Find Your Celtic Heart on Cape Breton Island

Step into a land that flings you into tradition and sends you reeling with every dance. Discover a place that pulls on your heartstrings with one hand and deftly plucks a fiddle with the other. Lose yourself in Highland mountain trails and find your way back by road signs written in a familiar tongue. The Scottish didn’t just settle here, they built a home out of the language, music, and dance that are so distinct to the Gaelic culture. Still looking for your Celtic heart? Find it on Cape Breton Island.

Discover Your Celtic Heart

Discover Your Celtic Heart in Cape Breton

The Celtic Heart of North America represents the amazing Celtic and Gaelic cultural experience on Cape Breton Island, Nova Scotia, Canada. We celebrate and share the only living Celtic culture in North America. Whether it‘s dancing to lively fiddle tunes, learning a Gaelic milling song or tracing your roots, we’d love to share our Celtic culture with you.

A green hill overlooking the ocean dotted with houses and a large church

Highland Village

Be captivated by the spirit of the Scottish Gaels at Baile nan Gàidheal. Part cultural centre, part living history museum, it’s the perfect place to learn the mother tongue and see tradition brought to life.

Visit The Highland Village

Colaisde na Gàidhlig / The Gaelic College

Colaisde na Gàidhlig | The Gaelic College

Colaisde na Gàidhlig is an educational non-profit institution, offering year-round programming in the culture, music, language, crafts, customs, and traditions of the immigrants from the Highlands of Scotland. The only institution of its kind in North America, students of all ages and skill levels visit the College every year to study under some of the finest instructors in Nova Scotia Gaelic culture.

Experience Culture

Why the Celtic Colours International Festival is a “Don’t-Miss” Event

As autumn's vibrant hues cover Cape Breton Island's hills and coastlines, one event captures the season’s essence perfectly: the Celtic Colours International Festival. Held each October, this renowned festival blends music, culture and natural beauty

101 Things to do This Fall on Cape Breton Island

As the crisp autumn air settles over Cape Breton Island, the landscape transforms into a vibrant tapestry of red, orange and gold. This season is the perfect time to explore the Island's natural beauty, rich culture and warm hospitality.

Cape Breton Island scenic destinations arranged as rainbow pride flag

Exploring 2SLGBTQI+ Activities on Cape Breton Island

Cape Breton Island is not only a place of stunning natural beauty and rich cultural heritage but also a welcoming destination for the LGBTQIA2S+ community.

Membertou

Membertou is a vibrant Indigenous community nestled in the heart of Cape Breton Island, Nova Scotia. With its rich history, cultural attractions, and warm hospitality, Membertou offers visitors a unique and unforgettable experience.

Eskasoni

Nestled along the shores of Bras d'Or Lake, you'll find Eskasoni, one of five Mi'kmaq communities found on Cape Breton Island. Steeped in ancient history and rich in cultural heritage, here you'll have the opportunity to learn about how Canada's Fir

Inverness

With its rich history, diverse attractions, and warm hospitality, Inverness offers visitors a unique blend of culture, golf, and relaxation. So, let's delve into what makes this small town on Canada's Musical Coast such a special destination.

Live Music

Cape Breton Island and Music go hand in hand. After all, we are the home to the one and only Canada’s Musical Coast, the internationally-renowned music festival, Celtic Colours, and we have a giant fiddle that plays music to us – to keep the ceilidh going 24/7.

Fiddle Around

Arts & Crafts

Celtic culture allows you to fully immerse yourself in the craft with both your hands and heart. Whether you are dancing, knitting, quilting or more your Celtic heart will surely soar.

Get Crafty
Genealogy, History & Language

Céad míle fáilte! A hundred thousand welcomes to the home of your Celtic heart. Here you may discover your roots as you explore historical archives and genealogical records of Cape Breton Island’s museums that are dedicated to cultural research.

Learn Our History