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
2025
April 18: Good Friday (Vendredi Saint, closures)
April 20 & 21: Easter Sunday and Monday (Pâques, closures)
April 25–27: Roman Days, Nîmes
April–October: International Garden Festival, Charmont-sur-Loire
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)
May 13–24: Cannes Film Festival
May 16–25: Fête de la Bretagne (cultural celebrations across Brittany, centered around St. Yves' Day on May 19)
May 17: Night of Museums, across France (museums stay open late and for free)
May 19–25: Paris Beer Festival
May 22–25: Monaco Grand Prix
May 29–31: Joan of Arc Festival, Rouen (pageants)
Late May–mid-June: D-Day Festival, across Normandy
May 28–June 1: Nuits Sonores, Lyon (electronic music festival)
May 29: Ascension (closures)
June: Festival of St. Denis, Paris (classical concerts by international artists)
June–July: Nuits de Fourvière, Lyon (theater and music in a Roman theater)
June 1 (likely): Paris Nuit Blanche (illuminated public art, concerts, all-night public transit)
June 6: D-Day (Jour J) anniversary
June 6–8: Rendez-vous aux Jardins (noteworthy gardens open to the public), Paris and elsewhere
June 8 & 9: Pentecost and Whit Monday (closures)
June 13–July 25: Chorégies d'Orange (performances in Roman theater)
June 14–15: Le Mans auto race, near Loire Valley
June 21: Fête de la Musique (concerts and dancing in the streets throughout France)
June 26–July 11: Jazz à Vienne, south of Lyon (concert series)
July: Carcassonne Festival (theater, music, dance, plus jousting matches and medieval festivities)
July–August: Open Air Cinema at La Villette park, Paris
July–August (six nonconsecutive nights): International Fireworks Festival, Cannes
July 2–15 (likely): Festival Paris l'Été (theater, dance, concerts)
July 3–14: Colmar International Festival (classical music)
July 4–21: Aix Festival (classical music and opera)
July 4–27: Beaune International Festival of Baroque Opera
July 5–26: Avignon Festival (theater, dance, music)
July 5–27: Tour de France (culminates on the Champs-Elysées in Paris)
July 6–September 8: Paris Plages (ersatz beaches along the Seine and several canals)
July 10–20: Jazz à Juan, Antibes/Juan-les-Pins (international jazz festival)
July 17–20: Vieilles Charrues Festival, Carhaix (Brittany; France's biggest music festival)
July 14: Bastille Day ("le 14 Juillet," closures, fireworks, revelry)
July 17–20 (likely): Cornouaille Festival, Quimper (Breton music and cultural festivities)
July 21–August 7: Jazz in Marciac, southwest France
August 1–3: Jasmine Festival, Grasse (flower-themed parades)
August 2–6: Corso de la Lavande (lavender festival with parades of lavender-covered floats, music, fireworks), Digne-les-Bains
August 13–16: La Route du Rock Summer, St-Malo (rock acts)
August 15: Assumption (closures)
August 21–25 (likely): Fête de la Saint-Louis, Sète (near Montpellier; parades, fireworks, canal-boat "water-jousting")
August 24–27: Nice Jazz Festival
August 28–September 7 (likely): Jazz at La Villette, Paris
August 29–September 1 (likely): Silhouette Festival, Paris (short-film festival)
September: Wine harvest festivals across France
September–mid-January: Festival d'Automne à Paris (arts festival)
September 6–7 Braderie de Lille (world's largest flea market)
September 19–October 5 (likely): Festival Musica, Strasbourg (contemporary classical music)
September 20 (likely): Technoparade, Paris (starts at Port Royal, ends at Place de la République)
September 20–21: Heritage days (Journée du patrimoine; special openings and tours of monuments and other historical sites across France)
September 24–27: Monaco Yacht Show (pricey exhibition of mega-yachts)
October 8–12: Fête des Vendanges, Montmartre neighborhood of Paris (grape harvest festival)
October 26 (likely): Festival de La Pomme, Trévières (apple-harvest festival near Honfleur)
November 1: All Saints' Day (La Toussaint; closures)
November 1–11: Dijon International and Gastronomic Fair
November 11: Armistice Day (closures)
November 14–17: Les Trois Glorieuses, Beaune (wine auction and festival)
Late November–December 24: Christmas markets in Strasbourg, Colmar, and Sarlat-la-Canéda
December: Christmas carousels, outdoor skating rinks, and avant-garde Christmas trees around town, Paris
December 3–7: Les Rencontres Trans Musicales, Rennes (up-and-coming pop, rock, etc.)
December 6–13: 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
2026
January 6: Epiphany
February 11–March 1: Nice Carnival (Mardi Gras, parades and fireworks)
February 10–28 (likely): Lemon Festival, Menton
February 15 (likely): Le Corso Fleuri, Bormes-les-Mimosas (traditional flower parade in coastal Provence)
February 25–28 (likely): La Route du Rock Winter, St-Malo and Rennes (rock and post-punk acts)