On Sunday morning, we headed off to the Menton Lemon Pageant as a part of our France street journey itinerary. If you happen to’re unsure what this is- it’s a show and parade of ENORMOUS floats and designs… all manufactured from lemons (and different citrus fruit!)
Severely. I’ll be sincere, we weren’t positive what to anticipate!
It was the final day of the Lemon Pageant and I used to be fairly excited, though visitors was horrendous. The autoroute there was tremendous, however as quickly as you exited on the Menton exit, you joined a slow-moving, lengthy queue for a number of miles.
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The place is Menton?
Menton is on the south-east nook of France, about 10 miles from the Italian border, proper on the coast. It’s a phenomenal a part of the world- positively price a street journey. Menton can be solely an hour from Good, so you possibly can simply go to for the day. There’s additionally a pageant in Good on the identical time- take a look at the timetables so you possibly can catch each.
Parking on the Menton Lemon Pageant
Fortunately we have been on the bikes, so we determined to park up and stroll the mile or so into Menton. It was fairly simple to search out motorcycle parking, however I believe automobiles can be a lot tougher as you’re directed into designated automotive parks. Motorhomes are apparently parked in a carpark on the seafront, however solely on Sundays!? I’m actually unsure why or what occurs on the opposite days!
Citrus Pageant 2019 – shopping for tickets
There are completely different occasions taking place all through the week, together with night-time mild shows, fireworks and parades. Sundays are the large parade days and a number of the roads are closed to accommodate the procession (which may be why the visitors was so dangerous!)
Earlier than you possibly can queue to enter, you needed to queue to get tickets, which took about quarter-hour. Tickets price 12€ simply to enter the backyard (which is what I did). The shows within the backyard are static and are NOT the identical ones used within the display- I used to be apprehensive the backyard would shut at 2pm when the parade began, however it didn’t. You should buy further tickets for parades, seating, evening shows etc- it’s all on the web site HERE
Taking a canine to the Menton Lemon Pageant
You aren’t allowed to take canine into the backyard and even for them to be on the parade apparently. There are too many individuals and the organisers don’t need canine fouling within the backyard, which I fully perceive.
We didn’t need to depart Mac within the motorhome all day, so Mr WB volunteered to sit down in a restaurant while I visited the pageant, then he might go in afterwards if he needed to.
Visiting the Menton Lemon Pageant 2019
I actually don’t know what I anticipated, however I naively hadn’t anticipated SO.MANY.PEOPLE. Oh my goodness, it was loopy! As soon as we had the tickets, we needed to be part of the queue for the precise entrance. I believe we have been queuing for about an hour- it was very sluggish shifting as they checked everybody’s luggage and patted individuals down. Unsure they appreciated my biker woman kevlar!
We have been additionally stopped many occasions by individuals telling us we couldn’t take a canine into the pageant… I really want to be taught the French for “it’s okay; they’re simply ready with me!”
Contained in the Menton Lemon Pageant
As soon as inside, it was only a mass of individuals. I managed to get near the shows (there have been 10 in total- the designs change yearly) by standing my ground- fortunately I’m tall! Individuals have been making an attempt to push you out of the way in which and strolling in entrance of you while you tried to take photographs. There was an enormous mixture of nationalities, together with a stunning variety of Chinese language/ Asian.
The shows have been impressive- I can not comprehend how lengthy they have to take to construct! All of the lemons and oranges seemed recent too- despite the fact that this was the final day! I don’t know how they managed to try this.
Enjoyable Reality- do you know while you plant a lemon tree you could’t inform if it’s going to be a lemon or an orange tree till the fruit grows!
Meals and Drink contained in the Fete du Citroen
There have been plenty of stalls contained in the backyard and many distributors shouting their wares. You could possibly purchase lemon bushes (I used to be so tempted, however we have been on motorbikes!), lemon juice and limoncello, lemon cleaning soap, postcards, photographs and plenty of different mementoes. There have been additionally some meals/ drinks stands, however as I used to be alone I attempted to be as fast as attainable.
Watch our video of the Menton Lemon Pageant
You’ll be able to see the queues, the unimaginable designs and the sheer variety of individuals making an attempt to see them! (You may also see our journey to Monaco and the place Mac and I have been chased by an enormous scary canine…!)
Menton Lemon Pageant- price a go to?
My lasting impression is awe on the designs, however overwhelm on the individuals. I’ll be sincere, I began to really feel a bit claustrophobic after some time, which wasn’t a lot enjoyable. We have been extremely fortunate with the weather- it was about 19 levels. In March! I believe on a wet day it might be much less crowded, however you’d get moist! If you happen to occur to be heading that method on the finish of February, then it’s price a cease off, however I’m unsure I’d suggest a street journey particularly to see the festival- I assume it relies upon how a lot you want lemons! 😉
6 Ideas for visiting the Menton Lemon Pageant
- Put on snug footwear. There are only a few locations to sit down down and it’s so busy you’re unlikely to get one anyway. It’s a stunning quantity of strolling.
- Don’t convey large luggage if you happen to can assist it- you’ll simply get jostled rather a lot
- Don’t convey an enormous digicam/ tripod- you’ve received no hope of having the ability to set it up and compose a pleasant picture. I took my GoPro in with me- it’s small and straightforward to hold round. (Have I discussed how a lot I LOVE this factor??!)
- Having mentioned that- an extendable tripod or selfie stick you possibly can carry above your head with a go-pro or one thing on it may be a very good concept so you possibly can see over individuals’s heads.
- Deliver a bottle of water in with you, particularly if it’s sunny. The backyard acts like a bowl, and all the warmth from all of the individuals makes it fairly stifling.
- Except you REALLY need it, you could find less expensive postcards and souvenirs exterior the backyard at different outlets round Menton. Vacationer outlets are open on a Sunday throughout the pageant.
Menton itself seems to be like a very fairly town- we’d like to return again and see it higher. A lot of it’s closed off throughout the pageant, so we’ll should revisit at a special time of 12 months to discover it correctly. We’d additionally like extra time to discover the remainder of the French shoreline, together with Good, which has plenty of low cost and free issues to do– stunning for the French Riviera and is among the high cities in France!
Have you ever ever visited the Menton Lemon Pageant? Would you prefer to? Let me know beneath.
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