French festivals to enjoy

FRANCE in the summer months is a time of music festivals, street art and gastronomy.

Dotted across the country are events that will give you the chance to discover something that little bit different, including delights such as Celtic music, the sounds of the Deep South and even the pleasures of the prune.

Below is a quick guide to some of the festivals coming up over the coming weeks.

Mime Festival, Périgueux, July 28 to August 2
The international mime festival, Mimos, offers a variety of shows, exhibitions, workshops, video screenings and daily discussions in Perigueux.

Interceltique Festival, Brittany, August 1 - 10
The port of Lorient welcomes half a million partygoers from across the world for the annual gathering of Celts from the four corners of the globe. Scots Welsh, Manx and Cornish visitors will sing, dance and feast alongside their Breton hosts.

Nuits de Cajun et Zydeco, Saulieu, August 7 to 10
Each August Saulieu in the Cote d'Or department of Burgundy hosts the Nuits de Cajun et Zydeco music festival, bringing the sounds of the Deep South to France.

Côtes de Duras wine festival, Lot et Garonne, August 10
The Côtes de Duras wine festival takes place in the grounds of the Chateau at Duras (Lot-et-Garonne) : conducted walks among the vineyards, procession of classic cars, wine-tasting from many of the local producers, hot-air balloon flights – and then in the evening la Nuit Blanche: music, concerts, DJs and dancing.

Rochefort en Accords, Charente-Maritime, August 21 to 23
The Rochefort en Accords festival deliberately encourages the unpredictable and the unexpected – individual musicians from the USA, British Isles, France come together and play solo and ensemble.

Dried prune festival, Agen, August 29 to 31
Agen celebrates its prune with a weekend festival – taste and learn more with music and dancing in a festive mood.