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Is Halloween celebrated in France?
Barely, and not in the way an American would recognise. French people know exactly what Halloween is. Supermarkets put out a shelf of sweets and a few costumes, some bars and clubs hold a party for adults, and Disneyland Paris runs a Halloween season every autumn. What is missing is everything that makes it a holiday in the United States: the decorated street, the assumption that every door will open, the weeks of build-up.
In 2026 Halloween falls on a Saturday, 31 October, in the middle of the French school holidays. That helps the parties. It does not change the fact that the date France actually observes is the following morning.
Do French kids trick-or-treat?
Some do, in some neighbourhoods, with less certainty about whether doors will open. It has none of the infrastructure of the American version — no expectation that a street participates, no aisle of costumes in August, no adults treating it as their own event.
The phrase, where it is used, is “Des bonbons ou un sort !” — sweets or a spell. A child who rings a bell in France should be ready for a neighbour who has no idea why they are there and nothing in the house to give them.
What ends up in the bag is different too, as French candy vs American candy explains.
Why did it not take?
Partly because the date was occupied. Toussaint is a public holiday with real weight, and it is about family graves and remembrance, which does not sit comfortably beside a plastic skeleton. Partly because it arrived as an import with a marketing budget rather than as anything anybody asked for. The push came in the late 1990s, from brands and retailers rather than from families, and for a few years it worked: pumpkins in shop windows, costumes in supermarkets. By the mid-2000s most of it had receded. What stayed was the adult party and the sweet aisle.
What do the French do on 1 November instead?
They go to the cemetery. La Toussaint, All Saints’ Day, is a public holiday, and it is the day families visit and tidy the graves of their relatives and leave flowers. The flower is the chrysanthemum, sold in pots outside every florist and supermarket in the last week of October. This is also why you do not bring chrysanthemums to a French dinner: they are for graves.
The school holiday that surrounds the date is named for it. French children get two weeks off in October, and they are the Toussaint holidays, not a Halloween break.
This or that
How American Is Your Halloween?
One pumpkin or nineteen? A door or a twelve-foot skeleton? Six this-or-that questions.
Take the quizHalloween in France in 2026: the dates
- Halloween: Saturday 31 October 2026. Not a holiday; shops and restaurants keep normal hours.
- Toussaint (All Saints’ Day): Sunday 1 November 2026, a public holiday. It falls on a Sunday this year, and France does not move public holidays to the Monday.
- School holidays: the Toussaint break runs from Saturday 17 October to Monday 2 November 2026, when classes resume, for every school zone.
Visiting France at Halloween: what should you expect?
A normal evening on 31 October, with a few costumed children in city neighbourhoods and themed nights in some bars. If you want the full American version, Disneyland Paris is the one place that stages it properly.
The practical point is the next day. 1 November is a public holiday, so banks, post offices and many shops are closed, and opening hours for museums and restaurants vary. It is worth checking before you plan the day around one. If you have ever wondered why everything in France seems to be closed, a public holiday is the usual answer outside August.
What does he make of the American version?
The scale, mostly. That houses are decorated in September, that adults have costumes, that a residential street coordinates. He finds the enthusiasm more surprising than the ghosts — which is roughly his response to American back-to-school as well.
Questions, answered
Is Halloween celebrated in France?
Barely. Halloween is known in France and marked by some shops, bars and theme parks, but it is not a general tradition. The date that matters is 1 November, Toussaint, a public holiday for visiting family graves.
How do you say trick or treat in French?
“Des bonbons ou un sort !”, which means sweets or a spell. It is understood, but trick-or-treating is uncommon in France, so not every door will be expecting it.
Is 1 November a public holiday in France?
Yes. Toussaint, All Saints’ Day, on 1 November is a public holiday in France. Banks, post offices and many shops close, and families traditionally visit cemeteries.
Do the French celebrate Halloween?
Not widely. Halloween is known in France but never established itself after a commercial push in the late 1990s. Trick-or-treating happens in some neighbourhoods but is not a general expectation.
What is Toussaint?
Toussaint, on 1 November, is a French public holiday traditionally spent visiting and tending family graves. It is the significant date at that time of year rather than Halloween.
Do French schools have a Halloween holiday?
French schools take a two-week break around late October and early November, but it is the Toussaint holiday rather than a Halloween one.
When is Halloween in France?
On 31 October, as everywhere. In 2026 it falls on a Saturday, during the French Toussaint school holidays (17 October to 2 November). The public holiday is the next day, 1 November.
Is Halloween a public holiday in France?
No. 31 October is an ordinary day in France. The public holiday is 1 November, Toussaint.
Still wondering?
Ask my French husband.
A short ruling in a few seconds. Written by AI from our Journal, in his voice.
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