Food festivals in Nantes worth planning a trip around, by month.
Food festivals in Nantes worth planning a trip around, by month.
The Foire de Nantes fills the Beaujoire halls each April, its Vins et gastronomie section stacked with cheese, charcuterie, champagne and craft beer.
Focus: Regional gastronomy, wine and craft beer
Tip: The fair opens over five days at the start of April; the Vins et gastronomie aisle is one of five themed sections, so start there.
Salon Aux Vignobles brings 190 growers and producers to the Beaujoire park in Nantes each November, from Loire whites to charcuterie and chocolate.
Focus: French wine, cheese, charcuterie and chocolate
Tip: Entry is €5 on the door with an obligatory €2 INAO tasting glass, and under-18s go in free; the run covers the last weekend of November.
Serbotel is the Nantes trade fair for the food professions, four October days of chef competitions and culinary shows held at the Beaujoire park.
Focus: Professional bakery, pastry and restaurant trades
Tip: It runs every second year and the next edition is 17 to 20 October 2027; registration is aimed at trade visitors rather than the public.
Salon Vinomédia gathers independent growers at the Fleuriaye congress centre in Carquefou, on the edge of Nantes, for three October days of tasting.
Focus: Independent French winegrowers
Tip: The Nantes edition lands in mid-October; the same organisers hold sister salons at Lyon, Rouen, Blois and Dieppe through the autumn.
Natura fills the Halle de la Trocardière in Rezé, across the Loire from Nantes, with 180 organic producers and artisans over a February weekend.
Focus: Organic food and drink producers
Tip: Entry is €5 with under-12s free, and the conferences and workshops on the programme cost nothing on top.
Fouace et Muscadet en fête takes over La Haie-Fouassière outside Nantes for a September weekend of fouace bakers, oyster bars and Muscadet growers.
Focus: Fouace, Muscadet and oysters
Tip: The Sunday runs 10:00 to 18:00 around the vendangeurs races, with the artisan market, oyster bar and tastings on the same streets.
Les Rendez-vous de l'Erdre lines the Nantes quays with free jazz stages and festival villages pouring Brasserie du Bouffay beer and Kerisac cider.
Focus: Festival villages, Bouffay beer and Kerisac cider
Tip: The villages sit at Pont Morand, Quai de Versailles, Quai Henri Barbusse and the Île de Versailles, and every stage is free.
The Marché de Noël de Nantes takes Place Royale and Place du Commerce from late November, its chalets pouring vin chaud and roasting chestnuts.
Focus: Vin chaud, roasted chestnuts and regional gastronomy
Tip: The chalets stay open to 21:30 from Monday to Saturday and to 20:00 on Sunday, with shorter hours over the Christmas week itself.