Lemon Festival Menton
Lemon Festival: France’s most bonkers citrus carnival
Every February, a small town on the French Riviera loses its collective mind over lemons. And honestly, when you see what they do with 140 tonnes of citrus fruit, you’ll get it.
The Fête du Citron draws 200,000 visitors to Menton over two weeks. That’s a town of 30,000 people suddenly tripling in size. For lemons. But these aren’t your average Tesco lemons stuck on a float. We’re talking 10-metre-tall sculptures, parades of fruit-covered floats lit up like Vegas, brass bands, confetti cannons, and fireworks over the Mediterranean.
The 2026 festival runs from 14 February to 1 March, with the theme “Marvels of Life” celebrating biodiversity and natural treasures. Right, let’s get into what actually happens.
What makes the Lemon Festival special
The festival requires 140 tonnes of citrus fruit, with individual sculptures using up to 18 tonnes each. That’s not a typo. One sculpture can use 18 tonnes of lemons and oranges.
These aren’t thrown together either. Around 300 professionals work on the festival, and citrus fruits are now attached with one million rubber bands instead of the old wire method. Twelve people are employed just to check the fruit daily and replace anything that’s deteriorating.
The sculptures start as massive metal frameworks, 15 tonnes of metal go into building the float armatures, which are then completely covered in fruit. Every single lemon and orange, attached by hand with those colour-coded rubber bands (yellow for lemons, orange for… well).
And here’s the mad part: the lemons used aren’t even Menton lemons. The actual Menton lemon is protected by a PGI (like Champagne or Parma ham) and is far too precious to stick on a float. The festival fruit comes from Spain. The real Menton lemons? You’ll find those in the craft market, and they’re brilliant.
The history
Menton started holding parades in 1875 to entertain wealthy winter visitors, back when the French Riviera was where European aristocracy went to escape the cold. In the 19th century, Menton was Europe’s lemon capital, the town was nicknamed “the Lemon Rock.”
In 1928, a hotelier organized a citrus and flower exhibition in the Riveira Palace Hotel gardens. It was such a hit that the following year, the festival spilled into the streets with citrus-covered carts and local women in traditional dress. The town council made it official in 1934, naming it the Fête du Citron.
The Biovès Gardens exhibition started in 1936, and after World War II, the sculptures started getting taller and more ambitious. The event became international in the 1970s, and the Orchid Show was added in 1984.
The festival was recognized by France’s Ministry of Culture in 2019 and added to the inventory of intangible cultural heritage. Which sounds very official for what is essentially a fortnight-long celebration of sticking lemons on things.
The main events you actually want to see
The Biovès Gardens Exhibition (Free)
The narrow Biovès Gardens, right next to the casino, get completely taken over for the festival. This is where the truly massive sculptures live, some reaching 10 metres tall, built from wire frames and thousands upon thousands of citrus fruits.
The 2026 theme is “Marvels of Life,” so expect sculptures celebrating biodiversity, wildlife, and natural wonders. Previous years have featured everything from Hindu temples to giant phoenixes to Mary Poppins dancing on a rooftop. All made from lemons.
The gardens are open daily throughout the festival, from 9am to 11pm. Free admission. At night, the whole thing gets lit up with spotlights and atmospheric music, they call it the Gardens of Lights, and it’s worth seeing both during the day and after dark.
The Golden Fruit Parades (Corsos)
These happen on three Sundays: 15 February, 22 February, and 1 March 2026, from 2:30pm to 4pm along the Promenade du Soleil.
The floats, covered entirely in citrus fruit, parade down the seafront accompanied by dancers, brass bands, folk groups, and approximately 25,000 people throwing confetti. It’s properly chaotic in the best possible way.
Tickets cost €14-30 for grandstand seats or €8-16 for standing areas (promenoir). Kids 6-12 get reduced rates, under-6s are free (though they still need a ticket). Get there early if you want a good spot, the recommendation is before 11am on Sundays.
The Night Parades (Corsos Nocturnes)
These happen on Thursday evenings (19 and 26 February 2026) from 9pm to 10:15pm. Same route, same citrus-covered floats, completely different vibe.
The floats are illuminated, the whole parade is lit up, and it ends with a fireworks display over the bay at 10:30pm. It’s theatrical and slightly surreal watching giant lemon sculptures glide past under spotlights to brass band music.
Same ticket system as the day parades. No entry allowed 15 minutes after the start, so don’t faff about.
