May is the month of the rose and where better to celebrate this than in the world’s perfume capital, Grasse, on the French Riviera. Every year, over a weekend in early to mid-May, the city honours the rose in all its forms at a 3 day rose festival, ExpoRose. Around 8500 bouquets, 13000 rose bushes and over 25000 cut roses decorate fountains, statues, shop fronts and public squares throughout Grasse. Dance and music performances, tastings of everything rose-flavoured, along with a market selling rose-themed gifts and food, and of course rose plants of every colour and variety imaginable, complete the festival.
Grasse, often surprisingly quiet for such a well-known and sizeable place, comes alive over this weekend, with shops and restaurants espousing the rose theme, decorating their space with petals and bouquets. The smell in the air is amazing, as not only are there tens of thousands of roses all around but rose perfume is sprayed into the streets of the old town from overhead atomisers.
The rose, queen of flowers, loved for its scent and delicate beauty worldwide is the most cultivated flower on earth and this fragrance-filled event, ExpoRose, is an important annual date for rose producers and distributors. For rose enthusiasts it’s unmissable.
I’ve been to ExpoRose several times over the years and have put together a selection of photos from around Grasse. As so often when writing about festivals in this area I wish there was a “scratch and sniff” option on the internet so that you could smell the perfume too. Just try and imagine it! I’ve said enough, let the photos do the talking.
Grasse is one of my favourite local towns and when it gets all dressed up to party I feel lucky to live so close. Do you enjoy seasonal festivals like this?
Read more about local fragrant festivals in these related posts:
Orange festival on the Côte d’Azur – la fête de l’oranger
Lemon festival on the Côte d’Azur – Menton’s fête du citron
PIN it for later!
I love roses. This looks like awesome place to visit in May. Thanks for beautiful pictures and detailed information.
my pleasure Anita
I love Grasse and would love to go to the Rose festival. If we are ever allowed to go anywhere again we must stay at Lou Messugo in May and take in the Rose festival.
I haven’t been to Grasse since I was a child…but I still remember the smells! Thanks for the memories
happy to provide!
This looks gorgeous, I really love the smell of roses and in such pretty surroundings!
And with the rose perfume in the air it really does smell great!
so pretty!
Stunning! Yet another magical street festival.
Looks beautiful and I can only imagine the fragrance! Curious – what are they fishing for in the fountain? Rose petals in the water? Thanks for sharing all this rosy loveliness with #FarawayFiles, Erin
This looks amazing, it must smell pretty good too #CityTripping #FarawayFiles
How is this sort of thing organised? It must take hundreds of people to arrange theses displays. Are most of them volunteers?
OH! I can’t even imagine how amazing the air must smell, how incredible to be surrounded roses!!
Oh my this is amazing, I love all the pictures I would so love to visit to see it in real life, I bet it smells amazing x
I just love all the wonderful festivals you have in the south of France, Phoebe! Lemons, oranges and now roses. Just perfect. I can imagine the smell might get a bit overpowering at times but I’d really like to see this. And in Grasse too, how wonderful. Thanks for sharing on #FarawayFiles
This has to be one of the most beautiful festivals I’ve ever seen! I bet it smells amazing too!
Come on Phoebe, surely with all your talents you can magic a scratch and sniff computer screen?! Love this so much and so would my flower mad daughter. I am sure she would be over the moon to see this. Thanks for joining #FarawayFiles
That’s so cool! I love the idea of them spraying the scent -and I agree, there should be a scratch and sniff option on the internet. The flowers are beautiful too, of course!
You always seem to have the best festivals in the south of France – bright, colourful, delicious and scented. I knew of Grasse’ s perfumed reputation but not about this – it certainly holds its own in the calendar. Thanks for linking up with #citytripping
Oh the French do festivals so well! This is making me ache to visit. Tweeted, pinned and stumbled! #citytripping
OMG I’m in LOOOOVE! I love flowers and whenever there’s a festival, I’m all over it! Pinnnnnned! #CityTripping