The French Riviera Starts Spring with a Zest Fest for Lemon Lovers

It must smell amazing in Menton, France, right now. The city in the French Riviera is holding its 77th annual Lemon Festival, which pays homage to the lemon, through March 3.

According to the Menton Office of Tourism, the festival attracts more than 250,000 lemon lovers every year. The fest honors Menton's nickname as "the City of Lemons," since citrus was a main crop for the area, something the city is looking to recapture. The Menton lemon is supposed to be rich in acid and essence and has a high essential oil content in the peel. And really, anywhere you go in the French and Italian Rivieras will try to push some local-made products on you, from lemon soap to limoncello liqueur.

The highlight of the citrus celebration is the Parade of Golden Fruit, a series of Sunday parades, the last of which is February 28. Huge floats made of oranges and lemons travel down the streets of the city. The fest's theme this year is cinema, so you'll see a lot of references to that in the fruity floats. There's also a Citrus Exhibition, which depicts cultures from all over the world with citrus statues, and the Gardens of Light, a sound and light show around lemon figures.

At the fest's close, you can get a souvenir. The fruit that's still good is sold off for cheap so you can want make jam, syrup, lemon curd or another favorite lemony treat.

Related Stories:
· Menton Lemon Festival [Official Site]
· Feel Free To Eat Them, Skin And All At The Kumquat Festival [Jaunted]
· Food Festival Coverage [Jaunted]

[Photos: Menton Lemon Festival]

Jaunted

Select a Destination:

Food Festivals / Festival Travel / Food Travel / France Travel / → All Tags