From the 11,000 retro cyclists of Anjou Vélo Vintage to the great voices of Les Divas du Jazz, eleven Loire-region picks for the weekend of June 27-28.
What's on in the Pays de la Loire this weekend of June 27 and 28? The last weekend of June overflows with events across the region: Saumur rolls out the carpet for vintage bikes and riders, the Mayenne lines up street arts and contemporary music, and from La Baule to the Vendée countryside, cinema, jazz and grand spectacle take over. Our favourite isn't the loudest one: between the courtyard of a Châteaubriant park and a chamber-music concert in the Savennières vineyards, the weekend offers as many quiet outings as crowded ones. Here's the lay of the land, from the retro peloton to the giant Puy du Fou night.
Anjou Vélo Vintage in Saumur (49): 11,000 cyclists in period dress
From Friday June 26 to Sunday June 28, Anjou Vélo Vintage turns Saumur and its surroundings into Europe's largest gathering of vintage bicycles. Created in 2011, the event draws more than 11,000 participants each year for a festive, tongue-in-cheek weekend: retro cycling rides through the vineyards, swing and jazz concerts, a vintage village, a flea market and tastings of local specialities. Roaring-twenties costumes, antique bicycles and an easygoing spirit give the town a picture-postcard feel. Whether you saddle up or simply wander the village, it's one of the region's most photogenic gatherings. The rides must be booked ahead, but the atmosphere can be enjoyed for free in the streets.
Galas du Cadre Noir in Saumur (49): UNESCO-listed equestrian art
Still in Saumur, the Galas du Cadre Noir continue at the historic Terrefort site, with performances scheduled through October 18. Heir to a tradition born in 1815 and inscribed on UNESCO's intangible heritage list, the Cadre Noir presents haute école figures, school jumps and long-rein work in galas choreographed to music. Watching the riders and their mounts move through the great riding hall is as much theatre as it is a display of rare expertise. For anyone passing through the Saumur area this weekend, it's a chance to pair the vintage fever with a more solemn interlude, best combined with a tour of the town's troglodyte cellars. Booking advised for the evening galas.
La Cinéscénie at Puy du Fou, Les Épesses (85): the largest night in the countryside
This weekend, La Cinéscénie du Puy du Fou gives its performances at Les Épesses. Created in 1978 by Philippe de Villiers, it is the largest night-time show in the world: on a 23-hectare stage, 2,400 volunteer actors, the Puyfolais, retrace seven centuries of Vendée history through the sweeping saga of the Maupillier family. Fireworks, water jets, laser projections, video mapping and 360-degree spatial sound carry this outsized spectacle through to September 12. Late-June evenings are in high demand, so it's wise to book and arrive early, as site access is managed ahead of time. Worth seeing at least once to grasp the sheer scale of what unfolds in the Vendée countryside after dark.
La Baule Film and Film-Music Festival (44): Cannes by the ocean
The La Baule Film and Film-Music Festival closes its edition on Sunday June 28, after five days of screenings and concerts. Created in 2014 by producer Sam Bobino and director Christophe Barratier, it is France's only festival entirely devoted to the bond between cinema and film music. Feature and short-film previews, film-concerts and talks follow one another a stone's throw from the La Baule beaches. This final day is a chance to catch a screening or an original concert in a seaside resort at its summer peak. An ideal outing for anyone who prefers the screen and the score to open-air stages, easily paired with an end of day with your feet in the sand.
Les Divas du Jazz in Châteaubriant (44): great female voices, for free
From Friday June 26 to Sunday June 28, Les Divas du Jazz take over the Promenade du Duc d'Aumale in Châteaubriant. Created in 2022 by the Châteaubriant-Derval community of communes under the artistic direction of Jean-Philippe Vidal, this entirely free and one-of-a-kind festival celebrates, over three days, the great female voices of jazz, both French and international. Open-air concerts, a hushed atmosphere and a sharp programme make it a precious date for lovers of standards and vocal discoveries. It's also a fine gateway into jazz for the curious, in a town in the north of the department rarely associated with major stages. Being free, it's worth arriving early for the most popular sets.
