| Venues |
 Aosta is the main town of the autonomous region of the Aosta Valley and it is located in a wonderful valley towered by mountains. The town is in the middle of the region where the Dora Baltea river and the Buthier stream meet up. Thanks to the alpine passes of Small and Big Saint Bernard this town has been an important strategic crossroad since ancient times. A spot among the Alps of the ancient Rome, the most important example of Roman architecture in the Northern Italy. Aosta counts as well some important medieval ruins, churches and feudal castles belonging to different Sirs who have been trying to rule this territory for a long time. Main of the ancient sites are inside the ancient Roman walls.  Located at the crossroad of three countries, Italy, France and Switzerland, Courmayeur (1.224 m) represents the essence of the Alps. Thanks to its International vocation and its strong Alpine identity, Courmayeur is a place of gatherings and contrasts. The spectacular views of the southern side of the Mount Blanc are the background for intimate welcoming landscapes of the valleys which are the result of a secular Alpine culture paying attention to the environment and to welcome everybody loving mountains in the best possible way. The heart of CELTICA is the secular Peuterey Wood in Val Veny (Courmayeur-AO) at the foot of the Mount Blanc at 1.507 m high, where the main 14 meters stage and the small 8 meters stage host the concerts and where historical re-enactments, lectures and animations take place. Val Veny, with its irregular mountain tops and its wild landscapes, is the starting point for the classical uphill paths towards the Mount Blanc. It offers amazing hikes in order to discover lakes hidden within the heart of the glacier and breathtaking scenarios. Val Veny is also an important place for the story and the spiritual life of the village: the Notre Dame de la Guérison sanctuary is the chosen destination for Italian and Transalpine pilgrims.  At the foot of the Mount Blanc, on the east side of the High Aosta Valley, Pré-Saint-Didier has an excellent location in the middle of Valdigne. In fact, two main roads of this territory start from here forming a V: the first goes towards the Small Saint Bernard pass and the second towards Courmayeur.  The Bard Fortress, kept almost untouched since it has been built, represents one of the best examples of barricade fortress of the early XIX century. The stronghold was built on three different levels between 400 and 467 meters of hight, with 283 rooms in all. The Fortress can be reached through an external road, on the Southern side, which goes up to the higher yard and by an internal road, characterized by narrow bends supported by massive walls, which goes up to the opposite slope, facing North. They are both walking roads. It is possible to reach the rock top and therefore the fortress thanks to some modern panoramic lifts which go from the Bard village, at the foot of the Fortress, up to the different levels of the Fortress. |