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 With its colourful history and unique sense of identity, Brittany abounds with traditional festivals and
carnivals, particularly during the summer months. Virtually every city, town and village seems to hold at
least one such event each year, frequently more. Many of these occasions are religious in origin,
while others celebrate the medieval past or Celtic culture that this fascinating region of France is
so very rich in.
Below is a selection of popular festivals and events in Brittany:
Quimper: Held over nine days at the end of every July and featuring a huge gathering of
Celtic artists, musicians and dancers from all over Europe, Festival de Cornouaille is almost certainly the
region’s largest folk festival. As the most overtly Celtic city in Brittany, Quimper is one of the very best
places to see regional costumes, and to listen to both popular and traditional Breton music.
Rennes: Brittany’s capital city really gets in party mood at the beginning of each July
with its Tombées de la Nuit, a spectacular street festival celebrating theatre, music, poetry and dance.
Perhaps surprisingly, all things traditionally Breton share the limelight with some of France’s best
modern rock music. Although maybe not so surprising when you realize that Rennes’ two universities and
medical school is home to around 45,000 students.
Dinan: Medieval days come vividly to life during Dinan’s spectacular Fête des Remparts
held over four days in late July. This is probably the largest celebration of medieval culture in Europe,
and includes exhibitions of jousting, drama, dance, music and ancient crafts. As quite probably the most
perfectly preserved medieval town in Brittany, and with a population immensely proud of this fact, Dinan
is the perfect setting for such a spectacle.
Concarneau: Concarneau is France’s largest fishing harbour, and the town’s Fête des
Filets Bleus (Festival of Blue Nets) held in mid-August began life in 1905 as a fund raising exercise for
distressed families of local fishermen. These days it is a traditional Breton festivity recalling the
fishing, culture and music of the region. Celebrations include, naturally enough, grand scale dining on
seafood and much singing of Breton seafaring songs. Matters end in style with a huge fete, which every year
attracts around 25,000 visitors.
Brest: Held every four years since 1992, the Brest Maritime Festival has rapidly grown
into a truly spectacular affair. In mid-July 2004 it attracted over 2,000 traditional sailing craft and
tall ships from seafaring nations all over the world, plus more (this is not a joke) from such unlikely
places as landlocked Ethiopia and Switzerland. In addition to a wealth of maritime heritage, music and
other forms of entertainment from these countries also featured heavily, as did many fine replicas of the
world’s historic vessels. Full-scale festivities usually cover six days, and include firework displays and
concerts every evening.
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