Le Voyage à Nantes, one of France’s major cultural festivals, returns this summer, July 2–Sept. 11, marking its 10^th year. With more than 500,000 visitors flocking to Nantes, a city in the west of France, every summer, this festival allows visitors to experience visual happenings in the city’s public squares, immersing them in a surreal environment that blends reality with art.

The opening night of the festival will feature musical performances and free admission to the museums at night. The night will also include a 40-stage route spanning 18 kilometers, marked with a green trail painted on the ground to guide visitors and locals around the city to discovery Nantes’ history, heritage, architecture and secret spots.

© Pascal Convert

That same night, the festival will bring 100 restauranteurs and chefs together for The Nuit des tables de Nantes to showcase their cuisine through a range of taster dishes at affordable prices (dishes range from €5 to €10 each).

The 2022 trail sees dozens of collaborators’ installations scattered throughout the city. Ranging in size and location, from the city center to the riverside to the green spaces of Nantes, visitors and locals have the opportunity explore each piece as well as explore more of the city.

Some of the installation highlights include a display by Parisian artist Hélène Deprat. Turning the city of Nantes into a stage, her installation will sit in Place Gaslin and Place Félix-Fournier and feature gigantic, black silhouettes caught in a still parade. From knights to monsters to animals, the display appears in the form of a medieval church fresco.

Another installation, by Pascal Convert, will lie in Cimitière Miséricorde, a cemetery founded in 1793. Home to the remains of the great families of Nantes, Convert’s piece, Miroirs des Temps, will feature a ghost-like deer, stag, roebuck, doe and two fawns. The ghost-like appearance is achieved by glass panes that shimmer, and will seem to follow visitors with silent eyes.

Visitors fascinated with the work of Convert can head to Passage Sainte-Croix, where Convert will also present a selection of his works and show the making of the pieces for Miroirs des Temps with a documentary. Other featured artists in this year’s festival will include Alexandre Benjamin Navet, Atelier Vecteur, Charles Fréger, Krijn de Koning and Krzysztof Wodiczko.

On the final day of the festival, Sept. 11, a selection of the best local producers and food artisans will showcase some of the best products, innovations, market gardeners, shellfish farmers, livestock breeding traditions, brewers and spice merchants. In addition to this event, 20 chefs from Nantes, the wider region around Nantes and Paris will serve delicious dishes to the public as a sample of the country’s best foods and ingredients.

Have you been to Nantes before? What did you do in Nantes? Will you plan a trip to Le Voyage à Nantes this year? What are you most excited to experience at the festival? Tell us your thoughts. Email us at letters@globaltravelerusa.com. Please include your full name and location.