Holland Celtic Festival Preview

Holland Waterfront Celtic Festival & Highland Games

Late June in West Michigan has a way of testing resolve—sun high, humidity higher, and last year’s memory of mid-90s heat still lingering in the minds of anyone who spent time at the Holland Waterfront Celtic Festival & Highland Games.

“Those past two years were scorchers,” says Craig Rich, executive director of the festival. “We’re talking mid-nineties. Weather forecasts this year are much more moderate, and we’re looking forward to that.”

With cooler seasonal trends settling into the Lakeshore, anticipation is building for a more comfortable return of one of the region’s more spirited summer gatherings. No promises—Michigan weather rarely offers guarantees—but weather-related optimism is part and parcel of being a Michigander.

Set for June 26–27, 2026, at the Ottawa County Fairgrounds, 1210 Ottawa Beach Rd, in Holland—just minutes from the white sands of Lake Michigan—the fifth annual festival blends music, sport, heritage, and community into a two-day celebration of Celtic culture.

Presented with support from Guinness, the festival is organized by the Holland Celtic Society, a nonprofit dedicated to sharing Irish, Scottish, Welsh, and broader Celtic traditions through education and celebration. What began as a regional cultural gathering has steadily grown into a full-scale summer destination event.

Friday, June 26, opens at 4 p.m. with a 21-and-over ceilidh—pronounced “KAY-lee”—a seven-hour stretch of live music, dancing, food, and vendors, anchored by a steady flow of beer, wine, and whiskey. Four bands rotate through the stage, setting the tone for a weekend built on rhythm and revelry.

Saturday expands the footprint in every direction. From 9 a.m. until 11 p.m., the fairgrounds transform into a full Celtic village: 13 additional bands, a pipe and drum corps, eight Irish and Scottish dance performances, and more than 50 athletes competing in traditional Scottish Highland Games events. Visitors will also find a Scottish clan village, genealogy assistance, a children’s area, tomahawk throwing, over 50 food and craft vendors, and an on-site pub experience designed for lingering.

Oh Danny Boy?

This year’s musical lineup includes a mix of returning favorites and crowd-drawing acts such as Albannach, Mudmen, Crossbow, Ironwood, The Kreelers, Whorled, Leprecons, Black Murray, and Kennedy’s Kitchen, among others.

Beyond the stage, three new attractions aim to broaden the festival’s experiential edge. Scottish Highland cattle—“Highland Coos”—will be on-site for close-up viewing and photos, adding a pastoral touch to the grounds. Border collie herding demonstrations will showcase precision and instinct in motion. And a new Irish music “session” tent will invite informal, drop-in collaborations between visiting musicians and festival performers, echoing the spontaneous pub sessions of Ireland’s traditional music scene.

Updates and community posts can be found at facebook.com/HollandCelticFestival.
Tickets, schedules, and additional details are available at hollandcelticfestival.org.