La Fête des Jonquilles

Have you heard of the Daffodil Festival? The Daffodil Festival, or La Fête des Jonquilles in French, is an event that takes place every two years in April in Gérardmer. Gérardmer, located in the Vosges department in Lorraine, in northeastern France, is also famous for a film festival, the Festival international du Film Fantastique (in English, the international festival of fantastic films). The city is located close to Germany an Switzerland, in the gorgeous countryside.

The festival celebrates yellow daffodils, one of the symbols of the city. This festival has been alive since 1935; originally, this festival was created to boost local trade, but then it turned into a day of floats, flowers, and flurries of children in costumes. 


Months before the festival, builders start working on the intricate floats. They start working three to nine months before the actual parade starts. But, for them, the beginning of the festivities is actually the end. All their free time is dedicated to this work--and every year, there are always new floats. As soon as they're out of work, they start working on constructing the structures and collecting the daffodils. In some years, as in 2005 and 2013, the city needed to import daffodils because there wasn't a high enough yield with local flowers--they use about 2.5 million for the celebration!

However, once the parade begins, everyone has a great time. You can see 20-30 floats covered in the yellow flowers march down the streets, encouraged by happy schoolchildren and adults alike. Technically, the celebration is considered to begin the day before, when everyone is invited to help work on the finishing touches of the floats. It's a friendly, community-based activity filled with good wishes and a happy atmosphere.

Gérardmer isn't the only city that gets to enjoy the yellow spectacular, though. Saint Etienne de Montluc, in Loire-Atlantique, has celebrated this day since 1965. It started with Jean Vaillant's a proposal of a grand celebration. For them, the festival kicks off Spring every year. There are always no less than 12 floats at this festival, decked out in "rousinettes"--little bulbs of the flower--and 100% natural foam. There are tons of consumed people, marching bands, and dancers accompanying the floats, along with confetti and streamers.

Whether in Gérômois or Saint Etienne de Montluc, La Fête des Jonquilles is a wonderful occasion for the entire family to experience. If you're ever in either city during the Springtime, check it out!