Fête nationale
Bastille Day
Tuesday, 14 Jul 2026 · France · Nationwide · Public holiday
Bridge day check
Falls on a Tuesday. Book the Monday off and you get a four-day weekend — expect a lot of colleagues to do exactly that.
Book off 13 Jul 2026 for 4 days off.
What the day is for
La Fête nationale marks the storming of the Bastille in 1789 and the Fête de la Fédération a year later. The military parade down the Champs-Élysées is the largest in Europe, and every commune holds a bal des pompiers and fireworks.
Do shops and banks close?
Banks, offices and most shops close. Restaurants and cafés open and do heavy trade in the evening.
Getting around
Sunday timetables. Central Paris closes around the parade in the morning and again for the Eiffel Tower fireworks at night — metro stations near the Trocadéro shut entirely.
When it falls each year
Floating holidays shift; fixed ones move only in which weekday they land on.
See the full France holiday calendar or count the working days.