Vancouver's early-October calendar is packed, with a handful of big-ticket events overlapping in the same week. Here's what's on in and around the city from October 5-9, and which ones are worth planning a trip around.

The headline act is Sting, who brings his STING 3.0 Tour to 630 Hamilton St. downtown on Monday, October 5 and Tuesday, October 6 at 7 p.m., backed by guitarist Dominic Miller and drummer Chris Maas. It's a stripped-back run through his greatest hits, but tickets sit around $341.86, so budget accordingly.

Film fans have better timing: the Vancouver International Film Festival runs October 1-11, screening hundreds of features and shorts including world premieres and award-season titles at the VIFF Centre on Seymour St. and theatres across town. Tickets went on sale August 27.

Halloween arrives early in Vancouver. Fright Nights at the PNE — Western Canada's largest haunt — kicks off October 7, running Wednesdays to Sundays through the 31st with haunted houses, roaming performers and midway rides (from $41 in advance). Capilano Suspension Bridge Park launches its family-friendlier Canyon Frights on October 9, with glowing lights through the treetops from $29. Over in Burnaby, a Halloween festival spreads more than 17 free and ticketed events across the city until November 8, including a Monster Dash 5K, Day of the Dead celebrations and escape rooms.

For something less spooky, Science World opens The Robot Zoo on October 9, an animatronics exhibition that runs until April 4, 2027, using repurposed household and industrial materials to build a hunting squid, a swimming platypus and a giant grasshopper ($37.50 adults, $25.50 kids). VanDusen Botanical Garden's Harvest Days wrap up weekends through October 18 with lawn games and live music among peak fall colour for under $15.

Also on the list: the BC Lions host the Ottawa Redblacks at BC Place on Friday, October 9; The Improv Centre on Granville Island runs Deadly Dinner Party, a murder-mystery improv show, through October 30 (from $28.50); and the Vancouver Maritime Museum offers private sailing experiences on select October Thursdays and Sundays — a steep $1,099 per group of up to eight, but with serious views.

For travellers, mid-October is a sweet spot: festival season, fall foliage and spooky-season events without peak-summer crowds or prices. Just note several of these are date-limited, so book around VIFF or Fright Nights first and fill in the rest.