French Holidays Explained for English Speakers: Complete Guide (A2-B2)

You’ve scheduled an important business meeting in Paris for May 8th. You arrive on May 7th, check into your hotel, and everything seems normal. The next morning, you wake up to discover that every shop is closed, the streets are eerily quiet, and your French colleagues have all sent apologetic emails explaining they won’t be at the office because it’s a “jour férié.” Confused, you check your calendar—May 8th isn’t a holiday in the UK or US, so why has France essentially shut down? This confusion multiplies when you realize May contains five public holidays in France, that your colleagues are “making the bridge” (faire le pont) to create four-day weekends, and that French public holiday culture operates on completely different principles than Anglo-American holiday traditions. English speakers planning trips to France, scheduling business with French companies, or living in France need to understand the 11 official French holidays (jours fériés), the religious and historical context behind each one, why May turns into a month-long scheduling nightmare, and the peculiarly French practice of engineering long weekends around holidays. This guide explains French holiday culture with the practical vocabulary and cultural context Roger teaches students in his lessons—the knowledge that prevents you from accidentally planning major events on days when France is closed.

What makes French public holidays different from UK and US holidays

The term “jour férié” translates literally as “holiday” but carries more weight in French culture than “public holiday” does in English-speaking countries. When something is a jour férié in France, it’s not just a day off work—it’s a day when society collectively stops functioning in ways that surprise English speakers used to 24/7 commerce culture.

France has 11 official public holidays annually, compared to 8 in the UK and only 10 federal holidays in the US (though many Americans don’t get all federal holidays off). The critical difference: French law mandates that jours fériés are actual days off for most workers, with specific rules about which businesses can remain open and what premium pay employees must receive if they work on holidays:

Roger learned this the hard way during his first May in France in 2012. He needed to mail an important document on May 8th, assuming post offices would be open as they are on most UK holidays. Everything was closed—post office, banks, most restaurants, even his usual boulangerie. The streets were empty because French people were either at home with family or had left the city entirely for long weekends. This wasn’t a suggestion to take the day off; it was a mandated pause in normal life.

The religious composition of French holidays also differs markedly from UK and US holiday calendars. France is officially a secular (laïque) country, yet 6 of the 11 public holidays are Christian in origin—Easter Monday, Ascension, Whit Monday, Assumption, All Saints’ Day, and Christmas. This creates a fascinating contradiction: a nation that legally separated church and state in 1905 still observes more Christian holidays than the religiously diverse United States.

Americans familiar with retail staying open on most holidays (except Thanksgiving and Christmas) find the French closure culture shocking. In France, jours fériés mean actual closure for most retail, all banks, all government offices, and many restaurants. Only essential services (hospitals, police), some transportation, and a handful of shops in major tourist areas remain operational. This isn’t inconvenient to French people—it’s the entire point. Holidays exist to force a collective pause, not to be worked around.

The 11 official French holidays: Dates, origins, and traditions

Understanding each French holiday requires knowing not just the date but the historical and cultural significance that makes these specific days sacred to French national identity. Some celebrate revolutionary ideals, others mark crucial WWII moments, still others maintain centuries-old Christian traditions despite France’s secular status.

The greeting phrases matter more than English speakers realize. When a French person wishes you “Joyeuses Pâques” or “Bon premier mai,” the appropriate response mirrors the greeting:

Simply saying “Merci” (thanks) sounds incomplete and slightly rude, as if you’re accepting the greeting without reciprocating the good wishes.

Understanding “faire le pont”: The French art of the long weekend

The concept that confuses English speakers most about French holidays isn’t the holidays themselves—it’s “faire le pont” (making the bridge), the widespread practice of taking additional days off to create four-day weekends when holidays fall on Tuesdays or Thursdays. This isn’t playing hooky or using vacation days irresponsibly; it’s an accepted cultural practice that entire companies participate in simultaneously.

