Tickets to sold-out Stanley Park Train appear on Craigslist

The Stanley Park Train may not be as popular as Taylor Swift, but tickets to the newly revived attraction were still scooped up within hours of going on sale Thursday – prompting concerns about potential scalping.

More than 23,000 tickets to the holiday train, part of the annual Bright Nights fundraising event, were purchased in under 90 minutes, according to the Vancouver Board of Parks and Recreation, which described the demand for the attraction as "unprecedented."

Some would-be buyers faced frustrating technical issues, however, which the board promised to address.

"We share in the collective disappointment that not everyone was able to secure tickets and we will be reviewing our ticketing process going forward," the board told CTV News in a statement.

"While the train tickets have sold out, please be aware that the holiday lights display and the activities in the plaza will still be open and are free to the public."

Since the tickets sold out, some social media users have speculated that scalpers – not unlike the ones who tried to score tickets to Swift's much-anticipated Vancouver concerts – pounced at the opportunity to purchase train tickets for re-sale.

One Craigslist ad was posted Thursday offering nine tickets – six adult tickets, one youth ticket and two children's tickets – to the Bright Nights train for $50 each. The sale price was $15 for adults, $13 for youths and $11 for children.

Two other Craigslist posts offered to buy available tickets for up to $150.

CTV News asked the park board whether any measures were in place to mitigate scalping, and received a statement from Showpass, the platform used for the sale, which said three safeguards for "fair ticket distribution" were in place, including a limit of six tickets per purchaser.

The company also disabled guest checkout, meaning buyers needed to have an account with the city, and implemented a "scalping flag system" in which tickets identified as being resold will be cancelled.

"We knew that Bright Nights was a highly sought after event, so we wanted to make sure as many excited fans got to go as possible," a spokesperson wrote in an email.

The Stanley Park Train was closed in 2020 over concerns related to the COVID-19 pandemic, then reopened in 2021 only to be shuttered after a power source was stolen. It was cancelled again in 2022 due to mechanical issues with the antique engines and passenger cars.

Vancouver Mayor Ken Sim announced the train was returning earlier this week – largely due to approximately $500,000 in funding for repairs that officials solicited from private donors, with another $150,000 coming from the city – while exclaiming, "It's back, baby!"

Officials have since confirmed only one of the four locomotives, and three of the 13 carriages, will be operational by the opening of Bright Nights. The park board said work to repair the remaining locomotives and carriages "is ongoing and a priority." 

Bright Nights supports the B.C. Professional Fire Fighters' Burn Fund, and is the charity's biggest annual fundraiser.