Vancouver has been hosting some very notable events over the last year, but one that’s coming to town in July is predicted to be the biggest ever.
In 37 days, the global Alcoholics Anonymous (AA) convention will be hosted in Vancouver between July 3 and July 6, and we’ve confirmed with Destination Vancouver that it is expected to be the single largest convention the city has ever hosted.
The event will take place across two venues, BC Place and Vancouver Convention Centre. The theme of this year’s convention is “language of the heart.”
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AA hosts this convention once every five years, commemorating a notable anniversary for the community dating back to 1935, when the first meeting took place. During their annual conventions, members from around the globe attend, so needless to say, it’s going to be an incredibly busy first week of July in Vancouver, as AA expects tens of thousands of attendees.
“At the International Convention, people attend meetings, workshops, dances and events. A highlight is the traditional flag ceremony to celebrate sobriety worldwide,” AA says about the event.
“This will mark the 90th anniversary of the beginning of our Fellowship’s founding.”
The AA website has some historic info that points to just how big the event could be.
“Most recently, in 2015 in Atlanta, Georgia, an estimated 57,000 AA members attended. The convention had 5,000 volunteers – some local, others from distant states and countries,” the website states.
Tickets aren’t cheap. Advanced tickets, which were US$160 per person, are no longer available. Prices have now increased to US$185 per person, and you must register on the convention website.
We asked Destination Vancouver what the biggest conventions have been in the city historically. It pointed to SIGGRAPH, which the city has hosted several times, with around 14,000 attendees, and the Pacific Dental Conference is just shy of 15,000.
This week, Vancouver is hosting Web Summit, another massive event that might be among the top five largest conventions the city has hosted.
We’re expecting a total attendee estimate from Destination Vancouver for the AA convention and Web Summit and will update the story accordingly.