Chemainus, BC

Know the town

About Chemainus

Chemainus is the seaside town that painted its way to a second life. A sawmill community on Stuart Channel for more than a century, it faced an uncertain future in the early 1980s as the old mill wound down. Rather than fade, the town commissioned a series of large outdoor murals of its own history — and visitors started coming to see them. Today Chemainus is one of the best-known small towns on the Island, and it still feels like a place where people actually live rather than a set built for tourists.

The murals

Dozens of murals now cover walls throughout the old town, showing the loggers, mill workers, First Nations families, Chinese and Japanese settlers and steamships that shaped the area. Most sit within an easy, flat stroll of each other, and a mural map makes it simple to find them all. Plan on a couple of unhurried hours, with stops for coffee, galleries and the antique and gift shops in between.

Theatre and the waterfront

The Chemainus Theatre Festival stages professional productions through much of the year — musicals, comedies and holiday shows — and draws audiences from across the Island, often paired with dinner in town. Down by the water, Waterwheel Park and the waterfront parks look out over the channel toward the islands, and summer evenings bring outdoor concerts and families on the beach.

Ferries to the islands

Chemainus is also a ferry town. BC Ferries sails from here to Thetis Island and Penelakut Island, two small, quiet islands just offshore. Thetis makes a relaxed day trip by foot or bike; Penelakut is home to the Penelakut Tribe, so check before you go about visiting.

Getting here

The town is a few minutes off Highway 1, about fifteen minutes north of Duncan and a short drive south of Ladysmith.

Scroll on for the mural town’s cafés, galleries, inns and trades, each checked against its own website, plus any upcoming local events.

For council, permits, garbage and recycling, parks bookings and other local services, visit Municipality of North Cowichan.