Transportation

You will need to purchase a Provincial Park Pass to get into Birds Hill Provincial Park if you are driving to the Festival. Provincial Park Passes MUST be purchased online (manitobaelicensing.ca), printed and displayed on the dashboard of your vehicle for the duration of your stay at the Festival. Provincial Park Passes are only valid for the licence plate(s) and dates listed. 

We have the fastest parking lot exiting times compared to other major events in Manitoba.

At the end of the night, so everybody can get home quickly and safely please remember:

Festival Parking West (closest to main gate, green star) always exits to travel through the park to Highway 59 [left turn]

Festival Parking East (blue diamond) always exits to Route 206 [right turn]

“West goes West; East goes East” - this keeps the flow of traffic unimpeded for all to get home safely.

We recommend you plan ahead to how you’re getting home and park accordingly.

Pink Triangle - Festival Campground drop off

Yellow square - Festival Campground parking lot

Green Star - Festival Parking West (exit through the park to HWY 59)

Blue Diamond - Festival Parking East (exit to HWY 206)

To help you get to your destination, we have wayfinders (green star, blue diamond, yellow square and pink triangle) to help you find your way! 

Arriving at the Festival from Highway 59 (through the park):

• Enter by the West Gate
• Turn south onto South Drive (follow the signs)
• Follow South Drive until it meets Festival Drive then turn right.

Follow your wayfinder to your destination!

Arriving at the Festival from Route 206:

• Enter by the East Gate
• You are on Festival Drive
• Follow your wayfinder to your destination!

Our Traffic volunteers will assist you in finding a place to park. Please follow their directions.

Pink Triangle - Festival Campground drop off

Yellow square - Festival Campground parking lot

Green Star - Festival Parking West (exit through the park to HWY 59)

Blue Diamond - Festival Parking East (exit on HWY 206)

In the past, we had all the vehicles leave Festival Parking by a single exit, turning left and right as needed. This caused huge backups.

By having two parking areas and two exits, we can have traffic flowing smoothly both west and east at the same time as the two lines of traffic will never meet. “West goes West, East goes East.” A delay in one line will not affect traffic going in the other direction.

Our trained traffic volunteers have a procedure in place to ensure safety for everyone and to speed up exit at the end of the night. They will also be stopping cross-traffic to allow as many vehicles out of the lots as possible at any one time.

Please be patient and follow the instructions of traffic volunteers.

• Festival Campground
• • It is just a walk or a bike ride away using the crosswalk at Festival Drive.
  • Parking for the weekend is the yellow square area.
• Quiet Campground
  • It is approximately 4 KM away and some choose to drive or cycle. If you drive to the Festival site and back to this campground please park in the west parking lot (green star) to turn west towards the campground at night. Please follow the wayfinder signs along south drive to find your way.
  • Parking for the Quiet Campground is located near the entrance of the campground. 
• Birds Hill Park Campground
  • If you drive to the Festival site and back from this campground we recommend parking in the west parking lot (green star) to turn west towards the campground at night.

To drop off Folk Fest campers at the Festival campground proceed to the pink triangle. All campers - Quiet or Festival - must move in their gear by foot. We suggest bringing a wagon! 

Folk Fest quiet campers can be dropped off at the entrance of the Quiet Campground. 

For individuals who require accessible parking, it is located in Festival West Parking close to the Main Gate. When you enter Festival West Parking drive down the road you enter almost to the end and turn right down the last parking lane. Continue all the way down to the Accessible Parking Area where our traffic volunteer will confirm you have a Manitoba Parking Permit (or similar province/state placard) and help you find a spot. If you don’t require these spots we ask that you respect the needs of other patrons who do and park elsewhere.

While it is possible to get to Accessible Parking from the East Gate/Route 206 it is SIGNIFICANTLY easier if you enter Birds Hill Park from the West Gate/Highway 59.