For A place this little, we sure have a lot of magicAl Spaces
Historic Town, Intimate Venues
Wells is a charming little town that lies in foothills of the Cariboo Mountains, near the end of Highway 26. This little community is known for its history, artistic scene and exciting outdoor adventures. Built as a company town for Fred Wells’ Gold Quartz Mine in the 1930’s and once served as a major centre of northern BC, with up to 4000 people living here in its 1940’s heyday. *
*Text pulled from the District of Wells Website www.wells.ca/about/wells
Wells, at the time of producing this form, has cell service in town. Wi-fi and Cell service may be limited during times of population fluctuation to Wells, such as during a cute arts festival.
We have a volunteer fire department, local RCMP detachment and Emergency Medical Services in town. The closest grocery store, hospital, etc. is roughly 80km away.
The nature of our town’s 1930’s architecture may be difficult to navigate for folks with different mobility needs. When you visit the venues page, you’ll notice that we have done our best to give a mobility description!
Camping and Parking – Your Questions Answered
Everything you wanted to know but were afraid to ask.
It’s important to note that in the five years since we last gathered in person, parts of Wells may have changed since last you visited us. This also applies to camping and parking.
As a small town with limited resources and a lot of different industries, we must be flexible with our use of space and resources. This includes how much room we have available for festival goers.
Camping at ArtsWells is no-frills: simple with the opportunity for you to be close to activities. We try to work with the needs of campers, but acknowledge that we are limited by the space that our special town provides. There are no shower facilities or electricity hook-ups at this time, but we do supply additional portable toilets in efforts to not overload our town’s infrastructure.
Be aware that camping is ONLY allowed in designated areas. ALL CAMPING IS PURCHASED IN ADDITION TO FESTIVAL TICKETS
PLEASE NOTE, THERE ARE NO PETS ALLOWED IN FESTIVAL CAMPGROUNDS, PARKING AND VENUES.
TENT CAMPING
Tent camping is available in our camping area, off of Highway 26 and a short meadow trail-walk from the venues.
VAN CAMPING
Van camping is for vans, pickups with campers or trailers less than 15 ft. that are NOT attached to the towing vehicle. Any vehicle bigger than a van is considered an RV.
RV CAMPING
RV passes are limited and do not include hookups of any kind. Any vehicle over 16 feet is considered an RV.
THE NATURAL WORLD
Wells is 1,200m above sea-level. As a mountain town, you better believe we get mountain weather! This means that the evenings can get quite cold, and rain is a very real possibility. Make sure you come prepared for all temperatures and all weather – this could look like groundsheets, tarps, appropriate footwear and properly-rates sleeping bags. The Majority of our venues are either indoors or covered, but all camping is outside.
One of the joys of being in rural spaces is active interfacing with wildlife, but it’s important to be wildlife aware. Wells is an area that has an active bear, fox and ground-squirrel population. Festival Guests are expected to observe appropriate food storage (such as removing food and other attractants from your tent) and proper waste disposal at all times. Learn more about being “bear aware” here.
Wells is located in the Interior of British Columbia
