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🎤 Music Festival
📅 May 29 – 30, 2026
📍 Fergus, Ontario
👦 Kid-Friendly — $5 for ages 12 & under
🏕 Camping On-Site
Meadows Music Festival 2026
Two days. One field in Fergus. A lineup that pulls together some of the biggest Canadian names in rock and country alongside the indie acts you’ll be telling your friends about for years. Meadows Music Festival rolls into the Centre Wellington Community Sportsplex on May 29 and 30, 2026 for its fourth edition — and after selling out the last three years running, this one’s shaping up to be the biggest yet.
Headlining Saturday: Arkells, with Wild Rivers, Joel Plaskett Emergency, Yukon Blonde and Softcult filling out the bill. Friday brings country heat with Dallas Smith, Cameron Whitcomb, Jason Blaine and Karli June. Add on-site camping, a second “Back 40” stage for emerging artists, and the small-town charm of Fergus — and you’ve got the kind of weekend people plan their May long around.
🎸 Rock
🤸 Country
🎧 Indie
🏕 Camping
🍺 Licensed Grounds
🍽️ Food Vendors
🎥 All Ages
💡 Heads up: Meadows has sold out three years in a row. If Arkells or Dallas Smith are on your must-see list, don’t leave tickets till April.
✨ Why Meadows Is Worth the Drive
Ontario has no shortage of music festivals, but Meadows hits a sweet spot a lot of them miss. It’s big enough to land genuinely huge headliners — Arkells, The Glorious Sons, July Talk and Dean Brody have all played in past years — but small enough that you’re never more than a couple minutes from the stage, the food trucks, or your tent.
In 2025 it sold over 12,000 tickets. The crowd skews friendly small-town Ontario rather than corporate megafest, and there’s a real community feel — the kind where strangers share lawn chairs and the campground stays up swapping stories long after the main stage shuts down.
It’s also one of the rare festivals where kids 12 and under cost just $5, making it a legit option for families who’d normally write off a music weekend as too pricey.
🎸 The 2026 Lineup
Two nights, two distinct vibes — rock Saturday, country Friday — with indie and homegrown talent sprinkled across both.
Saturday · May 30 · Rock Night
Arkells + Wild Rivers · Joel Plaskett Emergency · Yukon Blonde · Softcult
Hamilton’s own Arkells headline — JUNO winners, Coachella and Bonnaroo veterans, and one of the most reliably electric live bands in Canada. Wild Rivers bring their platinum-selling indie-folk harmonies, while Joel Plaskett Emergency delivers three decades of East Coast rock storytelling. Yukon Blonde adds bright, classic-leaning guitar rock, and Kitchener twins Softcult open the night with grunge-shoegaze and a sharp activist edge.
Friday · May 29 · Country Night
Dallas Smith + Cameron Whitcomb · Jason Blaine · Karli June
Dallas Smith — three-time CCMA Entertainer of the Year, Grand Ole Opry debutant, 21 gold-certified singles — closes out the night. Rising BC star Cameron Whitcomb brings his raw, addiction-shaped folk-country (500M+ streams before his first album) and Pembroke-bred hitmaker Jason Blaine reps the Ontario side of Nashville country. Listowel’s Karli June opens with warm small-town country songwriting.
Back 40 Stage · Both Days
A second stage spotlighting emerging Canadian acts. The 2026 Back 40 lineup includes:
Jaguar Sun · Chris Clark · Cheap Shirt · Janna Leduc · PRRR · Urban Cowboy Line Dancing · Madison Galloway · Harry Lee Follon
📍 The Essentials
Dates
Fri & Sat
May 29 – 30, 2026
May 29 – 30, 2026
Location
Centre Wellington Community Sportsplex
550 Belsyde Ave E, Fergus, ON
550 Belsyde Ave E, Fergus, ON
Tickets
Exclusive online sales via Front Gate Tickets. Kids 12 & under just $5.
Ages
All ages festival. Grounds are licensed 19+ with valid ID.
Camping
Tent, serviced RV/trailer, and oversized sites available on-site.
Parking
On-site parking + hourly shuttle from Grand River Raceway.
