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.

Public and school holidays in France, 2025

Public holidays in France, 2025

Public and school holidays in France, 2025

Happy New Year to you all, it was a hectic end to 2024 for us, so I hope 2025 is a healthy and less challenging one for everyone.

 

Having only had the opportunities for day trips last year, we are busy browsing the internet and guidebooks for ideas and itineraries for our cycling escapades this year. January is the perfect time to start planning your French travel adventures and to make the most of them, it’s always useful to know when the public and school holidays fall. Things have changed a lot in the twenty years since we’ve been living here, but in many areas of rural France, shops are still likely to be either closed or only open in the mornings on public holidays and school holiday traffic can be a nightmare.

 

Here is my guide to all the French public holidays, school holidays and other notable dates, plus how they are celebrated here in France, for 2025. This year, you can save the above image and keep it to hand for reference during the year.

 

Public Holidays in France 2025

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

20^th April, Easter Sunday, Pâques 

21^st 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 with lily of the valley)

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

29^th May, Ascension Day, Ascension (note schools will have an extra day off on Friday 30^th May for the bridge (pont)) 

9^th June, 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 

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

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 will need to be made up, so while most businesses will be open on bridge days, some staff shortages can be expected. 

 

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.

 

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

Here are the dates for 2025:

The winter holiday will be from 8^th February to 9^th March. 

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

 

The spring holiday will be from 5^th April to 4^th May. 

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

 

Thanks to Ascension Day falling on 29^th May, everyone will be off for a four-day long weekend from Thursday 29^th May to Sunday 1^st June, with Friday being a bridge day.

 

The summer holiday for all zones will be from 5^th July until 1^st September.

 

The October holiday for all zones will be from 18^th October to 2^nd November.

 

The Christmas holiday for all zones will be from 20^th December to 4^th January 2026.

 

Other dates to note and celebrate in France

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

8^th January, winter sales begin, soldes d’hiver. Sales are regulated in France and the winter sales will run from 8^th January to 4^th February. 

 

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

 

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

30^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).

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

 

25^th May, Mother’s Day, fêtes des mères.

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

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

 

15^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.

25^th June, summer sales begin, soldes d’été, and will run until 22^nd July.

 

5^th July to 27^th July, Le Tour de France, with a planned depart in Lille, and with a finish back on the Champs-Elysées in Paris. This year, unusually, there will be no overseas stages.

 

26^th July to 3^rd August, Le Tour de France Femmes avec Zwift, begins in Brittany and finishes a whopping nine days later in Châtel, in the Alps. This is its longest duration yet since its inauguration in 2022. We are looking forward to watching it when it comes through Poitiers on 29^th and 30^th July.

 

20^th and 21^st 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. 

 

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

 

Free museum Sundays

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 2025 takes you, you have a wonderful time. I’d love to hear about your adventures and new discoveries.

 

French public and school holidays 2024

French public and school holiday dates 2024

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

 

January is the perfect time to start planning your French travel adventures and to make the most of them, it’s always useful to know when the public and school holidays fall. Things have changed a lot in the twenty years since we’ve been living here, but in many areas of rural France, shops are still likely to be either closed or only open in the mornings on public 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.

 

This summer Paris will be home to the Olympics, with 329 events over 19 days in 41 venues, which will mean a busy city, plus it’s all change for the Tour de France and the Tour de France Femmes. 

Here is my guide to all the French public holidays, school holidays and other notable dates, plus how they are celebrated here in France, for 2024. 

 

Public Holidays in France 2024

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

31^st March, Easter Sunday, Pâques 

1^st 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 with lily of the valley)

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

9^th May, Ascension Day, Ascension (note schools will have an extra day off on Friday 9^th May for the bridge (pont see below)) 

20^th May, Pentecost Monday, lundi de Pentecôte

14^th July, Fête Nationale (a Sunday this year)

15^th August, Assumption Day, Assomption 

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

11^th November, Armistice Day, Armistice 1918 

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

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. 

French school holiday zones 
https://www.vacances-scolaires-gouv.com

 

School Holidays 

 

Here are the dates for 2024:

The winter holiday is from 10^th February to 10^th March. 

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

 

The spring holiday is from 6^th April to 5^th May. 

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

 

Thanks to Ascension Day falling on 9^th May, everyone is off for a five-day long weekend from Wednesday 8^th May (Victory in Europe Day) to Sunday 12^th May, with Friday being a bridge day.

 

The summer holiday for all zones is from 6^th July until 1^st September.

 

The October holiday for all zones is from 19^th October to 3^rd November.

