Why Vancouver might just be the most appealing World Cup host city

With the dawn of 2026 we are close to the latest edition of the FIFA World Cup finals.

This time around the competition is more bloated than ever and hosting duties will be shared by Canada, Mexico and the US.

I've covered four of these tournaments in the past: in Spain, Mexico, Italy and France, but am now happy to watch a few games on TV.

Given the ongoing madness in the US, if I were planning a visit the I'd be tempted by a few games in Vancouver, British Colombia, a delightful city in a sane country that I have been fortunate enough to visit a few times.

The World Cup arrives in BC for seven matches between June 13 and July 7 with games taking place on the traditional territories of the three host First Nations: xʷməθkʷəyəm (Musqueam), Sḵwxwú7mesh (Squamish), and səlilwətaɬ (Tsleil-Waututh).

Local tourism organisations hope the event will spotlight the cultures, voices, and communities of Indigenous peoples and diverse cultures that call this part of Canada home.

Outside the stadium lies a province as immense as it is diverse: nearly four times the size of the UK and Ireland combined.

BC Place Stadium in downtown Vancouver is a key venue for FIFA World Cup 26 with its seven games including two featuring Canada's national team, one starring Australia and two showcasing New Zealand.


Here's the full match schedule at BC Place:
Australia v Kosovo/Romania/Slovakia/Türkiye | Group D | June 13
Canada v Qatar | Group B | June 18
New Zealand v Egypt | Group G | June 21
Switzerland v Canada | Group B | June 24
New Zealand v. Belgium | Group G | June 26
Match 85 | Round of 32 | July 2
Match 96 | Round of 16 | July 7

Vancouver is a city worth several days of anyone's time, World Cup or not.


It is gorgeous urban area, framed by mountains, temperate rainforest, and Pacific coastline - with the ski resort of Whistler not far away.


National Geographic recently named Vancouver among its Best of the World 2026 list.


The downtown area is home to beaches, ocean views, and 27 kilometres of forested trails.


Visual highlights include Grouse Mountain with city-to-sea views and its new Grouse Bike Park, the Capilano Suspension Bridge Park and Squamish Canyon.


Whales splashing off Vancouver's coast - Orcas, humpbacks, sea lions, and bald eagles - turn the Salish Sea into their arena, Tours depart from Granville Island in Vancouver, also home to one of the best produce markets in the world (below).



Hungry fans will be well catered for: from street food to fine dining, from historic Gastown to leafy Stanley Park.


Pan-Asian flavours rule at the Richmond Night Market, one of the largest in North America, while in the Okanagan wine valley Kelowna was recently named a UNESCO City of Gastronomy, the first in Canada.

Visitors can experience Salmon n' Bannock, the only First Nations restaurant in Vancouver, showcasing local Indigenous ingredients with a modern twist.


This multi-cultural city is also home to Little Italy, an eight-block stretch along Commercial Drive in Vancouver and the Punjabi Market, a three-block area in the Sunset neighbourhood - home to one of the largest south Asian communities in Canada.


Here is a BC Fact Sheet to explore quick facts and key context about British Columbia, provided by Destination BC/Destination Vancouver.


See https://www.destinationbc.ca/ and https://www.destinationvancouver.com/

From camel skewers to squidlipops: Dark Mofo's Winter Feast to push boundaries

Dark Mofo's Winter Feast is promising to dish up a mixture of old favourites and rising culinary stars.

The the food and drink element of the winter solstice festival will returns to the Nipaluna/Hobart waterfront for eight nights of feasting next month.

The waterfront location will welcome over 70 stallholders along with music, firelight and community vibes.

‘The Winter Feast is the warm, beating heart of Dark Mofo," says Dark Mofo artistic director Chris Twite.

"Gathered around fires and feasting by candlelight, it’s where we come in from the cold to share stories of where we've been and what we've seen. Eating together - friends, strangers, locals, visitors - is an important festival ritual, and the staggering array of incredible food on offer means there is always something for everyone.’

