Upcoming Holidays and Festivals in France

Market day, Sarlat-la-Canéda, France — Markets bring a festive feel to town squares across France, even on quotidian workdays.

Before planning a trip around a festival, verify the festival dates on the festival's website or with a local tourist information office. For more information about these and other events, visit the official tourism sites for France and Paris.
This list includes major festivals in major cities, plus national holidays observed throughout France. Many sights and banks close down on national holidays — keep it in mind when planning your itinerary. Note that this isn't a complete list; holidays can strike without warning.
See upcoming holidays and festivals across Europe

2019

April–October: International Garden Festival, Chaumont-sur-Loire

June 29–July 21: Tour de France (culminates on the Champs-Elysées in Paris)

July: Carcassonne Festival (theatre, music, dance, plus jousting matches and medieval festivities)

July 3–22: Aix Festival (classical music and opera)

July 4–14: Colmar International Festival

July 4–23: Avignon Festival (theater, dance, music)

July 5–28: Beaune International Festival of Baroque Opera

July 7–September 2: Paris Plage (ersatz beach along the Seine)

July 12–21: Jazz à Juan, Antibes/Juan-les-Pins (international jazz festival)

July 12–August 3: Festival Paris l'Été (theater, dance, concerts)

July 14: Bastille Day ("le 14 Juillet," closures, fireworks, revelry)

July 14–August 24: International Fireworks Festival, Cannes (fireworks)

July 16–20: Nice Jazz Festival

July 18–21: Vieilles Charrues Festival, Carhaix (Brittany; France's biggest music festival)

July 23–28: Cornwall Festival, Quimper

July 25–August 15: Jazz in Marciac, southwest France

August 2–6: Lavender parade, Digne-les-Bains

August 3–5: Jasmine Festival, Grasse (flower-themed parades)

August 14–17: La Route du Rock, St-Malo (music festival)

August 15: Assumption (closures)

August 22–27: Fête de la Saint-Louis, Sète (near Montpellier; parades, fireworks, canal-boat "water-jousting")

August 29–September 10: Jazz at La Villette, Paris

August 30–September 7: Silhouette Festival, Paris (short film festival)

August 31–September 1: Braderie de Lille (world's largest flea market)

September: Wine harvest festivals across France

September 10–December 31 (likely): Festival d'Automne à Paris (Paris Autumn Festival)

September 20–October 5: Festival Musica, Strasbourg (contemporary classical music)

September 21: Technoparade, Paris (starts at Port Royal, ends at Place de la République)

September 21–22: Heritage days (Journée du patrimoine; special openings and tours of monuments and other historical sites across France)

September 25–28: Monaco Yacht Show (pricey exhibition of mega-yachts)

October 11–19: Oktoberfest Paris

October 5: Paris Nuit Blanche (illuminated public art, concerts, all-night public transit)

October 9–13: Fête des Vendanges, Montmartre neighborhood of Paris (grape harvest festival)

October 26–November 2: Oktoberfest Marseille

October 27: Fête de La Pomme, Trévières (apple harvest festival near Honfleur)

October 31–November 11: Dijon International and Gastronomic Fair

November 1: All Saints' Day (La Toussaint; closures)

November 11: Armistice Day (closures)

November 16–18: Les Trois Glorieuses, Beaune (wine auction and festival)

Late November–December 24: Christmas markets (particularly fun in Strasbourg, Colmar, and Sarlat-la-Canéda)

December: Christmas carousels, outdoor skating rinks, and avant-garde Christmas trees around town, Paris

December 5–9: Les Rencontres Trans Musicales, Rennes (up-and-coming pop, rock, etc.)

December 14–21: Rise Festival, Les Deux Alpes (dance music at ski resort)

December 25: Christmas Day (Noël; closures)

December 26: Second Christmas Day (closures in Alsace-Lorraine)

December 31: New Year's Eve

2020

January 1: New Year's Day (closures)

February 2: Le Corso Fleuri, Bormes-les-Mimosas (traditional flower parade in coastal Provence)

Mid-February (4 days): La Route du Rock, St-Malo and Rennes (music festival)

Mid-February–early March: Nice Carnival (Mardi Gras, parades and fireworks)

February 15–March 2 (likely): Lemon Festival, Menton

April–October: International Garden Festival, Chaumont-sur-Loire

April 10: Good Friday (Vendredi Saint, closures)

April 12–13: Easter Sunday and Monday (Pâques, closures)

Early May (3 days): Great Roman Games, Nîmes

May–July: Versailles Festival (classical music, opera, dance, contemporary art)

May 1: Labor Day (Fête due Travail or Fête du Premier Mai; closures)

May 8: VE (Victory in Europe) Day (Fête de la Victoire 1945 or Jour de la Liberation; closures, parades)

Mid-May (1 day): Night of Museums, across France (museums stay open late and for free)

May 19: St. Yves' Day; Fête de la Bretagne (cultural celbrations across Brittany)

May 21: Ascension (closures)

May 31–June 1: Pentecost and Whit Monday (closures)

May–July: Versailles Festival (classical music, opera, dance, contemporary art)

May 12–23: Cannes Film Festival

Late May (3 days): Monaco Grand Prix

Late May–mid-June: D-Day Festival, across Normandy

May 20–May 24: Nuits Sonores, Lyon (electronic music festival)

June–July: Nuits de Fourvière, Lyon (theater and music in a Roman theater)

Early June (2 days): Joan of Arc Festival, Rouen (pageants)

Early June–early July: Festival of St. Denis, Paris (classical concerts by international artists)

June 6: 76th Anniversary of the Normandy D-Day Landing (Jour J)

Early June (3 days): Rendez-vous aux Jardins (noteworthy gardens open to the public), Paris and elsewhere

June 8–16 (likely): Paris Beer Week

June 13–14: Le Mans auto race, near Loire Valley

Mid-June 19–early August: Chorégies d'Orange (performances in Roman theater)

June 21: Fête de la Musique (concerts and dancing in the streets throughout France)

Late June–early July (two weeks): Jazz à Vienne, south of Lyon