Celti'Cimes: the Irish music festival in Albiez

Four days of Irish music at 1,600 metres, in a village of 300 people. Celti'Cimes takes place in late July across Albiez-Montrond and Albiez-le-Jeune: instrument workshops morning and afternoon, evening concerts, a folk ball, and sessions that spill into the village bars. This is not a festival you drop into for one night — it is a festival you settle into.

A festival of students as much as spectators

That is what sets Celti'Cimes apart from other Celtic gatherings: half the audience comes to learn. The workshops run three full days, Sunday to Tuesday, and fill the day — 10am to 1pm, then 2.30pm to 5.30pm. So a participant arrives the day before the festival opens and leaves the day after it closes. Five nights, not one.

Morning workshops

Whistle, flute, banjo, fiddle, concertina, guitar in Drop D tuning, and singing. Plus a workshop reserved for young musicians.

Afternoon workshops

Whistle, uilleann pipes at two levels, bodhrán, ensemble playing, and set and step dancing.

The youth workshop

Open to musicians under 18 with at least three years on their instrument. It is what makes Celti'Cimes a festival whole families attend: the teenager has their workshop, the parent has theirs.

Concerts, ball and sessions

The folk ball opens the festival on Saturday evening at the Albiez-Montrond village hall. On Sunday, a documentary screening at the village cinema, free of charge. On Tuesday, an open-air concert on Place Opinel. In between, the programme brings in first-rank bands — the 2026 edition hosted Solas, which the Boston Globe called the finest Celtic ensemble Ireland has ever produced.

Part of the festival also happens at the Mollard lake: Saturday is a festive day there, concert included, on the grass and facing the Aiguilles. That is 300 metres from the flat — the photo at the top of this article was taken from the shore.

But the heart of it is elsewhere. Across the four days, sessions run day and evening in the bars, the restaurants, the hotel and the village hall. Visiting musicians and workshop participants play together, with no programme and no ticket. That is where the festival takes its real shape.

Where to sleep during Celti'Cimes

The festival's official accommodation is a free open camping area — a water point, one toilet, and showers open on Sunday, Monday and Tuesday. There is also a council-run motorhome area and a handful of gîtes, booked through the tourist office.

That is enough for three nights under canvas in July. Much less so when you are carrying an instrument that needs protecting, travelling with children, or simply hoping to sleep. At 1,600 metres, a July night drops below 10°C without much trouble.

Our flat is at Le Mollard, the upper part of the village, a few minutes from the Chef-lieu where the village hall and Place Opinel are. Up to six people, a kitchen equipped well enough that you are not tied to restaurant hours, a south-facing balcony looking at the Aiguilles d'Arves, and an instrument that stays dry.

Book early — genuinely early

Workshop places are limited and several sell out well before the festival — flute, fiddle and bodhrán go first. The village itself holds a few hundred beds across all categories, for a festival that fills the village hall.

In practice, the workshop booking and the accommodation booking are one decision, taken in spring. The organisers publish the coming edition's dates on celticimes.org, and the Albiez-Montrond tourist office confirms them on +33 4 79 59 30 48.

The rest of the stay

A four-day festival leaves free mornings and a whole week around it. On the doorstep: the six waymarked walks starting from the village, the Mollard lake with its supervised swimming, and the Col du Mollard by bike — the summit is at the edge of the hamlet. For food shopping and bread, see shopping in Albiez.

Everything else there is to do in summer is gathered on our summer page.