Hotels in Miltown Malbay

Miltown Malbay is a small County Clare village that becomes the epicentre of Irish traditional music every July for the Willie Clancy Summer School, the largest folk music summer school in the world, founded in 1973 in memory of the local uilleann piper. More than 1,500 students fill upwards of 150 workshops in fiddle, flute, concertina and pipes, but most visitors come for the spontaneous sessions that spill out of the pubs onto the streets long into the night.

Outside festival week the village reverts to a quiet Atlantic-coast stop, with Spanish Point's beach a short walk away and the Cliffs of Moher a scenic drive north. Accommodation is scarce and prices spike hard during the festival, so book well ahead if the music is the draw. Stay in the village centre for the session-hopping, or nearby if you want quiet outside festival week.