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November 2026 in France: Events & Festivals Guide for Students
November 2026 in France: The Events, Festivals and Student Plans Worth Knowing
The clocks went back on 25 October, evenings are dark by late afternoon and the cold arrives. France answers with a packed calendar: one listing site counts 52 festivals in November 2026, from jazz to science fiction, and the Christmas season starts before the month ends. Here is what is happening, with the dates we could verify.
In short
Wednesday 11 November is a public holiday. Paris Photo (12 to 15 Nov) and Pitchfork Paris (2 to 8 Nov) lead the culture calendar. Beaujolais Nouveau arrives on 19 November, rugby returns to the Stade de France, and Christmas markets open from 12 November (La Défense) to 27 November (Strasbourg). Check each organiser before you pay, because some details are still provisional.
1. Dates to plan around
2. The November calendar at a glance
3. Art, photography, film and books
• Paris Photo, 12 to 15 November, Grand Palais (3 avenue du Général Eisenhower, 75008). Listed prices: €26 evening or student, €36 weekday, €41 weekend (Sortiraparis, January 2026). Confirm on the official site.
• Exhibitions in Paris. Fragonard at the Monnaie de Paris (13 Nov to 10 Jan 2027), Mary Cassatt at the Musée d'Orsay (to 31 Jan 2027), Kerry James Marshall at the Musée d'Art moderne (to 24 Jan 2027), Tintoretto at the Musée Jacquemart-André (to 24 Jan 2027) and Gustave Fayet at the Fondation Louis Vuitton (to 8 Mar 2027).
• Film. The Mois du film documentaire runs 1 to 30 November in more than 2,000 venues, including libraries, cinemas and schools. Many library screenings are free. FIFIB (Bordeaux, 2 to 7 Nov) and the Festival des 3 Continents (Nantes, 20 to 28 Nov) cover independent and world cinema.
• Books and comics. Brive and Rouen youth book festivals (6 to 8 Nov), Festival du polar (4 to 8 Nov), BD Boum in Blois and the comics festival in Colomiers (20 to 22 Nov), the Colmar book festival (21 to 22 Nov), the Montreuil youth book fair (25 to 30 Nov) and Salon PAGE(S) in Paris (27 to 29 Nov). Citéphilo, a philosophy festival in Lille, runs to 28 November.
4. Music
Pitchfork Music Festival Paris runs Monday 2 to Sunday 8 November, with shows in small Paris venues. Examples from the listed programme: Headache and Iceage on 2 Nov, Dragonflies on 3 Nov, and the Pitchfork Avant-Garde evenings around Bastille from 5 to 7 Nov (€28.25 per evening). Tickets are sold per evening, with no festival wide pass; some shows, such as DIIV, were already sold out in mid-October.
Concerts in Paris: Benjamin Biolay at the Zénith (5 Nov), Bloc Party and Interpol at the Zénith (16 Nov), Vanessa Paradis at Accor Arena (17 Nov) and Christophe Maé at Accor Arena (19 and 20 Nov).
Jazz: Koa Jazz Festival in Montpellier (1 to 9 Nov) and Jazz sur la Ville in Marseille (2 Nov to 6 Dec), plus Festival Bebop in Le Mans (3 to 7 Nov).
5. Food and wine
• Beaujolais Nouveau, Thursday 19 November. It is released on the third Thursday of November. About 13.8 million bottles were sold in 2025, around 9 million in France and 4.9 million abroad. About 700 wine shops across France take part in tastings. Alcohol cannot be sold to anyone under 18.
• Les Sarmentelles de Beaujeu, 18 to 22 November (Rhône). The opening is a free midnight tapping of the new wine (night of 18 to 19 Nov), with fireworks and a ball. A tasting route of the 12 appellations costs €15 (Wednesday 17:00 to 21:00); meals and concerts are booked separately, for example €42 for the Friday concert. Programme and times can change; see sarmentelles.fr.
• Foire internationale et gastronomique de Dijon, 31 October to 11 November.
• Salon du Chocolat, Paris, ends 1 November.
6. Sport
France hosts three Nations Championship rugby Tests: Fiji in Lyon on 7 November, South Africa at the Stade de France on Friday 13 November and Argentina at the Stade de France on 21 November (one source infers 14 November for South Africa, but the stadium's own page says 13 November). France then plays at Twickenham, with the date and opponent not announced. Kick-off times were not published in our sources. On Sunday 1 November the Route du Rhum boats leave Saint-Malo for Guadeloupe at 13:02; the race village at the port is free to enter until 1 November (10:00 to 17:00 that day).
7. The Christmas season starts
8. Something for international students
Paris student fairs. Saturday fairs are useful if you want to change course, plan a master's or meet schools: L'Étudiant's journalism, marketing and communication fair on 7 Nov (Espace Champerret), and Studyrama fairs at the Paris Event Center on 14 Nov (art, fashion, design, video games; audiovisual and film; health and social work), 21 Nov (law, digital and AI, finance, real estate, ecological transition and more) and 28 to 29 Nov (luxury careers; grandes écoles and prépas). Other cities have fairs too, such as Lyon, Bordeaux and Rennes on 14 Nov, Toulouse on 7 Nov, and Nantes and Strasbourg on 20 to 21 Nov (Diplomeo listing). Whether entry is free was not stated, so check each organiser.
Festivals from home: Diwali is Sunday 8 November. Celebrations spill over the days before and after (Sortiraparis). The Maison de l'Inde at the Cité Universitaire (17 boulevard Jourdan, 75014) lists an evening of songs, dance, Indian dishes and fireworks, but its date is 31 October, not November, and price information was not listed, so contact the Cité before you go. Indian student associations and temples often hold their own events around 8 November, so ask on your campus. Thanksgiving for US students is on 26 November.
Student-price tickets. Paris Photo lists a €26 student ticket, Fragonard at the Monnaie de Paris is free under 26, and the Salon Artisans d'Excellence is free for students who book. Bring your student card and check each organiser's own rules.
Museum prices: the new rules. Since 14 January 2026 the Louvre charges visitors who are not EEA nationals or residents €32, against €22 for EEA nationals or residents. Reporting by The Local says the Culture Ministry treats holders of a residence permit as residents of an EEA state, so a student with a French residence permit should get the lower rate and, if aged 18 to 25, the free under-26 entry. The Louvre's own tariff grid asks for ID and proof of residence for that free entry and does not mention non-EU students, so bring your passport, residence permit and student card and ask at the desk. The Louvre's first-Friday evening (6 November) is free for everyone.
Our four-weekend plan (a suggestion built on the dates above):
Frequently asked questions
1. Is 11 November a public holiday?
Yes. In 2026 it falls on a Wednesday. All Saints' Day on 1 November is a Sunday.
2. When is Beaujolais Nouveau released in 2026?
Thursday 19 November, the third Thursday of the month.
3. When do the Christmas markets open?
La Défense on 12 November, the Tuileries on 14 November, the Champs-Élysées on 22 November and Strasbourg on 27 November.
4. Are museums cheaper for students?
Often, but it depends on the museum and your status. Bring your student card and residence permit, and check the museum's own website.
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