THE LEMON FESTIVAL

Menton

The Lemon Festival takes place from February 11 to 26, 2023.
Bands, orchestras, dancers, folk troops are at the rendezvous.
Stroll through giant sculptures made of lemon.
Works of more than 11 meters, that you can see by night "the gardens of light" as well as by day. Go to the promenade of the sun, to see the parade of corsos, these citrus fruit floats.
Night parties are organized on Thursdays with a fireworks display at the end.
At the same time, the city offers you free access to the craft fair and the Orchid Festival. Both are located at the Palais de L' Europe.
For 2022 Menton celebrates lemons with the theme "Rock & Opera".

Read more about the programme, prices, and :
- night corsos
- gardens of light
- corsos of the Golden Fruits
- the Gardens of Bioves

Theme of the Lemon Festival 2023

This year, the theme of the lemon festival is "Rock & Opera".

February 2023 Program

Discover the program of the Lemon Festival 2023

Giant sculptures at the Biovès Gardens

Photo ville de menton

Go to the Biovès Gardens, to see the exhibition "Citrus Motifs"
. During the visit, discover giant sculptures of almost 11 meters high.
These works are decorated with lemons, which have been put one by one.
This corresponds to more than a thousand hours of work to create these ephemeral monuments. Some of the decorations used nearly fifteen tons of citrus fruits!

Parade on the Sunshine Walk

• Location: Les Jardins de Biovès - avenue de Verdun Menton

• Opening date: From February 11 to 26, 2023

• Duration: 1 hour visit

• Biovès Gardens rates
  Free admission this year!

• Opening hours of the Biovès gardens

This Saturday, February 11, opening of the gardens at 2 pm.

From February 11 to 26:
- Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Friday and Saturday: from 10am to 6pm
- Thursday: from 10am to 7pm
- Sunday: from 9am to 7pm

The Golden Fruit Corsos

Credit city of menton

Every Sunday, come and admire the golden fruit corsos with a breathtaking view of the seaside.
Fanfares, citrus floats, folk groups, confetti are in the spotlight every afternoon.
More than 25,000 people gather to celebrate the lemons and throw confetti!
We recommend that you arrive in Menton before 11am to avoid traffic jams.

• Location: Promenade du Soleil in Menton

• Dates: Sundays, February 12, 19 and 26, 2023

• Timetable: from 2.30 pm to 4 pm.

• Duration: 1h30 of performances

• Corso rates :

Lemon Festival Parade

Night tours: Gardens of Light

Night corsos

The biovès gardens are illuminated and transformed into gardens of light.
The giant sculptures are brought to life by artistic lighting.
The lighting adds a magical dimension to this night-time walk.

•  Location: Jardins Biovès avenue Boyer de Menton

• Opening hours :

Open every day from 8:30 pm to 10:30 am

• Duration of the walk: about 1 hour

• Rates :

Adult: 13 euros
Child (6-14 years): 7 euros

Fireworks - Night corsos

Night corsos - photo ville de menton

Thursday evenings are the nights of the Lemon Festival!
Street shows, folk groups, orchestras, come to life while the illuminated floats parade by.
Dancers, brass bands enliven the sun walk under the confetti.
The highlight of the show is the fireworks display over the bay at 10.30pm!
A magical moment to celebrate with family and friends!

• Location: Promenade du Soleil

• Dates: Thursday, February 16 and 23, 2023

• Timetable from 9pm to 10.30pm

• Duration of the show: 1h30

• Rates :

Ticketing and prices

Lemon Festival Credit Menton

The Handicraft Fair

From February 11 to 26, come and meet the artisans of the Menton region.
The fair is free. Located at 2 steps of the gardens of Biovès, in the Palace of Europe, come to taste and discover our products of the soil.
Orange wine, lemonade, limoncello, beer, honey, jams, olive oil ... will be honored.

• Venue: Palais de l'Europe

• Dates : February 11 to 26, 2023

• Opening hours :

Saturday, February 11: from 2:00 p.m. to 6:00 p.m.

Open every day: from 10 am to 6 pm

• Admission: free

The Orchid Festival

The Association des Orchidophiles et Epiphytophiles de France invites us to discover this magnificent plant.
The orchid festival invites us to a journey of many scents and colours.
The entrance is free and is located in the Palais de l'Europe, avenue de Verdun

• Venue: Palais de l'Europe

• Dates : February 11 to 26, 2023

• Admission: free

• Opening hours

Saturday, February 11, 2023, opening of the Palais de l'Europe at 2pm

Open every day : from 10am to 6pm

Programming of shows

- Saturday, February 11, 2023 > 15:00
Concert "Rock N'Co" of the municipal conservatory of music, dance and theater of Menton. More than 200 students of the conservatory are on stage to interpret the greatest hits Pop, Rock.

Location: at the F.Palmero Theater
Rate: free admission

- Tuesday 14 February > 19:00
Concert " Trio des légendes ". The look-alikes of Jacques Dutronc, Eddy Mitchell and Johnny Hallyday take the stage to perform the greatest hits of these legends of French song.

Location: Palais de l'Europe
Price: 1st series €25; 2nd series €20

- Wednesday, February 15 & 22, 2023 > 15:00
Children's carnival (face painting lesson, activities for children...). Children must come dressed up.

Location: at the Salon de Grande Bretagne
Prices: 5 €* for children; 8 €* for adults; *1 drink & 1 pastry included per entry

- Saturday 18 February 2023 > 20:30
Pink Floyd show, Dark Side: the 50th anniversary.
The Riviera Orchestra group will take you back to the universe of Pink Floyd and their cult album "The Dark Side of the Moon". On the program 40 artists (orchestra, singers, dancers, sound and visual effects) are on stage for an original show.

Location: Palais de l'Europe
Prices: 1st series 30 € ; 2nd series 25 € ; 3rd series 20 € ; 4th series 15 €.

How to come to the Lemon Festival? Where to park ?

By car :
By the A8 motorway exit menton 59
On the days of the corsos it is advisable to park on the temporary car park P1 at the motorway exit and to take the shuttle bus provided

By train:
Menton station, 200 metres walk from the Biovès gardens to the site of the lemon festival.

By bus:
Zest network in Menton and if you are between Nice and Menton the Lignes d' Azur bus network

Where to eat in the parade area?

On bullfighting days, visitors can enter the parade area to have lunch in one of the restaurants set up along the route.
Reservations are recommended.