Fête du citron Menton
Lemon Festival 2024

Fête du citron Menton Lemon Festival 2024

The “Fête du Citron” (Lemon Festival) attracts more than 200,000 visitors every year to Menton, a stunning French town sitting on the Italian border between the Alpes Maritimes and the Mediterranean, just thirty minutes from Nice.

• Stay on the seafront at the Hotel Prince de Galles, offering exceptional views, spacious rooms, a private beach and excellent service.

Menton

• Menton is a gorgeous town with a beautiful seafront promenade filled with cute cafes and restaurants. Climb the hills to the old town and take in the sweeping views from the Basilique Saint-Michel.
• Nice to Menton makes a great day trip. It’s a pleasant town that has a slower pace than many destinations on the French Riviera.
• A “Ville d’Art et d’Histoire”, Menton’s old town has a unique atmosphere: narrow cobblestone streets and squares with Baroque charm and Italian touches.

The Festival

• For more than 15 days,  enjoy the zest-flavoured Golden parades and Night-time parades (parades of citrus floats animated by groups).
• Admire the Exhibition of citrus patterns in the gardens Biovès, visit the Crafts Fair and explore the Festival of Orchids with unforgettable scents.
• Discover a unique fantasy world. The theme for the 2024 edition is “The Olympics from antiquity to the present day”, as part of the Paris Olympics celebration.
• Discover “Exceptional” rated Bed and Breakfasts in Menton.

The History

• There’s a local fable in the French Riviera that when Adam and Eve were banished from the Garden of Eden, Eve took a lemon with her and buried it in the spot that would become Menton.
• Whether or not you believe the myth, citrus fruit is at the heart of this French seaside town, leaving it awash in golden hues.
• Since the 15th century, the town’s residents have grown citrus trees, benefiting from a unique microclimate, a few degrees warmer than the rest of the Côte d’Azur.
• Menton’s famous lemons differ from other varieties because of their elliptical shape, lack of bitterness, richer colour tones and high-oil rinds that yield a more noticeable scent.
• Visitors can expect to savour citrus jams at breakfast, take limoncello shots at the end of dinner, and walk the streets with lemon gelato in hand.
• For a luxurious stay, book your room at Villa Genesis, a Luxury Collection Hotel rated “Fabulous” by guests with elegant rooms, outdoor pool and high-end amenities.

Corsos Nocturnes – The Night Parades

• Thursdays, February 16 and 23, 2023 – Illuminated floats, each more surprising than the next, parade on the Promenade du Soleil to the rhythms of brass bands, orchestras and folk groups.
• Every year, 400 people design, create and build ten 30-foot-tall sculptures of fruit with 140 tons of lemons and oranges.
• The result is surreal and singular. Beyond the visual display of vivid orange and yellow sculptures, the fruits tinge the air with the heady smell of citrus.
• Festival themes vary each year, with visitors coming from Europe and beyond to watch the Carnaval-style parades travel through town.
• The parades take place from 9 p.m. to 10:30 p.m. on the promenade du soleil in Menton.

Corsos Des Fruits D’or – The Daytime parades

• February 12, 19 and 26, 2023, from 2:30 pm to 4 pm on the promenade du Soleil in Menton
• Sunday is a day of celebration. Confetti lines the azure sky, and the atmosphere is electric with brass bands and folk groups twirling, zigzagging and dance=ing between the magnificent citrus floats.
• Tip. It is highly recommended to arrive in Menton before 11 am for the Sunday parades.
• Hotels fill up fast in Menton, especially during the festival. Many visitors choose to stay in Nice and take the train to the festival. 

The Biovès Gardens

• February 11 to 26, 2023 –  The Biovès Gardens have been dressed since 1936 in the colours of the sun, dazzling yellow and orange hues.
• Explore incredible decorations, some of which require almost fifteen tons of citrus fruits. Every year, it takes thousands of hours to make these ephemeral sculptures.
• Inauguration on February 11 at 2:30 pm – open to the public from 3:30 pm.

Getting to Menton

• Menton is located beyond Monaco, right on the border with Italy.
• From Nice, you can get there in half an hour by car (using the highway), or at the same time by train.
• A return train ticket costs €11.

Here are the hotels we recommend that have good reviews and keep you close to all the action

Hotel Prince de Galles,    Villa Genesis,    Ibis Styles,  Hôtel Miléade L’Orangeraie.