Gear up for a Long weekend of Celtic magic at the National Celtic Folk Festival

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23 May

The National Celtic Folk Festival is ready to celebrate a top national and international line up - and a big 20th birthday!

Portarlington on the Bellarine Peninsula will fire up again right across the June long weekend with the best Folk and Celtic live acts from across Australia and around the world.

The 2024 line up gives a huge warm welcome to Scottish musicians Megan Macdonald, Chloë Bryce & Calum Mcilroy ; winners of Trad Artist of the Year in Scotland and the Battles of the Bands at Celtic Connections.

Seasoned masters of Irish music 2016 Young Musician of the Year, Órlaith McAuliffe and former All-Ireland winner Dylan Carlos will wow on the fiddle and whistle. The high-energy roots music duo Tim Scanlan & Mana Okubo will transcend the ordinary with their modern beats blended with ancient tunes.

Scottish rockers Rich Davies and Claymore along with festival favourites Shane Howard (Goanna ) and Austral are back for our 20th birthday– Irish craic to be sure! Folk acts appearing this year include the best in the scene: Songwriters and multi-instrumentalists The Maes, Fiona Ross and Shane O’Mara; The country’s best young musicians, Ceoltori Naarm, Oceanique , Apolline, Out of Hand along with awarding winning story teller Jo Henwood: A stunning line up of live music!

The dance program includes for the first time, the captivating Highland Dance Company of New Zealand fresh from the Virginia International Tattoo, not to be missed!

A full program for the young ones includes dance, interactive workshops, concerts and more. And if you’d like to improve your fiddle skills, try out highland dancing or learn how to write your own tune – there’s loads of workshops for the whole family and some wonderful art installations by local creators. The playful and interactive Spirit of Story installation will take over the rotunda, turning it into a giant lantern where participants can create bird puppets to set against the moving backdrop capturing the spirit of country with sound and landscapes.

This year’s festival program will run across a range of venues, the foreshore will become a festive winter party with spaces to gather for a catch up and a drink. Warm up with a hot chocolate or mulled wine, delight your tastebuds with food from our gourmet food trucks and soak up the vibes and friendly Celtic spirit.