Celebrations and Festivals
MAY
23 May: Transhumance festival.
Flocks of sheep are driven through the valley to the Aubrac
pasture lands. Traditional festival, country market, folk
groups. Tel: 05 65 44 21 15
29 May: Summer pasture festival in St Geniez d’Olt.
Saturday morning, country and craft market with street
entertainment. Walks. Tel. OT: 05 65 70 43 42
JULY-AUGUST
July and August: Larzac Summer Festival.
Templar and Hospitaller sites offering medieval activities
and entertainment throughout the summer.
Tel: 05 65 59 12 22
4 July: Saint-Fleuret Festival in Estaing.
More than a simple religious festival, this procession is an
opportunity to parade St Fleuret’s relics (patron saint of Estaing) through the streets surrounded by all of Estaing’s
historic characters.
Tel. OT: 05 65 44 03 22
11 July to 29 August: 33rd International Festival of Sacred
Music in Sylvanès.
The Sylvanès Abbey festival stands out as a special encounter
between art and the sacred, with music and song from
the world’s great spiritual traditions.
Courses, Concerts.
Tel: 05 65 98 20 20 - www.sylvanes.com
27 to 31 July: Estivada - Occitan Festival in Rodez.
Founded in 1995, the “Estivada” is now acknowledged as
the showcase of Occitan artistic expression in all its forms:
experimental creation, traditional/modern music, literature,
poetry, story-telling and cinema... It’s also a great
place for meetings and discussions, a place where a new
type of citizenship is created that is open to other people
and other cultures, a place of “convivencia” and “paratge”.
In this respect, the “Estivada” is a real cultural crossroads
for the Occitan regions, of which Rodez becomes
the free capital for a few days.
Tel: 05 65 78 10 74 - www.estivada-rodez.com
29-30-31 July and 5-6-7-9 august: : “Hier, un Village”
in Flagnac. Sound, Light and Movement.
A great living fresco of the Rouergue by its inhabitants,
telling the story of rural life in the early 20th Century.
Tel: 05 65 64 09 92 - www.hier-un-village.com
AUGUST
1st to 8 August: 55th Rouergue International Folk Festival.
A week of world folk in the Aveyron.
Tel: 05 65 46 84 27
2 to 7 August: 11th “Bastide Theatre Festival”.
The walled towns of La Bastide l’Evêque, Najac, Sauveterre
de Rouergue, Villeneuve d’Aveyron and Villefranche de
Rouergue invite you to come and meet the artists and learn
more about the various forms of street art. Every day,
actors, dancers, musicians, acrobats, etc. share their world
with you with a touch of humour, emotion and poetry in a
festive family atmosphere.
Tel: 05 65 45 13 18 or 05 65 45 76 74
4-5-6 and 8-9-10-11 August: : “Memories of Sévérac or
The Legend of Jean le Fol” in Sévérac le Château.
800 years of the history of France are presented inside the
château walls. This superb spectacle, punctuated by pyrotechnic
effects, is performed by 130 volunteer actors.
Tel. OT: 05 65 47 67 31 -
www.severac-le-chateau.com
7 to 15 August: Music festival: “Conques, la
lumière du Roman” in the Romanesque abbey church in
Conques.
Sacred music in the abbey church of Sainte-Foy, recital, a
combined performance of music and reading in the
European centre auditorium, intimate concerts in churches
and chapels in other towns. Courses, exhibitions, concerts...
Tel: 05 65 71 24 00 - www.festival-conques.com
SEPTEMBER
11 and 12 September: “Les Médiévales d’Estaing”.
The whole village travels back to medieval times. The inhabitants
and tourists can dress up while Estaing’s streets and
château are brought to life by entertainers and craft stalls.
Tel. Tourist Office: 05 65 44 03 22
OCTOBER
30 and 31 October: Chestnut festival in Sauveterre-de-
Rouergue.
This well-known traditional autumn event was founded in
1962! The Chestnut festival simply means chestnuts roasted
in the middle of the Square, washed down by sweet cider. A
convivial, friendly moment in which people come together
to maintain local traditions and values and listen to local
folk groups performing on stage.
There is an autumn market with traders and artisans offering
seasonal products. Arts and crafts have always played
a central role in Sauveterre de Rouergue and there are currently
ten craftsmen and women exercising their talents:
potters, lighting designers, pearl jewellery makers, painters
and upholsterers …
Tel: 05 65 72 02 52 -
www.aveyron-segala-tourisme.com
Sporting Events
JUNE
6 June: La Caussenarde (mountain biking).
A bike ride open to all, exploring the paths around Millau viaduct
and the countryside around the “grands causses”
(Larzac and Causse Noir). 5 routes to choose from: 25 to
105 km.
Tel: 06 88 64 43 06 -
http://la.caussenarde.free.fr
JULY
9-10-11 July: 37th Rouergue Rally: International car rally.
One of the 8 rounds of the French Rally Championship.
A mid-season Championship event that attracts 120 to
130 cars. 3 stages to compete in, in 1 different place in the
department.
Tel: 05 65 78 17 43 or 05 65 46 90 04 -
www.rallyerouergue.com
17 July: the Tour de France in Rodez.
Departure town for the 2010 Tour de France - 97th year.
Starting in the Avenue Victor Hugo in Rodez, the riders will
cross over the Place d'Armes and ride round the town before
passing the park and fairground for a second time. They
will then head off towards La Primaube and Réquista. The
stage ends in Revel, prior to the great Pyrenean stages.
Tel. Rodez Tourist Office: 05 65 75 76 77
AUGUST
August: 4th Open Regatta on Pareloup Lake. Tour of the
lake.
The regatta is open to all types of boat: dinghies, liveboard
yachts, optimists, racing keelboats and surfboards.
www.cyvp.com
10 to 15 August: World “pétanque” championships.
Thousands of participants, tens of thousands of spectators...
Tel: 05 65 61 18 45 -
www.millau-petanque.com
SEPTEMBER
25 and 26 September: 38th Millau 100 km foot-race.
100: a mythical figure that, every last Saturday in
September for the last 37 years has attracted nearly 1,700
competitors to take part in this famous 100-kilometre
race...
Europe’s second biggest race in terms of the numbers
taking part. A legend in the world of running.
www.100kmdemillau.com
OCTOBER
23 and 24 October: The Templars’ Festival 70 km race.
Live the great Templar adventure. The legend and soul of
trail biking, France’s biggest trail-biking event on a single
route across the “causses”. 70 km of pure pleasure and
the intense joy of reaching the gateway to happiness.
Tel: 0820 202 252 -
www.vo2.fr/templiers/
Additional source of Information
Mission Départementale de la Culture,
Centre Culturel
25, avenue Victor Hugo - 12000 RODEZ
Tel: 05 65 73 80 80 - Fax: 05 65 73 80 51
www.aveyron-culture.com
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