The event takes place at Clos Romain at Cabrières near Nimes and winemakers from across France

Established over 100 years ago ,Roquemaure becomes the city of romantic legends. The town is decorated as it was in the 19th century.

There will be more than 800 costumed actors, floats and horse riders. Shop fronts are decorated as in olden times as is the post office and the lovers fountain. There is the traditional market including ancient trades, a music stand and wooden-horse merry-go-rounds.

Lovers will find themselves humming the most beautiful love songs to the sound of street organs and exceptional Limonaire barrel organs in the streets of the old village.

The remains of St Valentin are reportedly buried here. Unless you are a real romantic, better to hunt our the local wines – Lirac – mainly reds in the style of Côtes du Rhône and Chateauneuf-du-pape. (also nearby are the rosé wines of Tavel, considered by many to be the best rosé wine in France).

For more info see www.ot-roquemaure.com

go by train from London St Pancras to Avignon (10 miles away)

Best rates for hotels in and around Avignon

Established over 100 years ago ,Roquemaure becomes the city of romantic legends. The town is decorated as it was in the 19th century.

There will be more than 800 costumed actors, floats and horse riders. Shop fronts are decorated as in olden times as is the post office and the lovers fountain. There is the traditional market including ancient trades, a music stand and wooden-horse merry-go-rounds.

Lovers will find themselves humming the most beautiful love songs to the sound of street organs and exceptional Limonaire barrel organs in the streets of the old village.

The remains of St Valentin are reportedly buried here. Unless you are a real romantic, better to hunt our the local wines – Lirac – mainly reds in the style of Côtes du Rhône and Chateauneuf-du-pape. (also nearby are the rosé wines of Tavel, considered by many to be the best rosé wine in France).

For more info see www.ot-roquemaure.com

go by train from London St Pancras to Avignon (10 miles away)

Best rates for hotels in and around Avignon

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1. Valentines Festival – Roquemaure Celebrate St Valentine in Roquemaure(30 Gard, languedoc-Roussillon) at the Festo...

Crossing the wild country of the Cevennes in southern France this line passes through 106 tunnels and over almost 1,300 bridges, including the impressive 41 arch Chamborigaud Viaduct.

Easily reached by TGV from Paris, Nîmes is the starting point of this leisurely journey through the remote, wild country of the Cevennes. Though only 303km long, the line burrows through 106 tunnels and crosses almost 1,300 bridges, including some of the most impressive viaducts on French railways, such as the 28-arch edifice at Chapeauroux and the 41-arch near-semicircle of Chamborigaud Viaduct.

The southern plain of vineyards, Lombardy poplars and Aleppo pines gives way to a few miles of hilly post-industrial landscape with occasional traces of mining activity gradually being reclaimed by nature. The long climb into the Cevennes and the summit at La Bastide (1,023m above sea level) is flanked by woods and the occasional agricultural terrace etched into the hillside. Running across a plateau, the train offers panoramic views across hills stretching to the horizon. Lonely stations in the middle of nowhere make one wonder at the optimism of the railway’s builders. But perhaps the finest stretch is the long section of track built on a masonry ledge above the River Allier with glorious views along the sinuous valley.

The journey takes about 5½ hours, yet fares start at  just £34 – the 300km route passes through Ales, Chamborigaud, Villefort, Chapeauroux, Langogne, Langeac, Brioude and Issoire.

For more details see www.raileurope.co.uk

See map

Another acclaimed scenically beautiful rail route is in the French Comté – see http://frenchduck.com

The evening starts at 4pm and runs till late on June 4, 5, 6, 11, 12 and 13 2009

For more info and costs see www.pontdugard.fr/

From the moment you put the foot on the Site of the Pont du Gard, you will go from surprise to surprise, for your pleasure, in cheerfulness and for an unforgettable discovery of this monument on Unesco’s World Heritage list.

The multiple facets of the Site of the Pont du Gard will be revealed to you: its history story, its beauty, its secrets and its Mediterranean festive life.
During the evening, we invite you to go through and to live 2000 years of History…

We can also recommend a good B&B nearby at Les Alouettes
Get Pont du Gard poster from Allposters.com

Styling itself the “Villages for Lovers” (le village des Amoureux) the website at www.village-saint-valentin.com/ is very French and just a tad too pink for my liking. I an told that there is an annual festival on 14 February to celebrate their patron saint, but details were a little thin.

It appears that if there ever was a Saint Valentine, he was a very obscure saint, and any connection between him and a celebration of love is probably a very recent phenomenon, probably manufactured by florists, greeting card manufacturers and makers of pink ribbons!

The other option is to head down to Beaujolais and the village of St Amour (amour = love). The village is home to one of the Beaujolais wine crus, and is in fact the most northerly, which is probably better known for its voluptuousness rather than finesse! Again there it is unlikely that there ever was a saint called Amour, but is thought to be a derivation of Saint Amateur , a roman soldier who converted to Christianity and founded a local monastery. No obvious Valentine-inspired events here, which might make it a more attractive and less commercialised venue to take your paramour. Certainly the scenery is charming, even if the vines will look a little stark this time of year.

