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Calendar: School and public holidays in France in 2022

The Local France
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Calendar: School and public holidays in France in 2022
Pupils wearing protective masks stand as they listen to a woman (unseen) at Françoise-Giroud middle school in Vincennes, east of Paris, on September 1, 2020, on the first day of the school year amid the Covid-19 epidemic. - French pupils go back to school on September 1 as schools across Europe open their doors to greet returning pupils this month, nearly six months after the coronavirus outbreak forced them to close and despite rising infection rates across the continent. (Photo by Martin BUREAU / AFP)

Less than a month into the summer holidays, parents of school-age children in France may already be looking wistfully towards la rentrée in September - but officials have now published the dates for the 2022/23 school year.

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Schools close for the summer at the end of the previous school year on Wednesday, July 6th, 2022, and children will return - as usual - on Thursday, September 1st.

The holidays will then break down as follows:

Toussaint

  • Schools break up at the end of classes: Friday, October 21st. 2022;
  • Pupils return to class: Monday, November 7th.

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Christmas

  • Schools break up at the end of classes: Friday, December 16th;
  • Pupils return to class: Tuesday, January 3rd, 2023.

For the last two major holidays of the 2022/23 school year, the country is divided into three zones. 

The map below shows how the country is divided up:

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Image: service-public.fr

The dates for the Winter and Spring holidays are as follows:

Winter Half term

  • Zone A schools (Besançon, Bordeaux, Clermont-Ferrand, Dijon, Grenoble, Limoges, Lyon, Poitiers)
    Schools break up at the end of classes: Friday, February 3rd, 2023
    Pupils return to class: Monday, February 20th.

  • Zone B schools (Aix-Marseille, Amiens, Caen, Lille, Nancy-Metz, Nantes, Nice, Orléans-Tours, Reims, Rennes, Rouen, Strasbourg)
    Schools break up at the end of classes: Friday, February 10th;
    Pupils return to class: Monday, February 27th.

  • Zone C schools (Créteil, Montpellier, Paris, Toulouse, Versailles)
    Schools break up at the end of classes: Friday, February 17th;
    Pupils return to class: Monday, March 6th.

Spring holiday

  • Zone A schools (Besançon, Bordeaux, Clermont-Ferrand, Dijon, Grenoble, Limoges, Lyon, Poitiers)
    Schools break up at the end of classes: Friday, April 7th, 2023
    Pupils return to class: Monday, April 24th.

  • Zone B schools (Aix-Marseille, Amiens, Caen, Lille, Nancy-Metz, Nantes, Nice, Orléans-Tours, Reims, Rennes, Rouen, Strasbourg)
    Schools break up at the end of classes: Friday, April 14th;
    Pupils return to class: Tuesday, May 2nd.

  • Zone C schools (Créteil, Montpellier, Paris, Toulouse, Versailles)
    Schools break up at the end of classes: Friday, April 21st;
    Pupils return to class: Tuesday, May 9th.

Grandes Vacances

  • The summer holidays begin at the end of classes on Friday, July 7th, 2023.

Public holidays in France in 2022

Meanwhile, if you are already looking that far ahead, we have compiled a list of public holidays in France in 2022.

In total there are 11 public holidays every year, apart from in Alsace-Lorraine where people get 13 days off for historical reasons – that's explained here.

However all public holidays in France are taken on the day they fall on that year, rather than being moved to the nearest Monday as is the case in some other countries.

If a public holiday falls on a Monday or a Friday, it means a nice long weekend. If it falls on a Tuesday or a Thursday it means that people can faire le pont (do the bridge) or take one day of their annual holiday entitlement to create a nice four-day break.

But if the holiday falls on a Saturday or a Sunday, then the holiday is lost.

In 2022, seven of France's 11 jours fériés fall on weekdays - with New Year’s Day, May Day, VE Day, and Christmas Day all on weekends.

But if you’re patient, 2023 looks good for public holidays, with only two falling on a weekend - and no fewer than four falling on weekdays in May alone.

December 25th is the only official holiday day over Christmas in France – December 24th and 26th are normal working days, so that means no extra day off for Christmas unless your bosses are feeling generous.

Four holidays fall on either a Monday or a Friday, cutting down options to faire le pont. Holidays that can be 'bridged' in 2022 are Ascension Day on Thursday, May 26th, the Fête Nationale on Thursday, July 14th, and Toussaint, on Tuesday, November 1st. One day's holiday could get you four days off as part of a long weekend.

Here is the full list of 2022 holidays in France:

  • Saturday, January 1st – New Year's Day 
  • Monday, April 18th – Easter Monday
  • Sunday, May 1st – May Day
  • Sunday, May 8th – VE Day
  • Thursday, May 26th – Ascension
  • Monday, June 6th – Pentecost
  • Thursday, July 14th – Fête Nationale
  • Monday, August 15th – Assumption
  • Tuesday, November 1st – Toussaint (All Saints)
  • Friday, November 11th – Armistice Day
  • Sunday, December 25th – Christmas

READ ALSO Pentecost: The French public holiday when people work for free

 

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