🏆 The VIP Upgrade
If you’ve done the general admission grind at enough festivals, the Meadows VIP ticket is worth a long look. You get front-row access, a private bar with shorter lines, private washrooms, and a private food tent — basically every “wait, I have to walk back to where again?” problem solved.
The VIP area is being expanded for 2026 with new additions promised. Limited quantity — these sell out first.
🏕 Camping On-Site
Camping is half the fun at Meadows — and arguably the smartest move logistically. No driving, no Uber surge, just roll back to your tent when the encore ends. Three site types are offered, all on Sportsplex grounds:
⛺ Tent (Non-Serviced)
20′ x 40′ sites. Bring everything you need — no electricity, no water hookup. The classic festival camping setup.
🚌 RV / Trailer (Serviced)
20′ x 40′ with 15A electrical and limited water hookup. Bring up to 110′ of 12/2-rated cord. No air conditioning permitted (15A limit).
🚚 Oversized (Non-Serviced)
20′ x 50′ for rigs over 40′. Generators allowed (3500W max) during set hours only.
Quick camping facts: Check-in is Friday May 29, 8am–1:30pm. Quiet hours run 1am–7am. Showers are inside the Sportsplex. Wood campfires are not allowed (township bylaw) — propane fire bowls are OK. No dump stations on-site.
Alcohol on campsites: Outside drinks are OK in the camping area only — up to 2 “bulk items” per person (one case of beer/coolers OR one 26oz liquor OR one 4L box of wine). No glass containers. Cans only.
👦 Bringing the Kids
Meadows is genuinely family-friendly. Children 12 and under get in for just $5 — one of the best deals at any major Ontario festival. The grounds are open to all ages and there’s a free water-fill station so the kiddos can stay hydrated all day.
Simple camping chairs and blankets are welcome, and outside snacks like granola bars and trail mix are allowed. Just leave the structured canopy chairs at home.
🎪 What You Can & Can’t Bring In
✅ Allowed
· Empty reusable water bottles (free fill stations on site)
· Small snacks (granola bars, trail mix)
· Simple camping chairs
· Blankets
· Service dogs
· Small snacks (granola bars, trail mix)
· Simple camping chairs
· Blankets
· Service dogs
❌ Not Allowed
· Outside beverages (in main grounds)
· Outside coolers
· Structured / canopy chairs
· Inflatable chairs & hammocks
· Glass containers (anywhere)
· Pets (except service dogs)
· Outside coolers
· Structured / canopy chairs
· Inflatable chairs & hammocks
· Glass containers (anywhere)
· Pets (except service dogs)
💡 Tips From People Who’ve Been
🎫 Book tickets early. Meadows sold out three years running. Once Arkells gets announced for a festival, that festival sells out — this is no different.
🏕 Camp if you can. The shuttle is solid but it stops running, and Fergus is small — rideshares can be spotty after the encore. Camping solves it.
📷️ Bring the reusable bottle. Free water-fill stations on site, but you need your own bottle — empty, of course. They check.
🍺 Drinks work on tokens. The bars use a token system — buy tokens, exchange at the bar. Plan accordingly so you’re not stuck in a token line during the headliner.
☔️ It runs rain or shine. No refunds, no exceptions — check the forecast and pack a poncho. May in Ontario does what it wants.
🎯 Don’t skip the Back 40 Stage. It’s where you find the next year’s headliners — and the wait between main stage sets is the perfect window to wander over.
🚗 Getting to Fergus
Fergus is a small town in Centre Wellington, roughly 25 minutes north of Guelph and about 90 minutes northwest of Toronto. The Sportsplex is right on the east side of town — easy to find, easy to get in and out of.
From Toronto: ~1h 30m via Highway 401 W → Highway 6 N
From Guelph: ~25 min via Highway 6 N
From Kitchener-Waterloo: ~40 min
From London: ~1h 45m
From Guelph: ~25 min via Highway 6 N
From Kitchener-Waterloo: ~40 min
From London: ~1h 45m
🚌 Shuttle service: A festival shuttle runs hourly between the grounds and Grand River Raceway. Great option if you’re staying in nearby Elora or commuting from a hotel.
📍 Open in Google Maps →
❓ Common Questions
Lineup, schedule and policies subject to change — always confirm details on the official Meadows Music Festival website before heading out.
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