The most important holidays in France: list and photos

2024 Author: Priscilla Miln | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-16 00:21

France is one of the most mysterious and romantic countries, so crowds of tourists tend to come here. Most girls would dream of spending their honeymoon here. Cozy streets, beautiful landscapes, French cuisine, ancient castles and the legendary Eiffel Tower - what could be more interesting? But to get the most out of it, you should come to France during the main national holidays and festivals.

Public holidays

The French honor their history, traditions and culture, so many solemn dates are timed to coincide with the events that took place in their country: Bastille Day, Reconciliation Day (on the occasion of the end of World War I), Victory over fascism. Consider official holidays in France:

St. Sylvester's Day, or New Year. It is traditionally celebrated from December 31st to January 1st. Although this holiday is considered a family holiday, most French people prefer to celebrate it with close friends, gathering in some nightclub, club, restaurant or cafe. The New Year's table is decorated with a mistletoe plant, which, according tobelieved to bring good luck

• Labor Day in France, as in Russia, is celebrated on May 1st. The Feast of the Lily of the Valley belongs to the same date. It is customary to give bouquets of these flowers, as they are considered a symbol of happiness.
• Day of liberation from Nazi occupation. May 8th is celebrated. In France, it is declared an official holiday. During the ceremony, statesmen lay wreaths at the tomb of the Unknown Soldier. Veterans who survived come to celebrate the solemn date. The President of the country shakes hands with each of them.
• The event that started the French Revolution - the capture of the Bastille prison fortress in 1789. This holiday has become national. Bastille Day is celebrated on July 14th. In terms of the scale of the celebration, even the New Year cannot be compared with this date. A huge number of tourists come to France to participate in this celebration.

• All Saints Day. Celebrated November 1st. This is a religious holiday for the faithful of the Catholic Church. On this day, the French say prayers for deceased relatives in the church, after which they go to their burial place. At the cemetery, burning candles are placed on the grave and put things in order.
• The most important holiday in France is Christmas. Since the majority of the country's inhabitants are Catholics, the celebration of this date takes place on December 25th. The French are thoroughly preparing for it: they decorate the premises, decorate the Christmas tree, buy gifts. This time is the best time for a romantic trip to Paris.

Celebrations dedicated to reading, music and cinema

The French really appreciate art, so it's no wonder they have a reading holiday. In France, he appeared not so long ago. Reading Day was first held in 1989. The event was well received by the public, so it began to be held annually on October 16th. The initiator of the celebration was the Ministry of Culture. As part of the event, a three-day program is designed, which includes:

• book fairs;
• exhibitions and presentations of new editions;
• writers' nights where fans can interact with book authors;
• seminars and scientific conferences.

France is the only country in the world that hosts such a massive literary festival. The gift on this day, of course, are books. They are given to each other or donated to public libraries.

The holidays in France have a special flavor, but some of them can boast of worldwide fame. It's about the Cannes Film Festival, which is dedicated to cinema. The celebration lasts for 10 days. The resort city of Cannes these days receives many guests, including a huge number of movie stars and an even greater number of fans who want to see their idols with their own eyes. About 10 thousand professional accredited specialists are involved in the competition. Events taking place at the festival are covered by more than 4,000 media workers. Timecelebration - spring.

June 21, the day of the summer solstice, is considered to be the feast of music in France. Jacques Langro - the French minister - in 1982 proposed to introduce this cultural event. Since then, a bright celebration of the Day of Music has been held annually. It sounds from everywhere: on the streets, in houses and apartments, in musical institutions. Orchestral parades are held, in which both famous artists and amateurs participate. The celebration lasts until the morning, so even at night you can hear beautiful melodies. Musicians perform works of different genres - from classical to modern pop.

New Wine Festival

France is famous all over the world for its winemaking, so it is not surprising that a separate holiday is dedicated to the drink. On the night of November 15, the inhabitants of the country celebrate Beaujolais Nouveau. The holiday in France originally appeared exclusively on a commercial basis in the middle of the 20th century. Young wine, which was made in the province of Beaujolais from the Gamay variety, was inferior in quality to products produced in Bordeaux and Burgundy. The cunning shown helped the producers of Beaujolais Nouveau to get out of such a difficult situation. Winemakers founded a holiday that is celebrated in November. It is dedicated to the celebration of the new harvest of wine. The invented marketing ploy was very successful, since then Winemaker's Day has been celebrated not only by the French, but also by other peoples and countries.

Unlike Burgundy and Bordeaux, young Beaujolais cannot be storedfor a long time, but it is during this period that it has the most wonderful aroma and rich taste.

Gastronomic festivals

French cuisine is famous for its sophistication and sophistication, and the people of the country are sophisticated gourmets, so it is not surprising that there are various gastronomic holidays in France. The most popular ones:

• Chestnut Festival. It is celebrated in October - the 20th. The aroma of roasted chestnuts spreads throughout the city and attracts everyone to try this delicacy. Food is prepared right on the street. On this day, this dish is considered the most important.
• Lemon Festival - held every year in the town of Menton. Hundreds of thousands of guests and tourists participate in the celebration. In these places, due to climatic conditions, excellent lemon fruits are grown. To decorate the city for the holiday, it will take about 130 tons of various citrus fruits. From oranges, lemons and grapefruits, bizarre decorations are created in the form of fairy-tale characters, castles and trees. The festival takes place on February 17.

