this neon soaked night market is where you need to be

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There are a lot of ways to spend a weekend in Metro Vancouver. However, not many can hit all your senses at once quite like the Richmond Night Market. 

The market is back after its winter hiatus, opening for the season on April 24th and will run on the weekends and holidays until late September. 

If you’ve never been, and don’t worry, I haven’t yet either. The simplest way to explain it is part cultural experience, part light show, and all organized chaos. 

But let’s be honest, the atmosphere alone would be worth it, but the main draw is the food. But it would be a disservice to refer to it as just any street food.  

Here, you can find anything from skewers, bubble tea, and fusion snacks from all around the globe served in everything from noodle cups to mango leaves and beyond.  

 The play here is, you’re not just grabbing dinner, you’re sampling. A bit of this, a bit of that. Next thing you know, you’ve constructed your own personal smorgasbord of tasty treats all while soaked in the vibrant colours of the neon lights that are iconic to the market, and maybe a little too Instagram friendly. My advice? Go with a group of friends to get the full experience. Trying to tackle this one-of-a-kind market solo is a rookie mistake.  

(CTV Vancouver – X)

I am not from Vancouver, so I was unaware of this market until recently, and you better believe that upon learning of it, I immediately sent some manic texts to a couple people for possibles hangouts or even a date idea. 

However, even though you should go expecting a good time, you might want to pack your patient pants. It gets busy, like really really busy. Expect lines, crowds, and a little bit of waiting, especially on a nice weekend. So, it’s best not to show up already in hanger monster mode. 

The Richmond Night Market is one of the best examples of Metro Vancouver’s cultural mix actually coming together right in front of your eyes. It’s chaotic. It’s loud. It’s packed. And yet somehow, that’s exactly why it works and what makes it totally awesome. 

The Richmond Night Market isn’t just another thing to do on the weekend and then forget about. It’s the kind of experience that you post some crazy neon washed out photos of yourself with some crazy food and end up talking about for weeks afterward.