Menton Lemon Festival (Fete du Citron)
Menton Lemon Festival (Fete du Citron) takes place Feb 13 - Mar 1, 2027 in Menton, France. The dress code is Casual and warm - comfortable shoes for parade routes and gardens, an extra layer for night parades. Typical cost ranges from 15 to 90 EUR per person.
For over two weeks each late winter, Menton builds enormous sculptures and parade floats from hundreds of tonnes of lemons and oranges, drawing some 200,000 visitors to the Riviera town on the Italian border. The 93rd edition runs Feb 13 - Mar 1, 2027 under the theme 'Merveilles du Vivant'. Golden Fruit day parades, night-time illuminated parades and the citrus-covered Bioves Gardens make it Europe's strangest and sunniest winter festival.
- When
- Feb 13 - Mar 1, 2027
- Where
- Menton, France
- Dress code
- Casual and warm - comfortable shoes for parade routes and gardens, an extra layer for night parades
- Cost
- Typical cost ranges from 15 to 90 EUR per person.
- Weather
- 8 - 15C by day on the Cote d'Azur, noticeably colder for the evening light parades
- When to book
- Grandstand parade seats sell out - book online from late autumn; Menton hotels 2 - 3 months ahead
- Getting there
- NCE (Nice), about 40 min by train to Menton
- Where to stay
- Hotel Hermitage Monte-Carlo (grand, 15 min away in Monaco), Hotel Napoleon (Menton seafront boutique), Hotel Riva Art & Spa (comfortable Menton value)
- Official site
- https://www.fete-du-citron.com/?lang=en
How to attend
Buy tickets online at fete-du-citron.com or on site: garden exhibition entry and parade tickets each run roughly 10 - 35 EUR, with grandstand seats above standing spots along the route. The 2026 edition has passed; 2027 tickets appear from late autumn. Menton is an easy train hop from Nice or Monaco, making it a day trip.
Tickets for the 13 to 28 February 2027 edition are not on sale yet - the official box office the festival links to still lists the 2026 dates.
Insider tip
Book a grandstand seat for one Golden Fruit parade but see the Bioves Gardens sculptures at night - the illuminated citrus structures are the festival's best photograph.
Get inside Menton Lemon Festival (Fete du Citron)
Booking matters here: grandstand parade seats sell out - book online from late autumn; Menton hotels 2 - 3 months ahead. Members track that window, what it really costs, and 573 more events across the season.
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