France in November 2026: Beaujolais Nouveau on November 19, the Hospices de Beaune auction, first Christmas markets, ski openings and real weather by region.
November is France's quietest month for visitors and one of its best for food and wine. The new Beaujolais is released on Thursday, November 19, 2026, the Hospices de Beaune hold their wine auction on November 15, truffle season begins in the South, and in the last week the first Christmas markets open in Alsace. The weather is the price you pay: gray and damp in the north, with highs around 52°F (11°C) in Paris, and the wettest month of the year in Nice.
We are based in the Beaujolais, so November is the month we see our own region at its liveliest. Here is how we use it.
Beaujolais Nouveau, Thursday, November 19, 2026. The new wine is released on the third Thursday of November, and the region celebrates from the night before. In Beaujeu and in villages across the Beaujolais, cellars and cafés open the first bottles at midnight, with music and food stalls; the next weeks bring tastings in Lyon's bouchons. In 2027 the date is November 18.
The Hospices de Beaune wine auction, November 13-15, 2026. The 166th auction of wines from the historic hospital's vineyards takes place on Sunday, November 15, with a weekend of tastings and festivities in Beaune's old town. Beaune hotels book out for that weekend; we often base travelers in Dijon or a château hotel in the Côte d'Or. Our Burgundy wine tour from Lyon explains the villages around Beaune.
Truffles. Black truffle season opens in Provence and the Périgord in late autumn. The Saturday market at Richerenches, in the Vaucluse, is the best known; it traditionally runs from about mid-November to March, but the village does not publish dates, so we confirm locally. January remains the heart of the season.
Cognac. After the harvest, the distilleries of Cognac fire up their copper stills for the winter, and the town smells of warm wine. Our Cognac getaway is a good November trip.
The holiday markets open in the last week of the month:
The last week of November gives you the Alsace markets with fewer crowds than in December and lower hotel rates. Strasbourg's main markets sit on flat, paved squares in the old town, but they get crowded in the evenings; for wheelchair users we plan weekday mornings and step-free hotels near the cathedral. Our guide to the Alsace Christmas markets compares the towns.
November sits between the summer and the winter seasons, so a few things are shut:
The highest resorts open before December. In 2026 Tignes and Val Thorens open on November 21 and Val d'Isère on November 28. In Chamonix, the Grands Montets and La Flégère plan partial openings on November 28-29 if the snow allows. Early-season snow is never guaranteed, so we only plan November skiing in these high-altitude resorts, with a non-ski backup.
Météo-France 1991-2020 normals (Chamonix: 1981-2010):
| Region (station) | High | Low | Rain | Rainy days |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Paris | 52°F (11.1°C) | 43°F (6.2°C) | 54 mm | 10 |
| Normandy (Caen) | 53°F (11.8°C) | 42°F (5.6°C) | 79 mm | 13 |
| Loire Valley (Tours) | 53°F (11.4°C) | 42°F (5.3°C) | 69 mm | 11 |
| Alsace (Strasbourg) | 49°F (9.4°C) | 38°F (3.3°C) | 48 mm | 9 |
| Burgundy (Dijon) | 49°F (9.7°C) | 38°F (3.3°C) | 78 mm | 11 |
| Lyon | 53°F (11.4°C) | 41°F (4.9°C) | 87 mm | 9 |
| Alps (Chamonix) | 45°F (7.4°C) | 28°F (-2.1°C) | 101 mm | 10 |
| Provence (Carpentras) | 59°F (15.0°C) | 41°F (4.9°C) | 91 mm | 8 |
| Riviera (Nice) | 63°F (17.0°C) | 49°F (9.7°C) | 138 mm | 9 |
| Bordeaux | 57°F (14.1°C) | 44°F (6.7°C) | 115 mm | 13 |
The Riviera is still the mildest place in mainland France, but November rain comes in heavy bursts. The north is less wet in total, but gray: Paris gets only about 70 hours of sunshine in the month. By mid-November the sun rises in Paris around 8 a.m. and sets around 5:10 p.m.
After the All Saints' school holidays end on November 2, France enters its quietest weeks of the year. Hotel rates in Paris, Lyon, Bordeaux and on the Riviera are among the lowest of the year, outside big trade fairs and Paris Photo (November 12-15, 2026, at the Grand Palais). The exceptions are Beaune on auction weekend and Alsace from the last weekend of the month.
At Mont-Saint-Michel, the bay is calm: the 2026 tide table shows no "island" tides from October to December. The abbey keeps winter hours and its €13 (about $15) winter price.
Paris and the Beaujolais Nouveau. Four nights in Paris, the TGV to Lyon, and three nights between Lyon's bouchons and the Beaujolais villages for the release night on November 19.
Burgundy for the Hospices auction, then Alsace. The auction weekend in Beaune, then Colmar and Strasbourg as the markets open, the first part of our French Christmas trip moved a week earlier.
Paris at its calmest. Seven days of museums, covered passages and long lunches, with Versailles, on our accessible Paris trip or a classic version of it.
See how November compares across the year in our best time to visit France guide, and read France in December for the full market season.
Send us your November dates and a designer will build the trip around the wine calendar: plan your trip.
More guides: Month by monthChristmas markets
It is a good month for food, wine, cities and value. Beaujolais Nouveau, the Hospices de Beaune auction and the first truffles all fall in November, hotel rates are among the lowest of the year, and the Alsace Christmas markets open in the last week. The weather is often gray and damp, so plan indoor time.
The new Beaujolais is released on the third Thursday of November, which is Thursday, November 19, 2026, and Thursday, November 18, in 2027. Celebrations start the evening before in the Beaujolais villages and in Lyon, with the first bottles opened at midnight. Paris bars and wine shops join in the same day.
Colmar opens first, on Monday, November 23, 2026, and runs until December 29. Strasbourg opens on Friday, November 27 and closes on December 24. Kaysersberg's market runs on weekends, Friday to Sunday, from November 27. The last week of November is less crowded than December.
The Riviera. Nice averages 63°F (17°C) by day and 49°F (9.7°C) at night, compared with 52°F (11°C) by day in Paris. It is also the wettest month in Nice, though, with heavy showers on about nine days, so mix outdoor walks with museums such as the Matisse and Chagall museums.
Day by day, with prices. Each one is reshaped around you.
Five nights in one hotel in Cognac, 4-star or the 5-star Chais Monnet: a masterclass, an e-bike ride to a family distillery, a Bordeaux blending workshop, a cooking class, lunch at Rémy Martin and the Hennessy cooperage.
From €1,999 per person
Six nights in December: two in Colmar for the markets and wine villages, one at the Hôtel-Dieu in Lyon with dinner at Paul Bocuse, three in Val d'Isère with two full ski days. First-class train, 4- and 5-star hotels.
From €2,099 per person
Six nights in an accessible executive room at the Hotel Westminster 4-star, adapted transfers to every visit: Seine cruise, Eiffel Tower, bus tour, Moulin Rouge, Louvre, Versailles and Sainte-Chapelle. Rooms checked by us first.
From €1,699 per person
The wheelchair accessible French Riviera from a Nice base: tram and buses, beaches, Monaco, Èze and Grasse rated honestly, and the hotel checks we make.
Is Lyon worth visiting? Yes, for food, Vieux Lyon and the Beaujolais. Our team, based near Lyon, shares neighborhoods, bouchons, traboules and how many days.
Private tailor-made trip or escorted group tour in Europe? Real prices, what each includes, who should choose which, and the hidden costs on both sides.
Two minutes, three steps. Free and without obligation.