 

The Christmas holiday for all zones is from 22^nd December to 6^th January 2025.

 

Other dates to note and celebrate

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

10^th January, winter sales begin, soldes d’hiver. Sales are regulated in France and the winter sales will run from 10^th January to 6^th February 

 

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

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

 

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

31^st 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)

 

26^th May, Mother’s Day, fêtes des mères

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

31^st May, Neighbours’ Day, fêtes des voisins often celebrated in France with shared meals

 

6^th June, 80^th anniversary of the D-Day landings in Normandy that will be commemorated with a number of events this summer 

16^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

26^th June, summer sales begin, soldes d’été, and will run until 16^th July

 

29^th June to 1^st July, Le Tour de France, with a planned depart in Florence, Italy, and a finish in Nice, NOT on the Champs-Elysées in Paris because of preparations for the Paris 2024 Olympic Games

 

26^th July to 11^th August, Paris 2024 Olympic Games with the Opening Ceremony on 26^th July

 

12^th to 18^th August, Le Tour de France Femmes avec Zwift, begins in Rotterdam and finishes in Alpe d’Huez, in the Alps

21^st and 22^nd 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

 

27^th October, clocks go back an hour to Central European Time and Christmas will be with us before we know it

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.

 

7^th January

4^th February

3^rd March

7^th April

5^th May

2^nd June

7^th July

4^th August

1^st September

6^th October

3^rd November

1^st December

 

I hope you’ve found this useful and that wherever in France 2024 takes you, you have a wonderful time. I’d love to hear about your adventures and new discoveries.

 

  

Advent day twenty-four, Happy Christmas to you all

Happy Christmas

Advent day twenty-four

Happy Christmas Eve and thank you for being a part of our French village life for another year. 

 

I just love this silly selfie we took on yesterday’s bike ride. It just about sums up our cycling year, smiles, blue skies, sunshine and rain. All being well, tomorrow will see me going over the 6000km mark on my Brompton (since 1^st January 2023) and it's been a blast.

 

Our Christmas Eve began with a bike ride – how I wish I could say that about every day of the year. It was just a short 16km round trip into Chef-Boutonne to ensure we had a lovely, seeded baguette for our picnic lunch tomorrow, and wouldn’t run out of dog food. For a Sunday morning, the small town of Chef-Boutonne was buzzing! There were queues at the butchers, the oyster stall was busy and by the time I came out of the boulangerie, the queue had spread across the pavement. I’d got chatting to a British couple in the queue, his opening comment being “you look so happy and excited”. Now, I’m not the most Christmassy of people, our decorations and celebrations are rather low key when compared to many households, and I had no idea how much happiness was radiating from me, but I’m glad it was. I think the lesson here is to never underestimate the power of a bike ride, however short or routine, to put you in a good mood. 

 

I hope you have enjoyed my Advent postcards, highlighting some of the interesting, remarkable, arty, or historical loveliness we’ve discovered in 2023 on our cycling adventures. I’ve certainly loved revisiting them when writing the posts. Some of these places are local to the Deux-Sèvres, some a long way from home. Some are places we’ve stumbled on as part of day trips, others on our cycle touring adventures to celebrate our twenty-fifth wedding anniversary year. Despite staying away in twelve different towns or cities (ten of which were in France), I purposely only included the villages or small towns we’ve visited in my postcards. It seemed more fitting for a blog called French Village Diaries. I think they have proven that slow travel on the lesser pedalled roads is incredibly rewarding. I do hope some of them have sparked an interest and inspire you to stop and explore next time you are on the road in France.

 

Happy Christmas to you all. 

Anniversary adventures in Angoulême

Anniversary adventures in Angoulême

In my post to mark the passing of January, I wrote about my hopes that February would bring us crisp, blue sky and sunshine days and so far, it has delivered. The frosty mornings have looked beautiful, illuminated by the deep orange glow of sunrise, and witnessed from the warmth of the duvet. By lunchtime there has been enough heat in the sun to dine outdoors and as Ed has slipped into the habit of a weekly visit, the washing he’s brought with him has dried nicely outside.

 

This year to help us mark our upcoming silver wedding anniversary, (two months today) we have decided that a cycle tour every month, of a minimum of one night away and one hundred kilometres cycling, is a fitting way for us to combine a challenge with a celebration. You might ask “where is the challenge in heading off for a night away once a month?” Well, when the weather is against you and it is just you and your legs to propel yourself along, a romantic getaway soon becomes a challenge for the mind, as well as the body. It also involves working together to keep each other motivated to carry on, well, February’s challenge certainly involved Adrian doing a lot of stopping, waiting and offering of cake, to keep me motivated to carry on, but it was still teamwork and togetherness, and that’s what counts.

