French festivals and public holidays: dates and traditions

Public holidays and traditions

French pupils distinguish un jour férié (a public holiday, when schools and most offices close) from a tradition that is celebrated on a normal working day. Unlike Spain, France sets its holidays nationally, with two exceptions:

• Alsace and Moselle have two extra holidays: Good Friday and 26 December (la Saint-Étienne).
• Overseas departments each have a holiday for the abolition of slavery, on different dates: for example 22 May in Martinique and 20 December in La Réunion.

When a holiday falls on a Thursday, many people take the Friday off: faire le pont, “to make a bridge”. Ascension Day is always a Thursday, so the pont de l’Ascension is a fixture of the French calendar.

The calendar, month by month

Good Friday and Boxing Day are not public holidays in most of France: a common surprise for British pupils.

The moveable dates

1. Easter Sunday. The first Sunday after the first full moon on or after 21 March, as calculated by the Church. It falls between 22 March and 25 April.
2. Mardi gras. 47 days before Easter Sunday: the same day as Shrove Tuesday, Pancake Day in the UK. The French make pancakes too, but mostly at la Chandeleur, on 2 February.
3. Ascension and Pentecost. Ascension Day is the Thursday 39 days after Easter; Pentecost Sunday is 49 days after Easter, so Whit Monday is 50 days after.
4. Mother’s Day. The last Sunday of May, except when it clashes with Pentecost: then it moves to the first Sunday of June. In the UK, Mothering Sunday is the fourth Sunday of Lent.
5. Father’s Day. The third Sunday of June, the same day as in the UK.
6. The galette. The Church in France celebrates Epiphany on the Sunday between 2 and 8 January, and galettes are eaten throughout January. In the south, it is often a brioche ring, la brioche des rois or le gâteau des rois.

How to write and wish

1. Capitals on the specific word. Noël, Pâques, la Toussaint, la Chandeleur, le jour de l’An, la fête du Travail. French typography also capitalises the month in the name of a holiday: le 14 Juillet, le 11 Novembre, but le 14 juillet 2026 as an ordinary date.
2. Pâques is feminine plural in wishes. Joyeuses Pâques ! But without an article, the day itself is masculine singular: à Pâques, Pâques prochain.
3. The usual wishes. Bonne année !, Joyeux Noël !, Joyeuses fêtes !, Bonne fête !

“Bastille Day” is an English name. The French say le 14 Juillet or la fête nationale. And Bonne fête ! also celebrates name days: French calendars give a saint for each day, so on 6 December, every Nicolas gets a Bonne fête !

Across the French-speaking world

• Belgium: national day on 21 July; la Saint-Nicolas (6 December) is a major children’s festival.
• Switzerland: national day on 1 August.
• Quebec: la Fête nationale du Québec, or la Saint-Jean-Baptiste, on 24 June; Canada Day on 1 July, which is also the traditional moving day in Quebec.

Typical mistakes of English-speaking learners

• “Joyeux Pâques”: it is Joyeuses Pâques.
• Assuming British holidays: no Good Friday, no Boxing Day, and no substitute days: French holidays keep their date, so one that falls on a Sunday is simply lost.
• Halloween instead of Toussaint: Halloween is known, but 1 November is a day for visiting graves.
• Capitals on months in dates: “le 3 Mai” as a date; only the holiday takes the capital.
• Pronunciation: Noël is “noh-EL” in two syllables; Pâques is one syllable, “pahk”; Toussaint is “too-SA(N)”; Chandeleur is “shah(n)-duh-LUR”.

In class: festivals in the daily routine

Festivals give the date routine a cultural payoff: on the right day, the date leads straight into France.

1. Start with the date: Nous sommes le 2 février.
2. If it is a French festival or holiday, show its name and a picture: Aujourd’hui, c’est la Chandeleur !
3. Share one fact in simple French: On mange des crêpes.
4. Ask C’est un jour férié ? Pupils decide: holiday or tradition.
5. Compare with the UK: Et au Royaume-Uni ?

This is exactly what a daily routine does: the right cultural fact, on the right day, in a minute.

For longer projects: a galette in January (with the fève rules in French), crêpes with a coin in hand at la Chandeleur, or a group presentation per month.

Adapting to your class

• A1Name the day: Aujourd’hui, c’est Noël.
• A2Describe it: Le 14 Juillet, il y a un défilé et des feux d’artifice.
• B1Tell a memory: L’année dernière, j’ai trouvé la fève !
• B2Compare and argue: Je trouve dommage qu’on ne fête pas la Chandeleur ici.

At KS2, crêpes, galettes and chocolate bells go a long way. At KS3, use the calendar to revise dates and ordinals. At GCSE, festivals and traditions are a core cultural theme, ideal for comparisons with the UK.

Frequently asked questions