The National Eisteddfod of Wales

The National Eisteddfod runs over the first full week of August and moves each year, alternating between north and south Wales, so a field is turned into a small town with a pavilion, hundreds of stalls and its own street names, then taken away again. Everything happens in Welsh, with translation headsets for those who need them. Competitions cover choral singing, recitation, harp, folk dance, prose and poetry, and the week builds to the Crowning and the Chairing of the Bard, ceremonies conducted by the Gorsedd in robes with a horn of plenty and a floral dance. If the judges find no work of sufficient standard, no chair is awarded at all.

What you actually see

• The Chairing of the Bard - the week's central ceremony, for a poem in strict metre.
• The Maes - the temporary field town of pavilion, stalls and stages.
• Choral competition - choirs from across Wales judged in the main pavilion.
• Y Lle Celf - the art and craft exhibition mounted on the site each year.

When to go

The dates are fixed to the first full week of August and the location is announced years ahead, so check before booking anything. Weekdays are calmer than the weekend, and the chairing afternoon fills the pavilion. Accommodation near the host town goes early. Bring boots, because a Welsh field in August is a gamble.

Honest expectations

The whole festival runs in Welsh and, translation aside, non-speakers miss most of the texture. The site is a field, which means mud, temporary trackway and long walks between stages. Ticket, parking and food add up over several days. The ceremonies are slow and deeply traditional, and the poetry is essentially untranslatable.

Nearby

Whatever the host town offers, since the site usually sits on its edge.