French public and school holidays 2023

French public and school holidays 2023

Here’s to a happy and healthy New Year to you all. 

 

As has become a tradition for 1^st January, here is my annual post with all the French public holidays, school holidays and other notable dates, plus how they are celebrated here in France, for 2023. 

 

Public Holidays in France 2023

1^st January, New Year’s Day, jour de l’an (a Sunday this year)

9^th April, Easter Sunday, Pâques

10^th April, Easter Monday, lundi de Pâques (note there is no Good Friday holiday in France unless you live in Alsace or Moselle areas)

1^st May, Fête du Travail

8^th May, Victory in Europe Day, Victoire 1945 

18^th May, Ascension Day, Ascension (note schools will have an extra day off on Friday 19^th May for the bridge (pont)) 

29^th May, Pentecost Monday, lundi de Pentecôte

14^th July, Fête Nationale

15^th August, Assumption Day, Assomption 

1^st November, All Saint's Day, Toussaint

11^th November, Armistice Day, Armistice 1918 (a Saturday this year)

25^th December, Christmas Day, Jour de Noël (note there is no Boxing Day holiday in France on 26^th unless you live in Alsace or Moselle areas)

Faire le pont

 

Faire le pont

Except for the holidays linked to Easter: Easter Monday, Ascension Day and Pentecost Monday, the above dates are the same every year and the holiday is always observed on the actual date rather than being moved to the nearest Monday (as the UK would do). Public holidays can therefore fall on weekends; to make up for this it is not uncommon for people to faire le pont (make a bridge) if a holiday falls on a Thursday (Ascension Day) or a Tuesday, by taking off the Friday or Monday to give themselves a four-day weekend. This leave will be part of their annual holiday entitlement, or the hours need to be made up, so while most businesses will be open on bridge days, some staff shortages can be expected. 

 

It is worth noting that in many areas of rural France, although some opening is becoming more common, most shops are likely to be either closed or only open in the mornings on public holidays.

 

Other dates to note and celebrate

6^th January, Epiphany, celebrated in France with a Galette des Rois (see here)

11^th January, winter sales begin, soldes d’hiver, sales are regulated in France and the winter sales will run from 11^th January to 7^th February 

2^nd February Candlemas day, Chandeleur, celebrated in France with pancakes (see here)

21^st February, Shrove Tuesday, Mardi Gras when carnival time begins in France and pancakes, or beignets (similar to doughnuts) are eaten.

26^th March, clocks spring forward an hour to Central European Summer Time

1^st April, Poisson d’avril celebrated in France with sticky fish (see here)

2^nd April, Palm Sunday, Rameaux a day where our local boulangeries bake something different (see here)

27^th May, National Resistance Day, journée nationale de la Résistance

2^nd June, Neighbours’ Day, fêtes des voisins, often celebrated in France with shared meals

4^th June, Mother’s Day, fêtes des mères

18^th June, Father’s Day, fêtes des pères

21^st June, world music day, fête de la musique, celebrated with free concerts in towns and villages all over France

28^th June, summer sales begin, soldes d’été, and will run until 25^th July

1^st July to 23^rd July, Le Tour de France, with a planned depart in Bilbao, Spain, and a finish on the Champs-Elysées in Paris

23^rd July to 30^th July, Le Tour de France Femmes avec Zwift, begins in Clermont-Ferrand and finishes in Pau  

29^th October, clocks go back an hour to Central European Time (although the future of this is up for debate)

Vacances scolaires 2023 service-public.fr

 

School Holidays

In France the schools are split into three zones and most of the holidays are staggered so not everyone is trying to hit the ski slopes or beaches at the same time, although be prepared for extra traffic on the roads on all Saturdays during the school holidays, or better still avoid driving on these days.

 

Here are the dates for 2023:

The winter holiday is from 3^rd February to 6^th March. 

Zone A gets the first two weeks, Zone B the middle two and Zone C the last two.

 

The spring holiday is from 7^th April to 9^th May. 

Zone A gets the first two weeks, Zone B the middle two and Zone C the last two weeks.

 

The summer holiday for all zones is from 7^th July until 4^th September.

 

The October holiday for all zones is from 20^th October to 6^th November.

 

The Christmas holiday for all zones is from 22^nd December to 7^th January 2024.

 

Covid-19 has evolved from something that stopped the world to something we all need to live with. As I write this, overseas travel is pretty much back to normal, although we are still much happier wearing our masks when using public transport. Here is to lots of safe travel adventures in France this year and I hope you find this useful for planning your trip in the quieter weeks outside of the French school holidays.