The Feast will welcome guest chef Niyati Rao from acclaimed Mumbai restaurant Ekaa, who will collab with Craig Will, Bianca Welsh and James Welsh from Stillwater in Launceston.

Other food collaborations include Thi Le + Fat Pig Farm, which sees award-winning Melbourne chef Thi Le teaming up with locals Fat Pig Farm; Salvage Drink Co. X Braised presenting infused cocktails paired with spiced offerings from Hobart's premium lamb providore; and Marla Singer X L’Appel Wines pairing an octopus slider with pinot noir.

Chef Analiese Gregory makes her return to the fires of the Feast, this year bringing a taste of the Tasmanian sea. She’ll be serving up skewers of baby abalone, shiitake and black garlic, grilled over fire (top image).

New Feast stallholders include Dark Dogs, serving their take on dagwood dogs; wine bar South will presents a slow-cooked possum bao; Elle’s Pantry will have pockets stuffed with seasonal pickles, tabbouleh, and green harissa hummus; and Bass Strait Seafood & Co by Sabina Newton will offer dishes ranging from creamy chowder to buttery marinara.

Joining the new stallholders will be familiar favourites, from Lilly Trewartha’s katsu sando, to Queen Sheba’s injera with slow-cooked chicken; Soufra & Co’s folded layers of filo pastry and custard baked fresh to order, to the famous squidlipop from Formosa Bites (above).

Fresh from his appearance on ABC’s Eat the Invaders, Mona’s executive chef Vince Trim is back with Heavy Metal Kitchen, eating the problem with a feral feast: fire-charred camel, skewered and served with an array of spiced and braised condiments.

Visitors can wash the dishes down with new offerings from New Norfolk’s Welcome Swallow Brewery, fizzy blush from Common Wine, or a Pressing Matters pinot noir.

Mona’s own wineries - Moorilla and Domaine A - will be on site, along with Moo Brew.

Amanda Vallis, the Winter Feast curator, says: ‘The food community in Lutruwita/Tasmania is one of the best things this island has to offer, and nowhere is it more pronounced than when everyone comes together to feast around the fires in the depths of winter.

"Whether it’s a hot take on a dagwood dog, or the flavour explosion offered by a guest chef all the way from India, the Winter Feast is sure to fill your cup and feed your soul.’

A number of events will celebrate the power of music, storytelling and First Nations cultures.

The Winter Feast takes over Salamanca Lawns and Princes Wharf Shed 1 and runs and runs on both weekends of the festival: Thursday June 5-8 and June 1-15.

Season passes are available via darkmofo.net.au/winter-feast

As part of the Winter Feast’s commitment to reaching zero waste, all stallholders will use compostable crockery and cutlery, with reusable cups and schooners available for beverages. The Feast is also a completely cash-free event.

# Dark Mofo is Tasmania’s mid-winter festival celebrating the dark through large-scale public art, food, music, fire, light, and noise, in Hobart.

Images: Dearna Bond, Dark Mofo  

Shining a light on First Nations culture

Autumn is when Australia's Northern Territory comes alive with festivals, including Parrtjima - A Festival in Light - which celebrates light, colour, and artistry while celebrating the rich cultures, diversity, and inclusivity of people of Central Australia.

Parrtjima - A Festival in Light has unveiled the full program for its milestone 10th edition, which runs from April 4-13 in Alice Springs. 

The only Aboriginal light festival of its kind, Parrtjima will feature more than 20 First Nations artists across six installations, alongside more than 100 performers and special guests spanning music, comedy, art, workshops, and talks. 

The free, all-ages festival will debut four new installations by both emerging and established artists. 

Along with art, Parrtjima will feature nightly live performances, including Troy Cassar-Daley’s only free performance announced for the remainder of 2025, and a historic ticketed orchestral performance by the Darwin Symphony Orchestra. 

Additionally, Parrtjima will host its inaugural comedy night with stand-up performances by Andy Saunders and Sean Choolburra, plus interactive workshops and talks led by notable figures such as Bundjalung chef Mark Olive, language holder and ecologist Veronica Perrule Dobson, filmmaker Rachel Perkins, and ABC Radio National’s Rudi Bremer.