Un Singe en Été in Mayenne (53): contemporary music by the river
In Mayenne, the Un Singe en Été festival runs through Saturday June 27 in the Parc du Château, on the riverbank. Created in 2015 by the Tribu Familia association, this multidisciplinary event blends eclectic concerts, stage performances and hybrid artistic offerings in a heritage setting. Geared towards discovery, it favours aesthetics that stray off the beaten track, in a friendly, human-scale atmosphere. For lovers of trailblazing line-ups who like to be surprised, it's one of the highlights of the last weekend of June in the Mayenne. The château setting, looming over the river, adds to the charm of this musical late evening.
La Chalibaude in Château-Gontier (53): street arts in full swing
On Saturday June 27 and Sunday June 28, La Chalibaude turns the town centre of Château-Gontier-sur-Mayenne into an open-air stage. Created in 1989, this street-arts festival takes its name from the post-Revolution Saint John's bonfires. Each last weekend of June, around fifteen professional companies put on more than fifty free performances: street theatre, circus, walkabouts and slapstick shows fill squares and alleyways. It's the kind of festival where you let yourself drift from one stage to the next without a fixed programme, with family or friends. Entirely free, it offers one of the region's finest concentrations of street arts for this weekend, in a good-natured atmosphere.
Festival des Sables in Les Sables-d'Olonne (85): French chanson facing the ocean
The Festival des Sables closes its second edition on Saturday June 27 on the esplanade of the Prieuré Saint-Nicolas, facing the Atlantic. Launched in 2025, this open-air French-chanson festival offers acoustic or reworked concerts in an exceptional historic setting, with a reduced capacity of about 1,500 seats to guarantee genuine closeness to the artists. The final evening promises an intimate moment, lulled by the sound of the waves a few metres from the stage. For lovers of chanson and seaside atmospheres, it's an outing that marries the French-language repertoire with a sunset over the ocean. Booking recommended given the limited capacity.
Musique dans les Vignes in Savennières (49): classical music among the vines
The Musique dans les Vignes festival wraps its edition on Sunday June 28 at Château de Chamboureau, in Savennières. Created in 2017 by the Société des Concerts Populaires d'Angers, it unfolds a nine-day journey through the vineyards each late June: twenty-four chamber-music concerts take up residence in prestigious wine estates, from L'Aiglerie to the Coulée de Serrant. The closing concerts show the full measure of an intimate programme where music converses with the terroir, often followed by a tasting of the estate's wines. For lovers of strings and dry whites, it's the perfect antithesis to the weekend's din: a quiet concert, glass in hand, in one of the Loire's finest vineyards.
Eldorado Americana Festival in Vancé (72): the roots of American music
In the Sarthe, the Eldorado Americana Festival takes place on Friday June 26 and Saturday June 27 on the site of a former sawmill, at Le Champ du Moulin, in Vancé. This human-scale festival (1,500 seats) is devoted to americana music: country, folk, blues, soul and rock, in the bucolic setting of a village between the Perche Sarthois and the Loir valley. Leading international artists follow one another in an intimate atmosphere that plunges the audience into the roots of American music. For lovers of banjos, pedal steel and wide sonic spaces, it's a quiet gem and one of the loveliest surprises of the weekend in the region. To be discovered far from the big urban stages.
Les Féodales de Clairbois in Sainte-Suzanne (53): a weekend in the Middle Ages
In the Mayenne, the Féodales de Clairbois recreate the life of a thirteenth-century fortified farm at the Domaine de Clairbois, in Sainte-Suzanne-et-Chammes. Organised by the La Mesnie de la Ferté-Clairbois association, these medieval displays take place on the second weekend of each month from April to August, with encampments, equestrian games, historical vignettes and craft demonstrations. You wander between tents, forge and armoured combat in one of France's prettiest villages. It's an ideal family outing, halfway between live performance and a life-size history lesson. The setting, dominated by the keep of Sainte-Suzanne, adds a touch of authenticity that few re-enactments can match.
Worth a mention too
- Festival Boris le Singe in Louverné (53): on June 26 and 27, two days of eclectic contemporary music (hip-hop, electro, rock, soul) at the Clos Joli, at the gates of Laval.
- Le Rock Ne Meurt Jamais in Montaigu-Vendée (85): on Saturday June 27, open-air rock by the Chausselière lake, mixing local bands and international acts.
To explore other regions this weekend, head to our full weekend agenda. Enjoy your time in the Pays de la Loire.
