Quick answer
The truffle markets of Uzès and the Christmas season in Nîmes are the two things worth building a visit around this winter.
Best for a first visit: December in Nîmes, when the Christmas market fills the square below the Maison Carrée and the Roman monuments are lit after dark.
Best for a quieter, local rhythm: January and February in Uzès, when the truffle stalls appear at the Wednesday and Saturday markets.
Uzès and Nîmes both quiet down after the vendanges, but neither goes to sleep. Uzès turns to truffles, with black diamonds appearing at the weekly markets from December and a dedicated Truffle Weekend each January. Nîmes, half an hour away, lights its Roman monuments for Christmas and keeps its museums running through the cold months, including an exhibition on Roman art from the Louvre at the Musée de la Romanité. By April the region turns again, with craft workshops opening their doors for the Journées Européennes des Métiers d'Art and the garrigue filling with walkers.
| When | What | Where |
|---|---|---|
| October – November 2026 | Trail running from vineyards to the Gardon, including the Veni Vici trail on 7 November | Nîmes to Pont du Gard to Uzès |
| 2 – 24 December 2026 | Christmas market and illuminated Roman monuments | Place de la Maison Carrée, Nîmes |
| Mid-December 2026 – mid-March 2027 | Truffle season at the weekly markets | Uzès, Wednesdays and Saturdays |
| Traditionally the third weekend of January | Truffle Weekend: tastings, a dedicated market and a gala dinner | Place aux Herbes, Uzès |
| Until 10 January 2027 | “Roman Art from the Louvre” exhibition | Musée de la Romanité, Nîmes |
| 30 March – 4 April 2027 | Journées Européennes des Métiers d'Art: open craft workshops | Uzès town hall and local workshops |
What we know and what is still provisional
Event organisers in France often confirm exact dates only a few months ahead, and some of what follows is more tradition than fixed calendar. Where we give an exact date, such as the Nîmes Christmas market or the craft days in April, it comes from the organisers themselves. Where an event is traditionally held on a certain weekend, such as the Uzès Truffle Weekend, we say so rather than inventing a date that has not yet been confirmed.
We update this page as new dates are published. If you are planning a visit around a specific event, it is always worth checking with us or with the organiser directly before you book.
Late autumn · October–November 2026
The last light before the truffles
October in the Gard is the region at its most forgiving: warm enough to eat outside, quiet enough to have the Pont du Gard almost to yourself. Early November brings the Veni Vici trail, a running race that follows a genuinely beautiful route from Nîmes past the Pont du Gard to Uzès, and gives a good excuse to see all three in one day even if you are only there to watch. By the end of the month the first cold mornings arrive, and the truffle hunters start talking about the season ahead.
If you are cycling or walking this month, start early. The light is best before ten, and the heat of summer is finally, properly gone.
Christmas · December 2026
A Roman city, lit up
Nîmes takes its Christmas seriously. From the 2nd to the 24th of December, wooden chalets fill the Place de la Maison Carrée with a proper market, and the Roman monuments, the arena, the Maison Carrée itself, the old town, are lit after dark in a way that makes the thirty-minute drive from Uzès worth doing more than once. A small Christmas train runs through the old streets, and Uzès has its own, smaller market on the Place aux Herbes for those who prefer to stay closer to home.
Go to Nîmes after dark rather than in the afternoon. The lighting is designed for it, and the crowds thin out once the shops close.
Deep winter · January–February 2027
The truffle weeks
This is when Uzès becomes, briefly, one of the truffle capitals of the south. Black truffles appear at the Wednesday and Saturday markets from mid-December through to mid-March, and the town gives them a proper weekend of their own, traditionally the third weekend of January, with tastings, a market dedicated entirely to truffles on the Place aux Herbes, and a gala dinner for those who want to make an evening of it. In Nîmes, the Musée de la Romanité is running its exhibition on Roman art from the Louvre until the 10th of January, a good option for the days when the mistral makes staying indoors the better plan.
Ask at the market which stallholder is selling truffles that particular week. Not everyone has them every week, and the good ones sell out by midday.
Early spring · March–April 2027
The garrigue wakes up
By late March the almond blossom is out and the garrigue starts to smell of rosemary again. Uzès holds its spring plants fair on the Place aux Herbes, a good place to find something for the terrace before the summer, and from the 30th of March to the 4th of April the Journées Européennes des Métiers d'Art bring craft workshops across the region, including several in Uzès itself, open to visitors who want to watch a chair being caned or a piece of pottery thrown rather than just buy the finished thing. April also brings the region's guided walking season into full swing, with dozens of organised rambles across the Pays d'Uzès.
April is when we would choose to come ourselves: warm enough for a terrace lunch, quiet enough to get a table without booking, and green in a way the summer never is.
Frequently asked questions
The main things worth planning around are the Nîmes Christmas market and illuminated monuments in December, truffle season at the Uzès markets from mid-December to mid-March, and the Uzès Truffle Weekend, traditionally the third weekend of January. The Musée de la Romanité in Nîmes also runs an exhibition on Roman art from the Louvre until 10 January 2027.
Yes. It is about thirty minutes by car and runs from 2 to 24 December on the Place de la Maison Carrée, with the Roman monuments lit after dark. We would suggest going in the evening rather than the afternoon.
Truffle season runs from mid-December to mid-March, with black truffles appearing at the Wednesday and Saturday markets. The dedicated Truffle Weekend is traditionally held on the third weekend of January, with tastings and a market on the Place aux Herbes. See our Uzès Markets guide for current market days.
Late March brings a spring plants fair to Uzès, and from 30 March to 4 April the Journées Européennes des Métiers d'Art open craft workshops across the region, several of them in Uzès itself. April also has dozens of organised guided walks across the Pays d'Uzès.
For Nîmes, yes, a car is the easiest way, about thirty minutes from La Valette Boutique. The Uzès events, including the truffle markets and the craft days, are all within walking or short driving distance of the property.
Where we give an exact date, such as the Nîmes Christmas market or the April craft days, it comes from the organisers. Where an event is traditionally held on a certain weekend but next year's exact date has not yet been published, such as the Uzès Truffle Weekend, we say so rather than guessing. We update this page as new dates are confirmed.
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