For details see https://parrtjimaaustralia.com.au/

A journey back to the Yukon's ice age

 

Yukon Territory is wild territory. Cold, remote and challenging with a fascinating history.

Following an extensive refurbishment, the Yukon Beringia Interpretive Centre has re-opened in the capital city of Whitehorse, in Canada’s deep north-west.

This research and exhibition facility now features new fossils, murals, displays and interactive experiences, telling the story of the Yukon’s Ice Age history.

Beringia was a land bridge that once linked Alaska and Siberia, providing a route for humans and animals to migrate into North America tens of thousands of years ago.

Visitors to the Beringia Centre can step back in time and see exhibits like a 1.5-million-year-old caribou bone, the oldest in the Arctic; and meet Zhùr (meaning wolf), an ancient mummified wolf pup discovered in the permafrost in 2016 by Yukon miners working in the Klondike goldfields near Dawson City.

This tiny wolf pup is the best preserved and most complete mummy of an ancient wolf found to date. The scientific team worked with the Tr'ondëk Hwëch'in (First Nation band government in Dawson City) to highlight the cultural importance of wolves and other ice age mammals within their community.

The Yukon Horse display contains 26,000-year-old remains and visitors can also learn about the First People who crossed the Beringia land bridge. There are lifelike dioramas of a scimitar cat and giant short-faced bear, as well as a mummified arctic ground squirrel and Yukon caribou.

The Beringia Centre also showcases a replica of the famous Bluefish Caves archaeological site, where the jawbone of an ancient Yukon horse was discovered, believed to be around 24,000 years old.

Consisting of three caves, located near the Old Crow community, the first contained various animal bones that were dragged there by predators, as well as tools that indicate a human presence.

The centre also features films, guided tours, original works of art, and exhibits of discovered remains from throughout the Yukon, all contributing to a better understanding of the long lost sub-continent of Beringia.

The Yukon is a renowned leader for ice age and Beringia research.

Getting there: Air Canada offers daily direct flights to Vancouver from Sydney and Brisbane. Direct flights from Sydney to Vancouver are also available on Qantas. Internal flights to Whitehorse and Dawson City are available on Air North and Air Canada. For more information visit travelyukon.com

Traditional owners tell their stories in a new way

Three First Nations groups from the Mungo National Park and Willandra Lakes Region World Heritage Area have launched a new mobile app called Mungo Stories: Walk Together.

The app has been launched in partnership with SharingStories Foundation, NSW Parks and Wildlife Service and students at Mildura Primary School. 

The Barkandji/Paakantyi, Mutthi Mutthi and Ngiyampaa communities worked together to create the free mobile app designed to offer visitors to the region a more dynamic experience of the park’s heritage. 

The app features ten living stories narrated by First Nations Custodians who led the work on Country and is accessible only when on Country.

Each of the stories is discovered by the app user via story markers which have been placed throughout the National Park. 

Using the app’s GPS map technology, visitors find locations within the park where they scan markers to unlock videos that share stories and knowledge from the three tribal groups. 

For a one-minute, promotional video of the Mungo Stories: Walk Together app, visit here.

The stories are narrated by Elders and include animations illustrated by school students and Ngiyampaa artist, Nola Taylor. 

The culture app is designed as an introduction to the region’s cultural heritage and complements tours run by the Mungo National Park’s Aboriginal Discovery Rangers. 

“The Willandra lakes is a very special place, as it tells us about how our ancestors once lived, evidence of how they survived an ice age, clues to what animals they ate and how they hunted them," says Barkandji/Paakantyi Traditional Owner Uncle Ivan Johnston. 

"Not only is this place significant for Aboriginal people,but also for non-Aboriginal people to learn about human history.” 

For more info visit https://sharingstoriesfoundation.org/mungo-stories, https://sharingstoriesfoundation.org/ and https://visitmungo.com.au/.