In French the festival is called The Fête du Citron (The Citrus Festival). The celebration happens every year and has a fun and unique theme each year! In 2026, the theme was “wonders of the living world”. To honor the earth and animals, locals make giant sculptures out of fruit to represent the importance of the natural world. Can you believe the statues are made of lemons and oranges? They also made stationary floats and parade-style floats made from the citrusy fruits! Each piece of artwork blew my mind.
When the parade began, everyone stood up, and the energy was raised. Every type of person at the festival, both French and American, old and young, got hyped. The parade had dancers doing the samba, acrobats hanging from ropes performing circus-style tricks above the crowd, energetic marching bands, and more! Some stands even had people throwing confetti at the crowd. There were so many unique types of floats, and the really cool ones were constructed with lemons and oranges!
Menton, France became famous for its lemons in the 19th century and started this celebration to promote tourism during the winter. The Citrus Festival showcases how locals use their strengths, like their lemon farms, to sustain their economy year-round. Even though lemons do not grow as abundantly in the winter, the town uses its natural blessing of citrus farming to bring in tourists for the festival. This strengthens community pride and attracts international visitors like me!
