Hello everyone!
The school vacations are just around the corner! I must confess, given the weather ☀️ and the festivities 🎭announced in our beautiful region, I find it hard to tell myself that it’s the winter vacations that are just around the corner. On the Côte d’Azur, it’s already springtime, isn’t it 😊?
Anyway, here’s a new article full of suggestions to keep the whole family busy over the next few weeks 😀.
On the agenda for this article, which I’ll be updating regularly: the 3 must-see events near you, ideas for outings and, of course, ideas for activities at home! All under the sign of flowers and Nature 🌸 !
Enjoy your reading,
Côte d’Azur events you won’t want to miss
Fête des Violettes in Tourrettes sur Loup
If you have to choose just one, then choose this 100% local event!
As it has every year since 1952, our pretty Cité organizes its Fête des Violettes at the beginning of March, when the Victoria Violet blooms at its peak 💜.
This year, the village looks forward to seeing you on Saturday March 2 and Sunday March 3, 2024.
On the program: festive atmosphere, flower decorations in the medieval town 🌺, visits to several partner sites (the Bastide aux violettes, the Parfumerie Fragonard in Grasse and the Confiserie Florian in Pont du Loup), Provencal market, flower parade and flower battle 🥳…
To prepare your visit and find out the full agenda, visit the dedicated page on the town’s website.
The Nice Carnival
It’s so well known in France and beyond that it needs no introduction! Every year, the Nice Carnival welcomes several hundred thousand visitors.
This year’s Carnaval de Nice 🎭 runs from February 17 to March 3, 2024, and carries the theme of Pop Culture.
The two flagship Carnival festivities are:
–the Corso Carnavalesque 🥳, a 2-hour show featuring a parade of some 20 illuminated floats on Saturday and Tuesday evenings.
–the Bataille de Fleurs 🌸, a parade of floats with mimosas, carnations, roses, lilies, daisies… on Saturday and Wednesday afternoons. By the way, did you know that the Bataille de Fleurs has been held since 1876?
We took part in the Bataille de Fleurs in 2023 with Nino (photos below) and this year we decided to discover the Corso Carnavalesque, to be continued!
Among the figures and traditions to spot if you’re visiting Carnaval de Nice 😉 :
-the Berner Lou Paillassou. A straw or cloth man is thrown on a stretched sheet to erase the bad vibrations of the past year!
–the King 👑. His Majesty Carnaval, the King, opens the festivities by arriving at Place Masséna and taking the keys to the city. His float is unique, measuring some fifteen meters in height! The King leads the procession.
-The Royal Family and the King’s Court. Traditionally present in the procession, you can see the Queen 👸🏻, the Carnavalon (the dauphin, child of the King and Queen) and the King’s subjects on the large floats in the parade.
-les Grosses Têtes. Sometimes politicians, sometimes celebrities, these 2.50 m tall sculptures entertain the crowds every year!
-the Carnival Bestiary. The Eagle 🦅, symbol of Nice, or the Dragon Babou 🐉, emblematic figure of Carnivals, are among the must-sees.
For official Carnival information and tickets for the Corso and the Battle of the Flowers, visit the official website.
The Lemon Festival in Menton
This year, the pretty town of Menton celebrates its 90th Lemon Festival 🍋! It takes place from February 17 to March 3, 2024, just like the Nice Carnival.
On the program for this highly festive event: illuminated corsi parades every Thursday evening and the golden fruit corsi parade on Sunday afternoons!
And, of course, the town is putting on a host of workshops and tours to showcase the famous Menton citrus 💛.
Visit the official website for the full program and ticketing details.
Home Activity Ideas
Decorating your Mask for Carnival
How about decorating your mask for the Nice Carnival or other celebrations in the region 🎭? A manual activity that will delight young and old alike!
There’s nothing complicated about it, as long as you have a mask base to color, paint or cover with glitter. All you have to do is let your imagination run wild 😌 !
Here’s the selection of masks and little decorations I found in the stores around here:
–L’Atelier Français in Vence: the Vence concept store offers a set of 4 Made in France 3D coloring masks 👉 photo 1,
–Søstrene Grene at Polygone Riviera: the Danish chain offers a wide range of stick-on decorations (feathers, glitter…) and masks of all kinds 👉 photos 2 and 3,
–Cultura in Nice Lingostière: I snapped up some pirate masks for Nino to color (there was something for everyone), as well as some pretty carnival masks 👉 photo 4.
Cooking a Violet Cake
Fête des Violettes oblige, I propose to test the preparation of a Violette cake 🥧 💜.
To do this, I listened to the advice of the friendly team at Bastide aux Violettes in Tourrettes sur Loup and proceeded to prepare a simple Violette pound cake. And it was delicious 😋 !
