Traditional festivals, cultural and sporting events in Aveyron

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

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