The first weekend in July, there's a festive atmosphere along the Canal du Midi! Les Escales du Canal is an annual event and the towns along the Canal du Midi route organise an opportunity for people to get together and enjoy food and drink in a community spirit.
There is an action-packed, varied programme of events during the Escales du Canal, with shared meals on long tables, concerts, storytelling, film showings, exhibitions, talks, workshops, tours, and farmer's markets.
The aim of this unifying event is to showcase the Canal du Midi. Each town or village is invited to take part in this festive event along the banks of the Canal du Midi. The town councils provide a venue for people to gather, and then they are free to organise the weekend of festivities however they see fit!
Communication tools are made available along the whole canal route. VNF, as the manager of the canal and the Canal du Midi brand, is in charge of making these tools available for each town or village.
From Friday 2 June to 2 July 2023, twenty towns and villages organised events on the banks of the Canal du Midi and also in the Montagne Noire region (sources of the Canal du Midi) and around the Canal de la Robine.
For the very first Escales du Canal event at the beginning of July 2022, fifteen towns and villages took part and organised festive events on the banks of the Canal du Midi.
Escales du canal à Narbonne en 2023 © Mairie de Narbonne
Escales du canal à Saint-Felix-Lauragais en 2023 © Christian Fabre
Escales du canal à Sallèles d'Aude 2023
Escales du canal à Renneville en 2023 © Shoot Photos
Escales du canal à Toulouse en 2023 aux cales de radoub © VNF
Les escales du canal à Montesquieu-Lauragais en 2023
In 2021, when the Canal du Midi brand was officially launched, three cultural events were organised in Saint-Ferréol, Villesèquelande (Aude) and Les Onglous in Marseillan, to celebrate this exceptional structure and the 25th anniversary of its recognition as a UNESCO World Heritage Site!
A site managed by Voies navigables de France in collaboration with members of the “Entente du Canal du Midi” and their tourist operators.