To make it, you’ll need:
- Violet syrup: on sale at La Bastide, in Tourrettes stores, at Confiserie Florian and even at the E.Leclerc store in Vence,
- a dozen Violette crystallized flowers: on sale in the same outlets as the syrup,
- and, of course, the classic pound cake ingredients: butter, eggs, powdered sugar, flour, baking powder and salt.
Proceed with your usual pound cake recipe and add 10g of Violette syrup to the dough. Mix well. Once you’ve filled your mold with the flavored dough, add a dozen crystallized Violette flowers. After baking and unmolding, add a few crystallized flowers to the pound cake as decoration. It’s up to you 💜 !
Please note: La Bastide aux Violettes will very soon be offering gourmet workshops around the Violet so stay tuned for their news 😀 !
Getting to know flower drying
Whether you’re drying flowers 🌸, clovers 🍀 or even simple leaves 🍃, I’d recommend getting a flower press. It’s very easy to use and allows you to dry the picked elements quickly! They’re available, for example, from Søstrene Grene – on the Internet or in the Polygone Riviera store.
Once again, for the rest of the story, just let your creativity run wild 😉 !
Children will be delighted to discover nature up close and create pretty herbariums (we’re going to try this out with Nino) while older kids can go a little further by creating cards/letters or why not jewelry with resin 😊…. Personally, I love it!
Please note: In the same vein, you can also prepare a small vegetable garden with your child by planting a few seedlings 🍅🥒. It’s always exhilarating to watch the seeds grow every day!
Outing ideas near you
A walk in the heart of the Mimosa in the Pays de Fayence
Would you like some more flowers 😀?
Then head for the perched village of Tanneron and its 22 hamlets, about an hour from Vence, to discover the largest Mimosa territory in France 🌼!
For a pleasant 1h30 hike (4 kilometers of walking) to discover the Mimosa and a small part of the Pays de Fayence, all you have to do is go to the Place de la Mairie in Tanneron – level with the Oustaou dou païs then follow the TNRV markers.
All that’s left to do is admire the scenery and the pretty yellow forests and hills 💛 !
The heights of the Pre-Alps d’Azur Regional Park
Looking for a breath of fresh air less than an hour from Vence? ❄️ Head for the heights of the Pré-Alpes d’Azur Regional Nature Park to discover two charming and exotic places!
1/ Gréolières Les Neiges ski resort
Located 50 minutes from Vence and at an altitude of 1400m, the Gréolières Les Neiges resort covers a small ski area of 30km ⛷(alpine and Nordic skiing).
The Val Ranch equestrian center 🐴 also offers pony rides on the resort on Wednesdays and Saturdays during school vacations. And even better, when there’s enough snow, pony sledging 🛷! If you’re interested in this activity, you can contact the Ranch on 06.58.38.22.24.
Personally, I’d love to try out a day trip to Gréolières Les Neiges and back 😀 !
Please note: At the time of publishing this article, only three runs are open in the resort due to a lack of natural snow. Fingers crossed 🤞 for the vacations, even if the place remains charming without its white coat!
2/ The Monts d’Azur Reserve
Located a little before the Gréolières Les Neiges resort, the Réserve des Monts d’Azur offers safaris by horse-drawn carriage or sleigh to take in the sights and discover bison 🦬, deer 🦌 or Przewalski horses 🐴.
Are you in the mood? Find out more about our day at the Reserve in this Blog post.
La Verrerie de Biot
This is one of the places I want to show Nino soon! Besides, we need vases to put all those flowers in 💐😊 !
Based in Biot since 1956, the famous Verrerie de Biot perpetuates the art of glassmaking and the creation of a unique material: bubble glass 💙.
You can of course find the Atelier’s creations on site, but you can also take part in a guided tour of the Verrerie or even a two-day discovery course.
If you’re interested in the place, I recommend you visit the official website.
Perfumeries in Grasse
Whether you visit Fragonard or Galimard, you can discover the perfume & soap manufacturing plants and take part in an eau de toilette creation workshop!
We discovered Fragonard at La Fabrique des Fleurs in Grasse last year, and I’ve been a fan of their diffusers ever since 🌹❤️!
Please note: On the occasion of the Fête des Violettes de Tourrettes sur Loup on March 2 and 3, 2024, the Fragonard perfumery is organizing free animations on the Violet 👉 Reservation via email tourisme@fragonard.com
I hope you enjoyed this new article and that it will give you some ideas for the coming weeks to spend with your family!
Of course, I’m always available if you have any questions and always welcome your suggestions 😊!
See you soon 🌸 !
Julie
