble Tea Festival was created to provide a large-scale platform where:

  • bubble tea brands can showcase their drinks

  • fans can discover new flavors

  • communities can celebrate Asian-inspired food culture

  • entrepreneurs can connect with new audiences

 

The festival helps elevate bubble tea from a simple beverage into a shared cultural experience.

​

​Bubble tea is widely believed to have originated in Taiwan, with Taichung often associated with its early development. Burnaby—where the festival takes place—shares a friendship city relationship with Taichung, symbolizing a cultural bridge between bubble tea’s roots and its global future.

A Growing North American Festival 

Since 2022, the Canada Bubble Tea Festival has grown rapidly in scale and recognition.

 

Key highlights include:

  • 80,000+ visitors since the festival launched

  • 15+ bubble tea brands participating annually

  • tens of thousands of drinks served during festival experiences

  • participation from community leaders and government representatives

 

In 2022, the inaugural festival welcomed The Honourable Janet Austin, Lieutenant Governor of British Columbia, who attended the opening ceremony on behalf of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II.

 

In 2023, Premier David Eby also joined the celebration, recognizing the festival’s role in supporting small businesses and cultural entrepreneurship.

 

These milestones reflect the festival’s growing influence within Canada’s cultural and business communities.​​

What Happens At The Festival?

The Canada Bubble Tea Festival is designed as an immersive festival experience.

 

Visitors can enjoy:

Bubble Tea Marketplace

A curated collection of bubble tea brands offering unique drinks and festival specials.

​

Tasting Experiences

Interactive tasting events where visitors can explore different styles of bubble tea.

​

Boba Cheers Challenge

A large-scale community celebration where thousands of cups of bubble tea are enjoyed together.

​

Family Activities

Workshops, games, and interactive experiences designed for visitors of all ages.

​

Live Entertainment

Music, cultural performances, and stage programs that bring energy to the festival.

About the Founder

Eric Yang’s connection to bubble tea began long before the festival.

 

In the late 1980s, as a child in Taiwan, he helped at his family’s small restaurant—serving guests, preparing breakfast sandwiches, delivering dishes to tables, and occasionally hand-shaking bubble tea.

 

At the time, bubble tea was still simple. A cup cost around NT$30, and flavours like milk tea, taro, and strawberry were often made using powder mixes. Tapioca pearls had to be boiled every morning before the shop opened.

 

Eric never imagined that bubble tea would one day become a global cultural phenomenon.

 

Years later in Canada, he began organizing community events. What started as small gatherings eventually led to the creation of the Canada Bubble Tea Festival—transforming a childhood memory into a celebration that now brings together tens of thousands of visitors, brands, and fans each year.

Before launching the Canada Bubble Tea Festival, Eric’s world was community leadership and small gatherings—events for dozens of people, with the biggest reaching a few hundred guests.

 

In 2017 and 2018, he attended a cultural festival at Swangard Stadium and remember thinking: “How can anyone run something this big?” At that moment, producing a large-scale festival at the same venue felt impossible.

 

But bubble tea was different. It wasn’t just a product—it was a shared language for young people, families, and communities. In 2022, the Canada Bubble Tea Festival was born and quickly grew into a platform that brings brands, creators, and fans together.

 

What started as an idea became a movement: a place where bubble tea is celebrated not just as a drink, but as culture.

_MA97673.jpg

Supporting Bubble Tea Brands

Beyond being a public festival, the Canada Bubble Tea Festival also serves as a platform for the bubble tea industry.

 

The event helps brands:

  • reach thousands of potential customers

  • launch new drinks

  • build brand awareness

  • connect with distributors and partners

​

Many participating brands report that the festival is one of the most effective marketing opportunities for reaching bubble tea fans in Western Canada.

The Future of the Festival

The long-term vision of the Canada Bubble Tea Festival is to expand beyond a single event and develop into a North American bubble tea festival platform.

 

Future plans include:

  • expanding the festival to other Canadian cities

  • creating new tasting competitions and awards

  • supporting emerging bubble tea entrepreneurs

  • building a larger international bubble tea community

​

The Canada Bubble Tea Festival aims to become a global meeting point for bubble tea culture.

​The long-term vision is to expand the festival platform into multiple cities while keeping Metro Vancouver as its flagship home.

kiwi_Productions2207224174S.jpg

Community Engagement

The festival has been recognized as a community event in the Burnaby RCMP Public Safety Committee report, highlighting positive interactions between officers and festival attendees.
bottom of page