The St. Augustine Celtic Music & Heritage Festival was first produced in 2011 and has grown in popularity each year while winning multiple awards for best music festival and best food festival in St. Johns County and the Jacksonville area. The music of the Celtic people of Scotland and Ireland and their ancestry are historic with beginnings in St. Augustine, the Nation’s Oldest City founded in 1565 by Spanish Celts. SEE THE MUSIC SCHEDULE BELOW
Also, the centuries of Celtic heritage will be highlighted during the Festival’s Highland Games with athletes demonstrating and testing their strength and endurance, and Celtic Clans displaying their ancestral pride. Vendors will offer Celtic cuisine and additional food and beverage, handmade and imported Celtic crafts, workshops, lectures, and more. Top touring bands from Scotland, Ireland, Canada, and around the U.S. will play traditional songs and Celtic rock throughout the two-day festival.
The event begin on Friday, March 11 with a Whiskey Tasting from 7 to 9 pm. The festival continues from 10 a.m. to 10 p.m. and on Saturday, March 12 and Sunday, March 13 at Francis Field, 25 West Castillo Drive in St. Augustine.
A special highlight of the festival weekend includes the only St. Patrick Parade in Northeast Florida on Saturday March 12 at 10 am starting at Francis Field. Notably, in 1601, St. Augustine’s first Irish vicar, Father Thomas Hassett, led the initial historically documented local St. Patrick procession recorded in the world.
This year’s parade will feature The City of St. Augustine Pipes & Drums, Coastal Florida Police & Fire Pipes & Drums, Jacksonville Pipes and Drums and Jacksonville Fire and Rescue Department’s Pipes and Drums along with local talent and parade participants through historic, downtown St. Augustine. Parade participation and registration begins on Saturday, January 15.
The 2022 Grand Marshal of the parade will be The Sisters of St. Joseph representing the Miguel O’Reilly House which has been in the care and ownership of the Sisters since 1866. The unique history of the house and its tradition is an important part of the history of St. Augustine. Father O’Reilly, another Irish priest, was vicar to the Spanish colonists in St. Augustine, which was Spain’s capital in La Florida. The Sisters opened The O’Reilly House, known officially known as the Father Miguel O’Reilly House Museum, and the House of Don Lorenzo de Leon as a museum and fundraising site at 32 Aviles Street. On October 15, 1974, the House was added to the U.S. National Register of Historic Places.
For more information, vendor participation, and online ticket sales and locations, visit the websites at www.celticstaugustine.
The St. Augustine Celtic Music & Heritage Festival and the Parade are produced by Romanza-St. Augustine, Inc., a 501(c)(3) non-profit corporation. Proceeds of the Celtic Festival are used to promote the arts, culture and heritage of St. Augustine, Florida. For more information about Romanza Festivale of Music and the Arts, visit the website at www.romanzafestivale.
MUSIC SCHEDULE
Saturday, March 12
10:00AM – FESTIVAL GATES OPEN
(Filler Music & Announcements)
11:15 – 11:45 AM – Bagpipe Jam
12:30 – 1:15 PM – Albannach
1:30 – 2:45 PM – Dublin City Ramblers
3:00 – 4:45 PM – Steel City Rovers
5:00 – 6:45 PM – Syr
7:00 – 8:45 PM – Jamison
9:00 – 9:45 PM – Albannach
Sunday, March 13
10:00 AM FESTIVAL GATES OPEN
(Filler Music & Announcements)
11:00 – 11:45 AM – Albannach
12:00 – 1:00 PM – Dublin City Ramblers
1:15 – 2:30 PM – Syr
2:45 – 4:00 PM – Steel City Rovers
4:15 – 6:00 PM – Seven Nations
6:15 – 7:00 PM – Albannach
