Festival International des Jeux & Fête du Mimosa

7 December 2017

France’s Largest Games Festival & Flower-Filled Celebrations in Cannes

Step inside Cannes’ world-famous Palais des Festivals and enter the wonderful world of games at France’s largest games festival! Then, step outside and surround yourself in flower-filled celebrations during a Cote d’Azur cultural highlight at Fête du Mimosa. Both of which await your discovery as you delight in a luxury stay at Amarante Cannes, this February.

Festival International des Jeux

23^rd February – 25^th February 2018

Since 1987, Cannes’ Palais des Festivals has provided a home for France’s leading, and largest, games festival; which will once again be the case this February, when some 150,000 enthusiasts arrive in the city for Festival International des Jeux.

Set across three action-packed days, the globally acclaimed event will submerse you in a wonderful world of amusements; as you compete in tournaments, meet industry professionals, or simply stroll among the sundry stalls admiring the thousands of simulation, board, card and video games on display.

For those of a more competitive nature, not to be missed is the Monopoly Championship of France, where you can battle it out in a series of one hour, four player games. But be warned, you will be up against tough opposition, with returning champion Philippe Pinoli bidding to defend his crown for a fourth consecutive year! Other contests open to all include endeavours in chess, checkers, mah-jong and scrabble, although some tournaments will require you to compete in a series of qualifiers.

Although it’s not all fun and games! Festival International des Jeux also caters something of an education, with hundreds of authors, illustrators and industry professionals on hand to teach you the ways of games. Culminating with ProtoLab, a programme aimed at budding designers, which sheds light on the games making process, helping to turn your ideas into a reality! Meanwhile, opportunities to see those who have done just that will be provided at 2018’s Golden Ace, where the Game of the Year will be awarded by a panel of industry experts.

But Festival International des Jeux is mostly about fun and games. Of which, there will be endless opportunities to delight in this February.

Fête du Mimosa

20^th February – 28^th February 2018

Every January, the Cote d’Azur countryside yields to a cloud of sunshine-yellow when millions of Mimosa flowers fill forests, meadows and winding roadsides; while the sweet scent of florae in bloom fills the French Riviera air.

But as the beautiful flowers burst forth, so too does a bustling calendar of cultural events in the form of Fête du Mimosa, held in the charming town of Mandelieu-la-Napoule, reachable in just twenty minutes from Cannes.

Kick-starting the festivities for 2018 is an evening of live classical musical, performed in the historic Notre-Dame des Mimosas on the Friday. Then the following day brings yet more excitement, when crowds gather at the Congress Centre for the crowning of the beautiful, flower-clad, Queen of Mimosa!

Sunday, however, is when the flower-fuelled fun really begins, as the procession of floats make their way through the castle-flanked town centre, along with thousands of spectators and a parade of trumpet wielding musicians! The floats in themselves are nothing short of spectacular, as countless flowers are fashioned into colossal sculptures, becoming just about anything and everything yellow! So, expect to see lots of beautiful butterflies, roaring lions, Homer Simpsons, and of course, plenty of minions.

Fortunately, the festivities don’t stop there, and throughout the course of Fête du Mimosa you can also embark on a series of hiking tours to Mimosa Forest, as you scale the sea-facing slopes of Massif du Tanneron - where some of the most scenic views in all of France, await!

Not forgetting some of the most alluring aromas in France, which can be discovered as you depart on a coach tour to the perfume capital of the world, Grasse! Here, you will become an authentic perfumer - for a day, at least - as you learn about the process via interactive workshops, before selecting ingredients from an impressive arsenal and making a fragrance of your own.

Book Your Luxury Stay in Cannes, Today!

So there you have it! An action-packed, flower-filled, February lineup awaits in Cannes; which can be enjoyed as you delight in a luxury four-star stay at Amarante Cannes, situated mere minutes from the city’s bustling centre.