Free Stuff Worth Doing
The Orchid Festival runs alongside everything else at the Palais de l’Europe (15 February-1 March, 10am-6pm, free). Hundreds of orchids from the Association des Orchidophiles et Epiphytophiles de France. It’s stunning if you’re into plants, and frankly, a nice quiet break from the citrus madness outside.
The Craft Market (same dates and location) sells limoncello, lemon olive oil, lemonade, craft beer, honey, jams, basically everything local producers can make with or around lemons. This is where you’ll find actual Menton lemons if you want to try them. They’re more oval than regular lemons, intensely fragrant, and have high essential oil content in the peel.
What happens to 140 tonnes of lemons?
Fair question. After the festival ends, all the citrus fruit is sold to locals and visitors at special markets. In previous years, it’s been €1.50 for 3kg, which is properly cheap. The fruit gets turned into marmalade, jam, limoncello, and presumably a lot of lemon tart.
It’s actually quite a responsible system, nothing gets wasted, and the locals get bargain citrus for months.
The Menton lemon (the real one)
Menton lemons are genuinely special. About 5,000 trees produce over 150 tonnes yearly in Menton and neighboring communes like Roquebrune, Sainte-Agnès, and Castellar. The varieties grown include Santa Theresa, Villafranca, and Eureka.
They’re more elliptical than round, bright yellow (almost fluorescent when fully ripe), and each branch can hold up to 15 fruits, most lemon trees manage fewer than five. The flavor is less acidic than regular lemons but intensely aromatic. Chefs across Europe seek them out.
You can find them at the craft market during the festival, in local shops, and at workshops where producers explain the growing process. There are also lemon tart-making classes and pruning demonstrations if that’s your thing.
Practical information
Tickets
- Corsos (parades): €14-30 (grandstand) or €8-16 (standing)
- Biovès Gardens: Free
- Orchid Festival: Free
- Craft Market: Free
- Buy tickets at fete-du-citron.com
Getting there
By train: Absolutely the easiest option. Extra trains run during the festival, and Menton station is 200 metres from the Biovès Gardens, less than 400 metres from the parade route. TER/ZOU trains connect from Nice, Monaco, and along the coast.
By car: Take the A8 motorway, exit 59 (Menton). On parade days, park at the temporary P1 car park at the motorway exit and take the shuttle bus. Trying to drive into Menton during the festival is asking for trouble.
By bus: Lines 600 and 601 (ZOU!) run frequently from Nice through Monaco to Menton. The Casino stop puts you right in the middle of everything.
Where to stay
Book early. Properly early. Hotels fill up fast during the festival, and prices reflect the demand. Menton itself is ideal for easy access, but you could also stay in Monaco (15 minutes by train) or Nice (30 minutes) if you don’t mind the commute.
Timing
Arrive in Menton before 11am on Sundays for the day parades. Before 6pm on Thursdays for the night parades. Later than that and you’ll spend more time in traffic than watching lemons.
Is it worth going?
Look, it’s bonkers. A small French town on the Italian border covering everything in sight with 140 tonnes of citrus fruit, throwing massive parades, and setting off fireworks over the Mediterranean. For two weeks straight.
If that sounds like your idea of a good time, absolutely go. The sculptures are genuinely impressive, some are 10 metres tall and took thousands of hours to create. The night parades are theatrical and lovely. The whole town smells of oranges and lemons (and occasionally roasted chestnuts from the food stalls).
The free exhibitions mean you can experience a lot without spending much. The paid parades are worth it for the full spectacle, especially the night corsos with the fireworks.
It’s also February on the French Riviera, so the weather’s usually mild (Menton gets 300 days of sunshine annually and is protected from Alpine winds by the mountains). After a grey British winter, that alone is worth the trip.
Final thoughts
The Fête du Citron is exactly what it claims to be: a massive celebration of citrus fruit that involves building 10-metre-tall sculptures, parading them through town, lighting them up at night, and ending with fireworks. It’s been running since 1934, draws 200,000 people annually, and requires 140 tonnes of lemons and oranges.
It’s also slightly absurd in the best possible way. Where else are you going to see a giant phoenix made entirely of fruit? Or watch brass bands march alongside illuminated lemon sculptures? Or buy 3kg of post-festival oranges for €1.50?
Book accommodation early, get tickets for at least one parade (night corsos are brilliant), arrive before the crowds, and bring a decent camera. The light in Menton is gorgeous in February, and you’ll want photos of this.
Sometimes you just need to go see 140 tonnes of lemons being celebrated with proper French enthusiasm. This is that time.