Destination Angoulême 

 

Destination Angoulême, Saturday

At around sixty kilometres from home, Angoulême was the perfect destination for our February overnight cycling mini break and having completed previous cycling adventures there we knew where to stay, where to eat out and where to find breakfast. 

 

Our route took us into the Charente department and through our first cognac vineyards before we’d managed twenty kilometres, and it was here I had to stop to take my first layer of clothing off. Our planned lunch stop was in Luxé, just after we crossed the river Charente for the first of many times, where the snack bar by the lake promised a delicious croque monsieur but it wasn’t to be. The thing with cycle touring, even if it’s only two 60km days, is that it’s important to be prepared and pack for all eventualities. As we sat on a bench between lake and closed snack bar, eating a hard-boiled egg from our bag, the tables tantalizingly laid for service, were just visible in the gloomy interior. We had patiently given them their Charentais quart d’heure, the obligatory Charentais fifteen-minute delay, but still nothing. I guess their Google listing stating winter opening times of 12h till 14h Thursday to Sunday, didn’t include the first Saturday in February. 

The Well of Miracles, Xambes, Charente

 

The village of Xambes wasn’t much further on and here we hoped to find a picnic bench to enjoy the emergency avocado salad I’d packed in case the cafe was closed. The signs to the Well of Miracles were too intriguing not to follow and tucked into the flaking wall at the side of the church, we found a small statue of the Virgin Mary and a rather disappointing well. Lourdes it was not. The sign told us to thank the Virgin Mary, which we did, and low and behold, her path led us to a picnic bench nestled in a secluded copse of trees. Maybe had I been more grateful to her, she could have seen to it that every snack bar and boulangerie we were to pass today wouldn’t be closed. 

Katie The Tiny Tourer enjoying knitted tree warmers in Var, Charente

 

At Saint-Amant-de-Boixe we swept past the impressive abbey, and closed boulangerie, before continuing onto Montignac-Charente, where we chose the challenge of a sharp climb up to the donjon, only to find it closed. We carefully carried the bikes down a set of ancient stone steps, to arrive at the door of another closed boulangerie. We were now following the pilgrimage route of St Jacques, that has tucked in beside the river Charente from Charroux in the Vienne and will continue with us to Angoulême. In Vars, as well as a closed boulangerie, we had the excitement of discovering a slow puncture on Adrian’s rear wheel and lots of knitted tree warmers in bright colours decorating the village centre. A bit of air pumped into the tyre, for the first of many times, and we were good to continue. 

 

Time for a hug on the banks of the Charente

Our final route into Angoulême followed the couloir verte (green corridor) that is sandwiched between the tranquillity of the Charente River on one side and the continual engine roar from the ring road flyover on the other. We first cycled into town this way in autumn 2019 where I clocked up my first 3000km on Katie, my Brompton. We are now well on our way to twenty thousand happy kilometres together and a cake on a bench would have been a fitting way to celebrate, had we managed to find an open boulangerie. At a bend in the river, my eye caught a beautiful old plane tree, spotted and majestic, towering above me like a gigantic, knobbly giraffe. I had to pause for a moment and give it a hug, which is when we noticed an abandoned avenue lined with similar plane trees leading from the river up a long-overgrown track towards a gated property. I bet at some point in time the wealthy owners would have had their own water access, maybe even a small port for exporting their cognac.

 

Home for the night was the Aparthotel situated at river level, giving our legs a different form of exercise as we set off on foot to climb the steep steps cut into the Jardin Vert to reach the ramparts, eighty metres above us. We had a mission to accomplish, namely sourcing provisions for a packed lunch for our return tomorrow and as it’s never a good idea to shop on an empty stomach, we added a few sweet and savoury treats to keep us going before dinner too. This was maybe a touch greedy as despite cycling just over sixty kilometres, it was a mostly flat, easy day on the bike that probably hadn’t burned as many calories as we were about to consume before unfolding the bikes in the morning. 

 

The ramparts of Angoulême and Général Resnier

The top of the ramparts offered spectacular views over the river and back in the direction we had come from. A small plaque set into the walls told of the brave attempt at non-motorised flight by Général Resnier, hailed as the man who gave rise to the idea of France’s first air army. Determined to find a way for Napoleon’s troops to invade England, he trialled his winged invention from this point in 1801, aged a spritely seventy-three-years young. His third attempt saw him ‘fly’ three hundred metres, before landing on the far bank of the river, breaking a leg, ouch. 