Religious holidays

Catholicism is considered the main religion of France. Many French people visit churches, especially when major Christian dates are celebrated. The main religious holidays in France are:

• Christmas - December 25.
• Catholic Easter - celebrated in the spring, as a rule, falls on the period from 22.03 to 25.04.
• Assumption of the Virgin Mary - August 15.
• DayAll Saints - November 1.

Initially, the celebration of Christmas was based on the period of the winter solstice, which lasted 12 days. In modern France, St. Nicholas Day (6.12) is considered the eve of the holiday, and the celebration lasts until the day of Epiphany (6.01), the second name is the Feast of the Kings. In France, national traditions and culture are honored, so tourists will be interested in attending mass events dedicated to solemn dates.

Easter, although it is a purely Christian holiday, is celebrated even by non-believers. On this day, it is customary to give gifts to relatives and friends. For most French people, this holiday is associated with the arrival of spring and good mood. The symbol of Easter in many European countries is the rabbit. According to a pagan legend, Estra, the goddess of spring, enchanted a bird, and it turned into a rabbit, but even after the transformation, she carried eggs. A month before the celebration of the celebration, French shops are filled with chocolate figurines in the form of rabbits, eggs and cockerels. In the early morning, when Easter comes, adults hide chocolate eggs in the garden, and children look for them, collect them in a basket and eat this delicacy for breakfast.

Flower holidays

France is permeated with romanticism, and flowers are known to be a symbol of love. More than one holiday is dedicated to these plants in the country:

Mimosa day. Celebrated on February 10th. It symbolizes the end of the cold period - winter. The flower parade takes place in the city of San Rafael, and every year the holiday becomes more and morewide scope. It was first celebrated in the early 1920s. Carriages decorated with the symbol of the holiday - mimosa participate in the procession. Various events are held on this day: a parade, the Miss Mimosa contest, a fair, exhibitions

• Flower festivals in France are held on a special scale, for example, the Orchid Festival takes place in Tarascon on February 18th. It presents a huge variety of shades and shapes of the flower. Compositions are made from orchids in combination with waterfalls and fountains. The festival is simply irresistible thanks to the lighting effects.
• Lily of the Valley Day is held on May 1st. On this holiday, it is customary to give bouquets of these delicate flowers to each other.

A holiday marred by tragedy

Holidays in France gather a huge number of tourists and locals. Bastille Day, which is celebrated on July 14th, is considered one of the largest events. Even the celebration of the New Year is incomparable with what is happening in France on this day. The events that took place in 1789 formed the basis for the beginning of the Revolution and led to the removal of the royal family from power. During the storming of the Bastille, 7 prisoners were released by the rebellious Parisians.

In 2016, in the midst of festivities dedicated to the solemn date, a terrorist attack occurred on the Nice embankment. A terrible misfortune happened in France at a holiday: a truck driven by a middle-aged man drove into a crowd of vacationers. He kept moving until he wasshot by the police. During the terrorist attack, 80 people were killed, and about 100 were injured to varying degrees.

Famous carnivals and festivals in France

The French love to participate in various carnivals and festivals, and as you know, there are a lot of them. Here is a list of the most popular celebrations:

• In the second half of January, the Geode film festival based on Omnimax technology is held annually in Paris.
• The Principality of Monaco hosts a circus festival every year in mid-January. The program involves famous circus troupes that compete for the Golden Clown award. The celebration lasts a week.
• Carnival in Nice is one of the oldest in the country. It originated in the distant 1294. Carnival is held on February 11th. The procession consists of 20 platforms decorated with fresh flowers, on which women and men in luxurious attire sit. The holiday is accompanied by concerts and fireworks.

Significant dates in the history of France

In the history of France there are dates that had a significant impact on the political situation in the country. The French celebrate the victory over Nazi Germany on May 8. On this day, officials of the country honor the combatants, lay wreaths at the tomb of the Unknown Soldier. The holiday has been declared a public holiday.

The storming of the Bastille is celebrated on July 14th. On this day, a military parade is held on the Champs Elysees. Ceremony starts at 10 am. Movement is carried out from Place de l'Etoile to the Louvre, where the militarywelcomed by the head of state. At the end of the festival, a large fireworks light up the sky.

Legendary heroine of France Joan of Arc in 1920 was elevated to the face of saints, according to the decree of Pope Benedict XV. She is the patroness of the country and the military. Saint's Day is celebrated on May 30.

Valentine's Day

Listing the holidays in France, don't forget Valentine's Day. It falls in mid-February - the 14th. The French have a special charm and know how to make unforgettable declarations of love. On this day, lovers exchange valentines and other gifts symbolizing tender feelings. Cafes and restaurants are crowded on this day. Loving couples are sitting at the tables, holding hands. This is the best day to propose to your spouse. An interesting fact: it was the French who came up with the idea of \u200b\u200bwriting love quatrains-congratulations on valentines.