Upcoming Holidays and Festivals in France
- 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
Through December 31: Festival d'Automne à Paris (Paris Autumn 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)
February 15–29: Nice Carnival (Mardi Gras, parades and fireworks)
February 15–March 3: Lemon Festival, Menton
April–November: International Garden Festival, Chaumont-sur-Loire
April 10: Good Friday (Vendredi Saint, closures)
April 12–13: Easter Sunday and Monday (Pâques, closures)
May–July: Versailles Festival (classical music, opera, dance, contemporary art)
May 1: Labor Day (Fête due Travail or Fête du Premier Mai; closures)
May 1–3: Great Roman Games, Nîmes
May–July: Versailles Festival (classical music, opera, dance, contemporary art)
May 8: VE (Victory in Europe) Day (Fête de la Victoire 1945 or Jour de la Liberation; closures, parades)
May 12–23: Cannes Film Festival
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 20–May 24: Nuits Sonores, Lyon (electronic music festival)
May 21: Ascension (closures)
May 21–24: Monaco Grand Prix
Late May–mid-June: D-Day Festival, across Normandy
May 31–June 1: Pentecost and Whit Monday (closures)
June–July: Nuits de Fourvière, Lyon (theater and music in a Roman theater)
Early June–early July: Festival of St. Denis, Paris (classical concerts by international artists)
June 5–7 (likely): Rendez-vous aux Jardins (noteworthy gardens open to the public), Paris and elsewhere
June 6: 76th Anniversary of the Normandy D-Day Landing (Jour J)
June 6–7: Joan of Arc Festival, Rouen (pageants)
June 8–16 (likely): Paris Beer Week
June 13–14: Le Mans auto race, near Loire Valley
June 19–August 1: Chorégies d'Orange (performances in Roman theater)
June 21: Fête de la Musique (concerts and dancing in the streets throughout France)
June 25–July 11: Jazz à Vienne, south of Lyon
June 27–July 19: Tour de France (culminates on the Champs-Elysées in Paris)
July: Carcassonne Festival (theatre, music, dance, plus jousting matches and medieval festivities)
July 1–20 (likely): Aix Festival (classical music and opera)
July 2–21 (likely): Avignon Festival (theater, dance, music)
July 3–26 (likely): Beaune International Festival of Baroque Opera
July 4–14: Colmar International Festival
July 6–September 1: Paris Plage (ersatz beach along the Seine)
July 10–August 1 (likely): Festival Paris l'Été (theater, dance, concerts)
July 12–21: Jazz à Juan, Antibes/Juan-les-Pins (international jazz festival)
July 14: Bastille Day ("le 14 Juillet," closures, fireworks, revelry)
July 14–August 24 (likely): International Fireworks Festival, Cannes (fireworks)
July 16–19: Vieilles Charrues Festival, Carhaix (Brittany; France's biggest music festival)
July 17–21: Nice Jazz Festival
July 21–26: Cornwall Festival, Quimper
July 23–August 13 (likely): Jazz in Marciac, southwest France
Early August: Lavender parade, Digne-les-Bains
August 1–3 (likely): Jasmine Festival, Grasse (flower-themed parades)
August 12–15 (likely): La Route du Rock, St-Malo (music festival)
August 15: Assumption (closures)
August 20–25: Fête de la Saint-Louis, Sète (near Montpellier; parades, fireworks, canal-boat "water-jousting")
August 27–September 8 (likely): Jazz at La Villette, Paris
August 28–September 5 (likely): Silhouette Festival, Paris (short film festival)
August 29–31 (likely): Braderie de Lille (world's largest flea market)
September: Wine harvest festivals across France
September 8 (likely)–December 31: Festival d'Automne à Paris (Paris Autumn Festival)
September 18–October 3 (likely): Festival Musica, Strasbourg (contemporary classical music)
September 19 (likely): Technoparade, Paris (starts at Port Royal, ends at Place de la République)
September 19–20 (likely): Heritage days (Journée du patrimoine; special openings and tours of monuments and other historical sites across France)
September 23–26: Monaco Yacht Show (pricey exhibition of mega-yachts)
October 3: Paris Nuit Blanche (illuminated public art, concerts, all-night public transit)
October 7–11 (likely): Fête des Vendanges, Montmartre neighborhood of Paris (grape harvest festival)
October 9–17 (likely): Oktoberfest Paris
October 24–31 (likely): Oktoberfest Marseille
October 25 (likely): Fête de La Pomme, Trévières (apple harvest festival near Honfleur)
October 29–November 9 (likely): Dijon International and Gastronomic Fair
November 1: All Saints' Day (La Toussaint; closures)
November 11: Armistice Day (closures)
November 21–23: 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 3–7 (likely): Les Rencontres Trans Musicales, Rennes (up-and-coming pop, rock, etc.)
December 12–19 (likely): 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