Here’s how it works: Ascension always falls on Thursday. Rather than work Friday alone between Thursday’s holiday and the weekend, most French people take Friday off, creating a four-day weekend from Thursday through Sunday. This isn’t an individual decision—entire offices, schools, and businesses close for the pont. Roger was bewildered his first year when his French colleagues casually announced they were “making the bridge” for Ascension, assuming he’d understand this meant the office would be completely closed Thursday through Sunday:

The term “pont” (bridge) perfectly captures the concept—you’re bridging the gap between the holiday and the weekend to create continuous time off. When the holiday falls on Tuesday, some people make the pont on Monday, though this is less common than the Thursday-to-weekend bridge since it means missing Monday rather than Friday.

May demonstrates pont culture at its most extreme. With May 1st (Labor Day), May 8th (Victory Day), and Ascension all potentially falling on Tuesdays or Thursdays, plus Whit Monday creating another three-day weekend, May can contain up to 16 days when significant portions of the French workforce are off. Businesses that remain operational run on skeleton crews. Trying to schedule anything important in May requires navigating this minefield of holidays and ponts.

What actually closes on French public holidays

The closure patterns on jours fériés confuse English speakers accustomed to American “business as usual” culture where only Christmas significantly impacts operations. Understanding what closes and what stays open helps you plan around French holidays without frustration.

On every jour férié, these services and businesses are guaranteed closed: all banks, all post offices, all government offices (préfectures, mairies, administrative services), most retail shops, most restaurants (except in major tourist zones), all schools, most medical offices (except emergency services). This represents a more complete shutdown than English speakers typically experience even on major holidays.

What typically remains open: hospitals and emergency services, pharmacies on rotating “duty” schedules (one per neighborhood stays open), some gas stations (especially on highways), tourist-area restaurants and cafés in Paris, Lyon, Nice (but expect reduced hours and higher prices), some bakeries (usually morning only—French people need fresh bread even on holidays), large supermarkets in tourist areas (reduced hours).

Public transportation runs on “dimanche et fête” (Sunday and holiday) schedules, meaning reduced frequency. The Paris metro runs less frequently, some bus lines don’t operate, and regional trains follow weekend schedules. If you’re planning travel on a jour férié, check schedules in advance and expect complications. The phrase you’ll see everywhere:

May 1st (Labor Day) represents the strictest closure day of the entire year—even more restrictive than Christmas. Legally, almost no businesses can open on May 1st except those providing essential services. Restaurants that open on Christmas stay closed on May 1st. This catches tourists completely off-guard: you can’t buy food, can’t shop, can’t mail things, can’t do banking, can’t visit most museums. The entire country pauses.

Roger learned to prepare for jours fériés by shopping the day before—buying fresh bread for two days (since bakeries close), stocking groceries, withdrawing cash (since banks and most ATMs in small shops are inaccessible). This preparation mindset remains foreign to Americans who expect 24/7 access to everything, but it’s basic survival strategy in France.

The Alsace-Moselle exception: When France has regional holidays

France prides itself on centralized uniformity—the same laws, same holidays, same systems nationwide. Except in Alsace-Moselle (the northeastern departments of Bas-Rhin, Haut-Rhin, and Moselle), where historical quirks create two additional public holidays that don’t exist in the rest of France.

These regions were part of Germany when France established its secular 1905 law separating church and state. When Alsace-Moselle returned to France after WWI, they kept certain German legal traditions, including Good Friday and December 26th (St. Stephen’s Day) as public holidays. This means Alsace-Moselle residents get 13 holidays annually instead of 11—a fact that irritates French people from other regions who don’t understand why Alsatians get extra days off:

This regional variation confuses English speakers who assume French holidays are uniform nationwide. If you’re doing business with companies in Strasbourg, Mulhouse, or Metz, remember they observe different holiday schedules than Paris or Lyon. Roger’s students working with Alsatian companies often schedule meetings on Good Friday or December 26th without realizing these are holidays in that region, creating awkward situations when Alsatian colleagues don’t show up.

French holiday traditions: What people actually do

Beyond the closures and days off, French holidays maintain specific traditions that English speakers often miss because they’re not tourists attractions but rather family and community practices. Understanding these traditions helps you appreciate why French people take holidays so seriously.

