Festival Interceltique de Locronan (Nearby)

Locronan is a small granite village in Finistère, in western Brittany, a few kilometres inland from the Bay of Douarnenez, and it is regularly counted among the most beautiful villages in France. Its Renaissance houses of grey stone surround a cobbled square with a well at its centre, and the whole place has been so well preserved that film crews have used it as a stand-in for old England and old France. The village owes its look to the sailcloth trade, which brought wealth in the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries when its canvas was used for ships' sails, and its merchants built the solid stone houses that remain.

A clarification is useful for anyone searching for a Celtic music festival. The large Festival Interceltique, one of the biggest gatherings of its kind in the world, takes place each August in Lorient, on the south coast of Brittany, not in Locronan, and Locronan's own calendar is different. What the village is known for is a religious tradition, the Troménie, a procession in honour of Saint Ronan, a hermit who is said to have come from Ireland in the early Middle Ages and settled in the nearby forest. The Petite Troménie, a walk of a few kilometres around the village, takes place every year in July, and the Grande Troménie, a procession of about twelve kilometres across the hills, is held only once every six years. Participants carry banners and statues, and the event combines pilgrimage, Breton costume and community spirit.

Outside festival times, the village offers a pleasant visit at any season. The Église Saint-Ronan, a late Gothic church of the fifteenth century, stands on the square, and its interior holds the saint's tomb in a side chapel known as the Pénity, as well as stained glass and carved wood. Next to it, the Chapelle Notre-Dame de Bonne-Nouvelle rises above a small valley. The lanes leading off the square are lined with craft shops, galleries and workshops, where potters, weavers, glassblowers and woodcarvers sell their work, and there are crêperies where you can eat Breton galettes made with buckwheat and sweet crêpes with cider. Around the village, forests, trails and views over the bay add to its appeal, and the Ménez-Hom hill, a short drive away, offers a wide panorama of the coast.

For those who want Celtic music, Brittany has many opportunities across the summer. Local fêtes and fest-noz, the traditional evening dances with live music, take place in villages and halls throughout the region, and the tourist office can provide dates. Concarneau's Festival des Filets Bleus in August is another option in Finistère. Plan accommodation early for these events, because rooms around the coast fill quickly in summer.

Locronan suits couples, families and anyone interested in Breton culture, and a visit takes a couple of hours. It is quieter in the morning and early evening, and in July and August the village is crowded in the middle of the day. The village sits within reach of Quimper, Douarnenez and the Pointe du Raz.