Dragon Boat BC Chinatown Hub – 122 East Pender

Dragon Boat BC returns home to Chinatown. Over the past few years, the Society executed the Dragon Boat BC 2025 plan, with capital investments in race quality fleets, strategic investments in stabilising key events around BC, community investments through new grant programs to support youth and Para teams, and cultural investments to raise up local culture.

Through the process, we returned time and time again to the fact that our team- and the community we serve- needs a space to grow. And, we reflected on how dragon boat in Canada started in Vancouver’s Chinatown by community organisations and volunteers. Despite us being started in Chinatown, we weren’t there. It’s time to change that. We’re excited to unveil phase 1 of our plan to create a space at the intersection of culture and sport for everyone. We invite you to join us at the historic Chinese Theatre building at 122 East Pender.

The Chinatown Hub is now on soft open for teams to use by appointment for erg training and video reviews. National Team coaches may email info@dragonboatbc.ca for private use bookings. Regular operating hours will begin in 2025 until the race season begins, then resume in October 2025 – April 2026. Outside of the regular operating season, the space will be available for private team bookings subject to availability.

What’s in the Chinatown Hub?

Phase 1 of the Dragon Boat BC Chinatown Hub includes features like:

• KayakPro dragon boat ergometer facility for testing and training
• Video review and team meeting open lounge area
• In-person Dragon Boat BC info desk servicing for registrations, rentals, merchandise and equipment, and support questions
• Cultural exhibition area for rotating selection of dragon boat artefacts and items from our archives

Who will be able to use the Chinatown Hub?

During the soft launch, access will be limited to a small number of teams to allow staff time to build up familiarity with our new operating protocols and train new members of our team. Once Phase 1 is fully open, all dragon boat teams and paddlers participating in Dragon Boat BC events will be able to register to access the Chinatown Hub through passes or booked time slots, The Hub will begin with limited hours, before expanding over time depending on demand patterns.

Why Chinatown?

Dragon boat in Canada began in Vancouver’s Chinatown, and it’s the right thing for us to do to go back to our roots. Plus, with the Hub being a 10 minute walk to our Olympic Village dock facilities, it’s a convenient walk or bike away for paddlers. It also sends a strong show of support for Chinatown during a period when there are challenges for the neighbourhood, but also helps build traffic and support local businesses in a direct way every day that the facility’s open. Finally, Dragon Boat BC’s growth over the previous few years have seen our attendee and participant numbers exceed pre-pandemic numbers, and the Chinatown Hub provides us with the space to properly service our million-plus visits annually.

How do I get involved?

As the Chinatown Hub gets developed, we’re looking for partners to help us in building up this part of Chinatown! Please email us at info@dragonboatbc.ca with any questions you have, or to learn more about the facility. If you’re a team looking to learn more about the Hub, please email us at info@dragonboatbc.ca. We look forward to seeing you in Chinatown soon!

2025-2026 Chinatown Hub Fees – 2025 registrations open in late Summer 2025

Chinatown Hub passes include a maximum 2 hour slot/day to use the space and associated equipment. Please note that there are up to 5 KayakPro ergs available in the space, and a maximum of 15 people booked in at one time, allowing the machines to be shared by multiple people. Teams may opt to select private training and video review slots for up to 90 minutes on select days, allowing exclusive and private use of the space.

Note that due to Chinatown Hub operations, passes will run from October until the end of March.

Returning teams: Please email info@dragonboatbc.ca to request a holdover of your current slots. Slots will be released for general booking after October 1 annually.

The Chinatown Hub is supported by the Vancouver Chinatown Foundation and the Government of British Columbia. Research on future phases of the Chinatown Hub is supported by the City of Vancouver and BC Arts Council.

The Chinatown Hub is situated on the traditional, ancestral, and unceded lands and waters of the Musqueam, Squamish, and Tsleil-Waututh peoples.