On Sunday morning, we headed off to the Menton Lemon Competition as a part of our France street journey itinerary. In case you’re unsure what this is- it’s a show and parade of ENORMOUS floats and designs… all product of lemons (and different citrus fruit!)
Significantly. I’ll be sincere, we weren’t certain what to anticipate!
It was the final day of the Lemon Competition and I used to be fairly excited, though site visitors was horrendous. The autoroute there was superb, however as quickly as you exited on the Menton exit, you joined a slow-moving, lengthy queue for a number of miles.
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The place is Menton?
Menton is on the south-east nook of France, about 10 miles from the Italian border, proper on the coast. It’s a gorgeous a part of the world- undoubtedly price a street journey. Menton can also be solely an hour from Good, so you possibly can simply go to for the day. There’s additionally a competition in Good on the similar time- take a look at the timetables so you possibly can catch each.
Parking on the Menton Lemon Competition
Fortunately we have been on the bikes, so we determined to park up and stroll the mile or so into Menton. It was fairly simple to seek out motorcycle parking, however I believe automobiles can be a lot tougher as you might be directed into designated automobile parks. Motorhomes are apparently parked in a carpark on the seafront, however solely on Sundays!? I’m actually unsure why or what occurs on the opposite days!
Citrus Competition 2019 – shopping for tickets
There are totally different occasions taking place all through the week, together with night-time gentle shows, fireworks and parades. Sundays are the large parade days and lots of the roads are closed to accommodate the procession (which is perhaps why the site visitors was so unhealthy!)
Earlier than you possibly can queue to enter, you needed to queue to get tickets, which took about quarter-hour. Tickets value 12€ simply to enter the backyard (which is what I did). The shows within the backyard are static and are NOT the identical ones used within the display- I used to be nervous the backyard would shut at 2pm when the parade began, nevertheless it didn’t. You should buy further tickets for parades, seating, night time shows etc- it’s all on the web site HERE
Taking a canine to the Menton Lemon Competition
You aren’t allowed to take canine into the backyard and even for them to be on the parade apparently. There are too many individuals and the organisers don’t need canine fouling within the backyard, which I utterly perceive.
We didn’t need to depart Mac within the motorhome all day, so Mr WB volunteered to take a seat in a restaurant while I visited the competition, then he might go in afterwards if he wished to.
Visiting the Menton Lemon Competition 2019
I actually don’t know what I anticipated, however I naively hadn’t anticipated SO.MANY.PEOPLE. Oh my goodness, it was loopy! As soon as we had the tickets, we needed to be part of the queue for the precise entrance. I believe we have been queuing for about an hour- it was very sluggish transferring as they checked everybody’s baggage and patted folks down. Undecided they appreciated my biker lady kevlar!
We have been additionally stopped many instances by folks telling us we couldn’t take a canine into the competition… I really want to be taught the French for “it’s okay; they’re simply ready with me!”
Contained in the Menton Lemon Competition
As soon as inside, it was only a mass of individuals. I managed to get near the shows (there have been 10 in total- the designs change yearly) by standing my ground- fortunately I’m tall! Individuals have been making an attempt to push you out of the best way and strolling in entrance of you while you tried to take pictures. There was an enormous mixture of nationalities, together with a stunning variety of Chinese language/ Asian.
The shows have been impressive- I can not comprehend how lengthy they need to take to construct! All of the lemons and oranges seemed contemporary too- although this was the final day! I don’t know how they managed to try this.
Enjoyable Reality- do you know if you plant a lemon tree that you could’t inform if it’s going to be a lemon or an orange tree till the fruit grows!
Meals and Drink contained in the Fete du Citroen
There have been plenty of stalls contained in the backyard and many distributors shouting their wares. You would purchase lemon bushes (I used to be so tempted, however we have been on motorbikes!), lemon juice and limoncello, lemon cleaning soap, postcards, pictures and lots of different mementoes. There have been additionally some meals/ drinks stands, however as I used to be by myself I attempted to be as fast as doable.
Watch our video of the Menton Lemon Competition
You’ll be able to see the queues, the unbelievable designs and the sheer variety of folks making an attempt to see them! (You can even see our journey to Monaco and the place Mac and I have been chased by a giant scary canine…!)
Menton Lemon Competition- price a go to?
My lasting impression is awe on the designs, however overwhelm on the folks. I’ll be sincere, I began to really feel a bit claustrophobic after some time, which wasn’t a lot enjoyable. We have been extremely fortunate with the weather- it was about 19 levels. In March! I believe on a wet day it might be much less crowded, however you’d get moist! In case you occur to be heading that manner on the finish of February, then it’s price a cease off, however I’m unsure I’d suggest a street journey particularly to see the festival- I suppose it relies upon how a lot you want lemons! 😉
6 Ideas for visiting the Menton Lemon Competition
- Put on snug footwear. There are only a few locations to take a seat down and it’s so busy you’re unlikely to get one anyway. It’s a stunning quantity of strolling.
- Don’t carry huge baggage in the event you may also help it- you’ll simply get jostled loads
- Don’t carry a giant digicam/ tripod- you’ve acquired no hope of having the ability to set it up and compose a pleasant photograph. I took my GoPro in with me- it’s small and simple to hold round. (Have I discussed how a lot I LOVE this factor??!)
- Having stated that- an extendable tripod or selfie stick you possibly can carry above your head with a go-pro or one thing on it is perhaps a extremely good thought so you possibly can see over folks’s heads.
- Deliver a bottle of water in with you, particularly if it’s sunny. The backyard acts like a bowl, and all the warmth from all of the folks makes it fairly stifling.
- Except you REALLY need it, yow will discover less expensive postcards and souvenirs exterior the backyard at different outlets round Menton. Vacationer outlets are open on a Sunday through the competition.
Menton itself seems to be like a extremely fairly town- we’d like to come back again and see it higher. A lot of it’s closed off through the competition, so we’ll need to revisit at a unique time of 12 months to discover it correctly. We’d additionally like extra time to discover the remainder of the French shoreline, together with Good, which has plenty of low-cost and free issues to do– stunning for the French Riviera and is without doubt one of the prime cities in France!
Have you ever ever visited the Menton Lemon Competition? Would you prefer to? Let me know under.
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Final replace on 2023-12-08 / Affiliate hyperlinks / Photographs from Amazon Product Promoting API