One of the best things during this time of the year in France is : FESTIVALS! Have you planned to travel to France this summer ? Are you going to Paris for the Olympics? Here are other things to do during your trip. And, if you didn’t manage to get tickets or prefer to avoid the crowd, here are my selection for you. Don’t hesitate to click on the festivals’ names to visit their official websites.
Travel to France for its...
For the music lovers visiting France
📌 La Rochelle — 🗓️ from 10 to 14/07
It’s a beautiful coastal city in South-West of France (I might be biased since I’ve lived there 👀 but all of my students who went there agreed 😌) where you can enjoy variété française (= French music). Some of the biggest French speaking artists go there so I’m sure you’ll know some of them!
📌 en Bretagne — 🗓️ from 10 to 14/07
This is another big festival in France. And the line up is the perfect mix of French speaking and international artists. Just to give you an idea of how big is this festival, this year there are Sting, Sam Smith or Kings of Leon in the line up. But there are also Angélique Kidjo, Shay, Yamê and Chinese Man.
📌 Marseille — 🗓️ from 4 to 8/09
If you prefer South-East of France, you should go to this festival which is in Marseille (c’est Marseille bébé – if you have the ref 👀). You are going to enjoy electro in a great scenery. It’s a great way to end summer.
📌 near Brussels — 🗓️ from 19 to 28/07
First thing to know, this festival is actually in Belgium. I decided to keep it in the list because it’s one of my dream festival so it might be yours. Tomorrowland is one of the most famous electro festivals. Every year, it’s a real challenge to have tickets so make sure to check the opening next year.
📌 Château de Chambord — 🗓️ from 6 to 20/07
Any Bridgeton fan out-there ? If you love architecture and are passionate about French history, the Festival de Chambord is a must for you! You are going to enjoy classical music in one of the most beautiful castles in France.
I prefer films and series
📌 Annecy — 🗓️ from 9 to 15/06
The Annecy Festival is an animated movie festival. This festival is already over when you read this, but I still wanted to mention it because it’s a big festival. If you plan to travel to France next year, you can definitely go there. Fun fact, Annecy is so nice that you can see it in one Pokemon episode.
📌 La Rochelle — 🗓️ from 10 to 15/09
This is your second chance to go to La Rochelle. If you prefer films to music, go to this Fiction festival. During 5 days, people can enjoy 60 series and movies from France, Europe and other French speaking countries.
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La Fête du Cinéma
📌 Anywhere in France — 🗓️ 30/06 to 03/07
Great news! You can enjoy this one in any French city. During 4 days, you can enjoy film screenings for 5 euros. Don’t hesitate to search for screenings in original language. If you are travelling to big cities in France, make sure to look for Lost in Frenchlation. They offer screenings of films in French with English subtitles.
Travel to France for its other art festivals
📌 Metz — 🗓️ from 20/06 to 31/08
This one is an international digital art festival. During the whole summer, you’re going to enjoy immersive installations, laser scenography, digital and interactive installations, etc. You can also go to film screenings in plein air, attend artistic workshops.
📌 Arles — 🗓️ from 01/07 to 29/09
It’s THE event to go to if you like photography. I went there last year and had the chance to see Gregory Crewdson’s exhibition. I’m planning on going there again this year because it’s a great event for any photographer (amateurs & pro). If you already spent too much during your travel to France, don’t worry, there are free exhibitions to go to. Btw, Van Gogh stayed in Arles for a while and painted a lot there. If you wander in the city, you are going to see (and recognize) many of his paintings.
📌 Nantes — 🗓️ from 6/07 to 08/09
Nantes is one of the most pleasant city to visit during the summer. It might not be as famous internationally as other cities, but it has beaucoup de charme (= really charming). During le Voyage à Nantes, you can wander in the city to find contemporary installations and artworks in public spaces.
📌 Grenoble — 🗓️ from 24/05 to 30/06
If you don’t know, I live near Grenoble. And one of the thing that surprised me the most when I moved here was the number of street artworks here. Grenoble Festival is actually the biggest street art festival in Europe! So, it’s definitely worth a travel to France.
📌 Normandie — 🗓️ from 22/03 to 22/09
This festival celebrate 150 years of Impressionism. If you like Claude Monet, Berthe Morisot or Camille Pissarro, ditch the Musée d’Orsay and go to Normandie. On top of that, Normandie is a beautiful region. You can go to Mont Saint-Michel and les falaises (= cliff) d’Étretat.