 

Our discoveries didn’t end here as we found the remains of a lantern des morts in the garden behind St Andre’s church. These tall stone columns, whose lights were said to guide the soul to heaven, are unique to ancient cemeteries in our area, and always top of my list to visit. I had no idea Angoulême had one, so even though the main body of it had been repurposed as a chimney, seeing the decorative top section close-up was a treat.

 

Dinner at Le Bruleau Charentais

Dinner was at our favourite Angoulême restaurant Le Bruleau Charentais, who offer a feast of local delicacies. A shared slate of charcuterie, followed by entrecote steak and chips, cooked in the traditional, local method over an open fire, on full view in the restaurant, lived up to our expectations. All washed down with a Pineau de Charentes as an aperatif and a red Bordeaux wine with the steak. A delicious and well-deserved meal, but I really should have let Adrian tuck into my leftover chips, as I normally would, but somehow there weren’t any left over.

Angoulême market and vintage cars

 

Sunday, the return

Our morning began with a walk back up to town for breakfast in the covered market. Here we enjoyed coffee at the Italian deli for only 1€, with chocolatines, Angoulême is officially too far south to call them pains au chocolats, from the boulangerie stall, meaning breakfast was easily achievable for under 5€. Just to add to the atmosphere the local vintage car club had their monthly Sunday morning meet, so we returned with the loaded bikes, for a pre-depart coffee and to admire a collection of Truimphs, Minis, Fiats and more, gleaming in the morning sunshine with that smell you only get from the interior of an old car. When we spied the cannoli at the deli, we couldn’t resist trying one each. These delicious, sweet pastry tubes, one filled with a chocolate cream, the other caramel, worked well with the coffee but would have been a bit too sweet on their own. At least this morning’s pastry fest made up for not getting an open boulangerie en route yesterday and the sugar rush should have been enough to power me home.

 

On day one, I had felt strong, powerful, and able to match every one of Adrian’s pedal strokes. As I glided along, I was convinced 60km wasn’t far enough for these weekends away and we should be upping our game to push further afield. It was a breeze, mainly, I later discovered, thanks to the wind on our backs, an unseen force gently helping us on our way. On Sunday, everything felt very different, and cycling into the wind almost relentlessly, meant even the downhill stretches needed effort to keep moving. Cycling is the perfect activity for us as it enables us to enjoy a shared passion, spending our days together, but our different paces mean we have space for our own thoughts as the kilometres roll by. As I watched Adrian pull further and further ahead of me, I realised there were quite a few similarities between cycle touring and marriage, and no, I don’t mean they can both be a pain in the bum. 

 

Not every day will be effortless, sailing along with the wind behind you and not a care in the world. There will be some days that require more will power and more focus, that take more out of you to reach the same end point. But that is OK, without the tough days, the easy days wouldn’t feel so much fun. For more insightful thoughts on relationships, join me back here following our March anniversary getaway.

 

Cognac vineyards

Our slow progress home continued, with plenty of opportunity to enjoy the scenery around us. I heard not one but two early season lawnmowers in action and at one point we cruised past some delicious prawns sizzling away, being cooked on a windowsill. Out of the villages, we enjoyed fields full of hunched white cattle egrets, a skylark calling above a vineyard and we surprised a woodpecker by our arrival in the woods. By mid-afternoon our February adventure was over, Ed and Pearl welcomed us home with big smiles, and it was time to start thinking about what to cook for dinner and where to go in March.

 

I know some couples would prefer to celebrate their twenty-fifth wedding anniversary with a destination more exotic, maybe a weekend in New York for example, but Angoulême worked perfectly for us and our goal of burning fewer fossil fuels. When I discovered a link between Angoulême, New York and our wedding anniversary, that was all the proof I needed that we’d made the correct decision.

 

On 17^th April 1524, exactly four hundred and seventy-four years before we got married, Italian explorer Giovanni da Varrazano, (also known as Jean de Varrazane) discovered the bay of New York and named it “New Angoulême”, in honnor of the king of France, François 1er, who’d sent him on his voyage. The king had been the count of Angoulême and this newly discovered world, was for a short time, known as the Terre d’Angoulême. If you don’t believe me, you can read more in Jacques Habert’s book, “When New York was called Angoulême”, published in 1949.

When New York was called Angoulême

 

I have no doubt we will visit Angoulême again, by bike, and I know there are more treasures waiting for us to discover.