France Holidays 2024 | Holidays to France | Travel Department (2024)

FAQs

What are the top 5 holidays in France? ›

In France, there are 11 official public holidays annually: five of them are civil holidays (New Year's Day, May Day, WWII Victory Day, Bastille Day and Armistice Day) and six have a religious origin, having been based on the Catholic calendar (Easter Monday, Ascension Day, Whit Monday, Assumption Day, All Saints' Day, ...

The two most widely celebrated holidays in France are Bastille Day (14 July) and All Saints Day (1 November). The former commemorates the storming of the Bastille in 1789 and is a celebration of nationhood with communal fireworks, tricolor flags flying, and moules frites at the mairie.

Bastille Day: 14 July

The French National holiday celebrates 14 July 1789 and the French Revolution.

Pentecost Monday, or Whit Monday, is the day after Pentecost. Many Christians believe that on Pentecost, the Holy Spirit descended on Jesus Christ's disciples. Pentecost Monday was a public holiday in France until 2005 and again from 2008.

Don't panic, in France we're lucky enough to have 11 public holidays, including Easter Monday, May 1st, May 8th,Ascension Day and July 14th. Sometimes, when the calendar is mild, these public holidays can even be used as bridging days. So, is the 2024 calendar conducive to long weekends? Find out what's in store!

Celebrated nationwide on 14 July, Bastille Day is the biggest and most important festival in the French calendar. It commemorates the day that Parisian commoners and peasants stormed the fortress and prison of Bastille.

The reason lies in France's enshrined labour code, the Code du Travail, which was first published in 1910. The Code du Travail used to say that it was illegal for anyone to work more that six days a week and that workers should have 35 consecutive hours of rest.

Every year since 1880, the French celebrate their national day on 14 July, which has turned into a “symbol of the history and unity of the country around common values”, according the ministry of armies, major organiser of the parade.

One of the revolutionary days in Paris and now a national holiday, the 14th of July ("Bastille Day") is celebrated with a mixture of solemn military parades and easygoing dancing and fireworks. The storming of the Bastille on July 14, 1789 has been commemorated in France for more than a century.

What do the French celebrate in June? ›

National event in June in France

Fête de la Musique each 21 June. This annual free music festival takes place throughout France with performances of all kinds from classical music, choirs in churches, hip hop, jazz, orchestra and pop taking place in the open air, bars and restaurants.

And May 28th is Whit Sunday (Pentecost). Ascension and Pentecost are both religious holidays, but in spite of France's secularism (“la laïcité“), the separation of the state and religious organizations, it still chooses to celebrate them Statewide.

Internal Autonomy Day (Fête de l'autonomie): 29 June.

Memorial Day and Whitsun celebrations

Monday, May 29, is U.S. Memorial Day, which coincides with Whitsun, an official holiday across many European countries including Andorra, Austria, Belgium, Denmark, France, Germany, Hungary, Liechtenstein, Luxembourg, Monaco, Netherlands, Norway and Switzerland.

Holidays in France are spread throughout the year. But you'll have the most holidays in May. Besides these national holidays, many French people take their grandes vacances (grand vacations) in July or August, where they take a week or two off for summer break.

In 1982, the 8th May became an official national holiday. Nowadays, there is a parade held along the Champs Elysées as well as many other commemorative ceremonies across France.