For more info on Beaujolais wines see www.beaujolais-wines.com

Or there is the Fete du Baiser (Festival of the Kiss) at Roquemaure near Avignon (30 Gard, Languedoc-Roussillon) although the name has now been changed to the “Lovers Festival” (Fete des Amoureux”) which takes place on the weekend of 14-15 February 2009.

The relics of (a) Saint Valentine lay in Roquemaure since 1868. Every year, the weekend nearest February 14th, the town recreates the arrival of Saint Valentine’s relics and celebrates the love and romanticism this mythical Saint now symbolises.
Roquemaure turns into the town of love legends, returning to its 19th century aspect with more than 800 traditionally costumed people, horses and carriages, store fronts decorated in 19th century fashion, an old post office selling souvenir postcards (valentine cards), a fountain of Lovers, a market with over 60 ancient trades, a bandstand and wooden merry-go-rounds. For the occasion, the streets are given the names of the most famous lovers in French literature. To the sound of oboes, bagpipes, drums, and shepherd’s pipes, folkloric dance groups animate the town, along with jugglers and acrobats. Lovers can hum the prettiest love songs played by the barrel organs in the streets of the ancient town. The relics are symbolically paraded on Sunday morning so that Saint Valentine blesses Roquemaure again. This completely free romantic festival was created 17 years ago.

As an added bonus the winemakers of the local Appellation of Lirac AOC have chosen this weekend to celebrate their Festival of Vine Pruning! “On the Sunday morning of Saint Valentine’s feast, seven carts loaded with vine shoots from the seven main vine varieties of the Lirac appellation accompany the procession of Saint Valentine’s relics in the streets of the ancient part of the village.”
For more info see www.saintvalentin.org/

Styling itself the “Villages for Lovers” (le village des Amoureux) the website at www.village-saint-valentin.com/ is very French and just a tad too pink for my liking. I an told that there is an annual festival on 14 February to celebrate their patron saint, but details were a little thin.

It appears that if there ever was a Saint Valentine, he was a very obscure saint, and any connection between him and a celebration of love is probably a very recent phenomenon, probably manufactured by florists, greeting card manufacturers and makers of pink ribbons!

The other option is to head down to Beaujolais and the village of St Amour (amour = love). The village is home to one of the Beaujolais wine crus, and is in fact the most northerly, which is probably better known for its voluptuousness rather than finesse! Again there it is unlikely that there ever was a saint called Amour, but is thought to be a derivation of Saint Amateur , a roman soldier who converted to Christianity and founded a local monastery. No obvious Valentine-inspired events here, which might make it a more attractive and less commercialised venue to take your paramour. Certainly the scenery is charming, even if the vines will look a little stark this time of year.

For more info on Beaujolais wines see www.beaujolais-wines.com

Or there is the Fete du Baiser (Festival of the Kiss) at Roquemaure near Avignon (30 Gard, Languedoc-Roussillon) although the name has now been changed to the “Lovers Festival” (Fete des Amoureux”) which takes place on the weekend of 14-15 February 2009.

The relics of (a) Saint Valentine lay in Roquemaure since 1868. Every year, the weekend nearest February 14th, the town recreates the arrival of Saint Valentine’s relics and celebrates the love and romanticism this mythical Saint now symbolises.
Roquemaure turns into the town of love legends, returning to its 19th century aspect with more than 800 traditionally costumed people, horses and carriages, store fronts decorated in 19th century fashion, an old post office selling souvenir postcards (valentine cards), a fountain of Lovers, a market with over 60 ancient trades, a bandstand and wooden merry-go-rounds. For the occasion, the streets are given the names of the most famous lovers in French literature. To the sound of oboes, bagpipes, drums, and shepherd’s pipes, folkloric dance groups animate the town, along with jugglers and acrobats. Lovers can hum the prettiest love songs played by the barrel organs in the streets of the ancient town. The relics are symbolically paraded on Sunday morning so that Saint Valentine blesses Roquemaure again. This completely free romantic festival was created 17 years ago.

As an added bonus the winemakers of the local Appellation of Lirac AOC have chosen this weekend to celebrate their Festival of Vine Pruning! “On the Sunday morning of Saint Valentine’s feast, seven carts loaded with vine shoots from the seven main vine varieties of the Lirac appellation accompany the procession of Saint Valentine’s relics in the streets of the ancient part of the village.”
For more info see www.saintvalentin.org/

In addition to an impressive series of concerts, there are also accompanying exhibitions (e.g. the History of the Guitar) and other events all contributing to an exciting and vibrant atmosphere across the city.

This festival organised by the Théâtre de Nîmes showcases leading names from Spain as well as providing a platform for numerous new talents in the world of flamenco song, music and dance, perpetuating the tradition of this Andalusian art form in Southern France. While the majority of flamenco events in France tend to focus exclusively on budding Iberian talent, the Festival Flamenco de Nîmes retains strong links with the local flamenco scene, with its increasing numbers of talented artists.

For more info see www.ot-nimes.fr/