Public and school holidays in France, 2026

Public holidays in France 2026

Public and school holidays in France, 2026

I’d like to wish you all a happy and healthy New Year from France and share my annual guide to help you make the most of the French holidays. Here you will find the dates of the public holidays, other notable dates and how they are celebrated, plus the school holiday dates, so you can avoid the busiest times on the roads or in the resorts.

 

Don’t forget, you can save the image and keep it to hand for reference during the year.

 

Public Holidays in France 2026

1^st January, New Year’s Day, jour de l’an 

5^th April, Easter Sunday, Pâques 

6^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 (celebrated by giving a sprig of lily of the valley)

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

14^th May, Ascension Day, jeudi de l’Ascension (note schools will have an extra day off on Friday 15^thMay for the bridge (pont)) 

25^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, la Toussaint

11^th November, Armistice Day, Armistice 1918 

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

 

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 (Sunday 15^th August); 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 (14^th July), 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 will need to be made up, so while most businesses will be open on bridge days, some staff shortages can be expected. 

 

No work May!

With Easter falling in early April this year, May will be hosting four public holidays and with two falling on Fridays (1^st and 8^th), plus Ascension Thursday (14^th) and Pentecost Monday (25^th), that means only one full working week in May and four weeks that will give us three-day weekends. For those of us working in the tourism sector this should get the 2026 summer season off to a good start.

 

https://www.vacances-scolaires-gouv.com

School Holidays

The school holiday dates in France 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 2026:

The winter holiday will be from 7^th February to 8^th March. 

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

 

The spring holiday will be from 4^th April to 3^rd May. 

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

 

Thanks to Ascension Day falling on 14^th May, everyone will be off for a four-day long weekend from Thursday 14^th May to Sunday 17^th May, with Friday being a bridge day.

 

The summer holiday for all zones will be from 4^th July until 1^st September.

 

The October holiday for all zones will be from 17^th October to 1^st November.

 

The Christmas holiday for all zones will be from 19^th December to 3^rd January 2027.

Fête de la musique, 21st June

 

Other dates to note and celebrate in France

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

7^th January, winter sales begin, soldes d’hiver. Sales are regulated in France and the winter sales will run from 7^th January to 3^rd February. 

21^st to 25^th January, Nuits de la lecture, national reading nights celebrated in libraries across the country.

 

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

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

 

29^th March, Palm Sunday, Rameaux a day where our local boulangeries bake something different (see here).

29^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).

 

23^rd May, European museum night, Nuits des musées, where many museums open late or run special events. 

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

29^th May, Neighbours’ Day, fêtes des voisins often celebrated in France with shared meals.

31^st May, Mother’s Day, fêtes des mères.

 

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

21^st June, Father’s Day, fêtes des pères.

24^th June, summer sales begin, soldes d’été, and will run until 21^st July.

 

4^th July to 26^th July, Le Tour de France, with a planned depart in Barcelona, and with a finish on the Champs-Elysées in Paris. 

 

1^st August to 9^th August, Le Tour de France Femmes avec Zwift, begins in Switzerland and finishes nine days later in Nice. 

 

19^th and 20^th September, European Heritage weekend, Journées Européennes du Patrimoine, many museums and other cultural sites will be open to the public, often organising special events, and with free or reduced-price entry. 

 

25^th October, clocks go back an hour to Central European Time. 

 

Free museum entry on the First Sundays of the month 

Did you know many national museums in France open for free on the first Sunday of the month? Whilst not exclusive, as there are often restrictions in July and August, and some museums will close for some of the winter months, this is certainly a secret worth knowing and we’ve had some interesting visits over the years, all for free. 

 

Note: not all museums are national and without the financial support from the government, locally or independently run places will not have the ability to offer free entries. If you fancy a cultural city break, it would be worthwhile checking the museum websites to see if they are taking part and plan your visit accordingly.

 

I hope you’ve found this useful and that wherever in France 2026 takes you, you have a wonderful time. I’d love to hear about your adventures and new discoveries.