A fruit-themed festival in the south of France takes place every year in the town of Menton on the Franco-Italian border, attracting hundreds of thousands of locals and tourists. World’s unique event continues up to 2nd March 2025, commencing from 15th February.Â
The “Fête du Citron” (Lemon Festival) attracts more than 200,000 visitors every year. For more than 15 days, people from far and wide join and enjoy the zest-flavored of Golden parades and Night-time parades including parades of citrus floats and animated by groups, admire the Exhibition of citrus patterns in the gardens Biovès; visit the Crafts Fair; and the Festival of Orchids with unforgettable scents. They discover the fantasy world and move to the rhythm of a simply unforgettable event.
During a ‘Parade of Illuminated Floats’ under the stars; when night falls on Menton city, the night-time fills the city with gentle magic. Under the glow of the spotlights, the floats, adorned with lemons and oranges, parade in a symphony of light and color. To the sound of fanfare and lively music, dancers and performers bring joyful energy to this night-time procession, worthy of the greatest street spectacles.
Menton, the leading Lemon Producer of Europe
In 1929, Menton city of France was still the leading lemon producer on the continent. A hotelier had the idea of organizing an exhibition of flowers and citrus fruits in the gardens of the Riviera Hotel. The success was such that the following year, the festival took to the streets: carts with bushes planted with oranges and lemons paraded through the city. The Lemon Festival was then really born in 1934.
The Carnival Event
The ‘Fête du Citron’ is a carnival event organized by the tourist office of the city of Menton, France, and held every year at the end of winter. It is also sometimes called Carnaval de Menton (Carnival of Menton).
The festival celebrates the annual production of specialty lemons and other citrus fruit in Menton. The celebration takes place every year in mid-February.
Historically, in 1875, hoteliers proposed to the municipality to create a carnival parade to enliven the city in winter. As early as 1876, the event attracted locals and wealthy winter visitors alike. At the time, it was fashionable for the wealthy to come and spend the winter months in the mild climate of the French Riviera. Kings, princes, and artists flocked to palaces in the city or had villas built there.
The 1882 edition of the carnival was notably attended by Queen Victoria of the United Kingdom and it culminated with a fireworks display over Garavan Bay. The Carnival of Menton bears some similarities to neighboring Nice: a parade of large heads, confetti streams, flower battles, Mardi Gras celebration, and finally, the burning in effigy of the “Majesty of the Carnival”.
In 1928, Menton was the main producer of lemons on the European continent. A hotelier had the idea of organizing a private exhibition of flowers and citrus fruits in the gardens of the Riviera Hotel. The event’s success was such that the following year, the municipality took up the idea on its own. The name “Fête du Citron” was born in 1934. The Lemon Festival combines traditional carnival events with a celebration of Menton’s reputation as Europe’s lemon capital.
The Fête du Citron is the second largest public winter event on the French Riviera after the NICE Carnival. The celebration did not take place during the war years between 1940 and 1946, in 1991 due to the Gulf War, and in 2021 because of COVID
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