Easter Monday centers on chocolate. French children hunt for Easter eggs (œufs de Pâques) hidden by parents in gardens or parks. But unlike American Easter egg hunts with plastic eggs containing candy, French Easter features high-quality chocolate eggs, chocolate fish, chocolate bells—elaborate creations from real pâtisseries and chocolatiers. Adults gift chocolate to each other. The entire holiday revolves around quality chocolate consumption as a family activity:

May 1st’s lily of the valley (muguet) tradition sees people buying small bouquets of these delicate white flowers to give to friends, family, and colleagues for good luck. Street vendors sell muguet bouquets on April 30th and May 1st morning (one of the few commercial activities allowed). Receiving muguet is considered bringing luck for the year. This isn’t a religious tradition—it’s a spring ritual everyone participates in regardless of beliefs.

Bastille Day (July 14th) transforms into France’s biggest party. Every city, town, and village organizes fireworks displays. The Champs-Élysées military parade in Paris broadcasts nationally. Evening brings “bals des pompiers” (firefighter balls)—parties organized by local fire stations where entire communities dance in the streets, often lasting until dawn. Americans expecting something equivalent to Fourth of July find Bastille Day far more participatory and less commercialized.

All Saints’ Day (November 1st) carries solemn weight. Families visit cemeteries to clean graves and place chrysanthemums—so strongly associated with death that giving chrysanthemums as flowers any other time is considered extremely poor taste. This isn’t Halloween (which barely exists in France)—it’s a day of quiet remembrance and family obligation. The respectful phrase if the topic comes up:

Christmas Eve (le réveillon de Noël) matters more than Christmas Day itself. Families gather for elaborate late dinners starting around 8 PM on December 24th, featuring oysters, foie gras, seafood, roasted fowl, and champagne, concluding with the bûche de Noël (yule log cake). Gifts are exchanged either at midnight or Christmas morning. December 25th itself is quiet family time, often featuring another substantial meal. The contrast with American Christmas morning chaos is stark—French Christmas is sophisticated, slow-paced, food-centered.

Study glossary – French holiday vocabulary

Navigating French holiday culture as an outsider

English speakers living in France or doing business with French companies must internalize that French holidays aren’t suggestions or optional observances—they’re mandatory pauses in normal life that the entire society respects. Fighting this rhythm creates frustration; adapting to it creates better work-life balance and deeper cultural understanding.

Roger emphasizes in his lessons that students who accept French holiday culture rather than resisting it report higher life satisfaction. The forced closures prevent the always-on work culture that dominates American professional life. When your bank is closed, your colleagues are unavailable, and shops are shut, you’re forced to rest—and French people consider this healthy rather than inconvenient.

The 11 official holidays plus widespread pont-making means French workers get significantly more time off than their UK or American counterparts—and they use it. French people take their full vacation allotment (minimum 5 weeks annually by law), they don’t check email during holidays, and they genuinely disconnect during jours fériés. This isn’t laziness; it’s cultural priority on rest, family time, and work-life boundaries that most English-speaking countries have eroded.

Understanding French holidays also means understanding French historical memory. The two WWI and WWII memorial days (May 8th and November 11th) receive reverent treatment that might seem excessive to Americans whose wars were fought far from home. But France was occupied, destroyed, rebuilt. These holidays aren’t abstract patriotism—they’re living memory for grandparents and family stories passed down. Respecting the solemnity of these days shows cultural sensitivity.

The religious holidays in secular France create fascinating paradoxes. Young French people who never attend church still celebrate Easter, observe All Saints’ Day cemetery visits, and participate in Christmas traditions. The holidays have become cultural rather than strictly religious observances—maintaining tradition separate from belief. Americans expecting either devout religiosity or complete secularism find this middle ground confusing but quintessentially French.

When you live in France or work extensively with French companies, you learn to plan around the rhythm of jours fériés rather than being disrupted by them. You prepare for May’s chaos, you stock up before long weekends, you schedule important business for June or September when everyone’s actually working. This adaptation isn’t surrendering to inefficiency—it’s recognizing that different cultures prioritize different values, and French culture prioritizes rest, family, and collective pauses over constant productivity.