Our French Overseas Destinations are certainly keeping busy throughout the year with a vast array of tropical events. From surfing competitions to jazz festivals and from local food fairs to PGA tours, they’ve got something for every interest. We’ve listed here some highlight of events to come for your viewing pleasure.
Guadeloupe
August: Cooks Festival
The lovely ladies dress in their finest and traditional clothes for a festive day. On the menu, the best local dishes: black pudding, acras (fish balls), coq roussi (roast chicken), pork stew, local vegetable gratin… www.lesilesdeguadeloupe.com
8-11 November: Gwadloup Festival
Many music groups and artists will be in concert in Baie Mahault.
www.lesilesdeguadeloupe.com
Guiana
October: Kayenn Jazz Festival – Cayenne
The celebrations start with a brass band parade setting off from Cayenne’s Town Hall, and which resembles the musical atmosphere of New Orleans’s streets. Every night internationally famous musicians have the crowd dancing to different colourful musical moods. www.ville-cayenne.fr
Martinique
6-28 July: Culture Festival – Fort de France
Exhibitions, shows, concerts. www.fortdefrance.fr
24 November – 4 December: Martinique Jazz Festival
This jazz and world music event reflects the times and styles that have made this universal genre of music, without forgetting its Afro-American origins.
30 November-2 December: The Trans-Martinique
130km of an ultimate race-circuit that reaches up to 5,200m in height, and which runs between Grand-Rivière and Sainte-Anne.
New-Caledonia
7-14 August: 4th edition of the South Pacific PGA Open
With joining the Australian PGA calendar, the PGA New Caledonia Golf Championship has moved up a level to Australasia PGA Tier 2 status (South Pacific PGA Open).
November: Terikitesurf Pro – Nouméa
For the 12th year running Nouméa will be home to a stage of the PKRA calendar (Professional Kiteboarding Riders Association). The Terikitesurf Pro World Championship has races in countries between Argentina and Australia. This year New Caledonia will hold the semi-final of this 10 stage competition
Reunion Island
1-3 June: Sakifo
The Indian Ocean’s biggest music festival brings around ten internationally famous musicians as well as many local artists together. For the last 8 years Safiko has welcomed 40,000 spectators.
www.sakifo.com
June: Grand Boucan – Saint-Gilles-les-Bains
A carnival with many different events: float parades, majorettes, fire-breathers, Creole music. On average around 10,000 people fill the streets to come and see the Dodo King.
September: Tam Tam Festival– Saint-Paul
Tam Tam is a nationally and internationally famous event, dedicated to encouraging a better knowledge and recognition of the arts of puppetry and visual theatre.
www.tamtam.re
18-21 October: Grand Raid
The Diagonale des Fous celebrates its 20th anniversary. The Diagonale, which is world’s biggest mountain race, is 125km long, up to 8,00m high and has nearly 2,000 competitors.
www.grandraid-reunion.com
24-25 November 2012: Mégavalanche
This mountain-biking event runs down the west of the island. The course has summits of over 3,000m high which offers up breath-taking slopes and diverse landscapes: from volcanic, mineral and desert summits, to heavenly beaches through tamarind forests and sugar cane fields.
www.megavalanche.com
Tahiti and its Islands
16-27 August: Billabong Pro Surfing
The world’s best professional surfers fight it out on the legendary Teahupoo wave in this international competition in Tahiti.
www.surf.pf
Saint-Martin
11 November: The Island’s festival (La Fête de L’île)
The island celebrates its discovery by Christopher Columbus, on 11th November 1493. Events and festivities take place on both parts of the island (official ceremonies and traditional events around music, heritage and gastronomy) in order to celebrate and share Saint-Martin’s culture.
www.iledesaintmartin.org
Wants to find out what else is going on in these areas? Make sure to join us at our 12 June event where you will not only be able to discuss these events in detail with the destinations, but you will also be able to find out what other delights you can enjoy!