Following the success of previous years, the Garonne festival is once again preparing to bring the Bordeaux quays to life on June 15 and 16, 2024.
The traditional river culture festival
Traditionally organized in honor of Saint-Elme (the patron saint of sailors), this event showcases the maritime and river culture of the estuary, highlighting the trades and sports practiced on the Garonne, not forgetting the spiritual dimension so important to sailors.
These two days of sharing and discovery promise a complete immersion in Bordeaux's maritime and fluvial universe, with the following program:
Saturday June 15: from 1pm, La Garonne en Fête will bring together the river's sportsmen and women, between the Chaban-Delmas bridge and Hangar 14, with an 8-man rowing competition during which seven clubs from the Bordeaux region will vie for victory in ten regattas. Each team will consist of 8 rowers and will compete until 4:30pm. Two additional regattas will round off the event, with the same boats and the same distance, but with more experienced competitors.
Discover the world of rowing around the H14
Bordeaux rowers will be on hand to tell you all about the history of rowing in Bordeaux, its emblematic competitions, nautical excursions, leisure rowing and sea rowing. Those wishing to try their hand at rowing will be able to do so alone, with family or friends, on 4 ergometers available to the public.
River and maritime professions on the Quai des Chartrons
At the same time, the village of stands on the Quai des Chartrons will open its doors in the morning for a day of discovery of the sea and navigation trades, with numerous representatives of this community, including the French Navy, La Mission de la Mer, the marine carpenters who perpetuate the traditional know-how of wooden shipbuilding, and various organizations linked to the preservation of maritime heritage...
Halle des Chartrons becomes a cultural crossroads
From 9:30 a.m. onwards, the public can immerse themselves in the world of maritime culture at the Halle des Chartrons: conferences including one by Alain Lefrais on the history of dinghies in Bordeaux, exhibitions by professional painters and photographers, and meetings with well-known writers such as Admiral François Guichard, who will present his novel "Première plongée, 2000 nautiques sous les mers", winner of the Prix Écume de Mer 2023 awarded by the Fédération Nationale du Mérite Maritime, all in a unique atmosphere conducive to discovery and exchange.
Sunday June 16: La fête de la Saint-Elme 2024
The fête de la Saint-Elme is traditionally celebrated to honor the patron saint of sailors and navigators, on the first weekend in June. This festival brings together the maritime world for specific ceremonies and festivities, such as sea processions and boat blessings. It's an opportunity for the maritime community to come together and pay tribute to sailors who have lost their lives.
The day kicks off with a procession at 9am from the Saint-Louis church, with sailors from the Adour and brotherhoods from French villages, followed by a mass at 9:45am and a nautical parade at 11:30am for the blessing of the boats by Monsignor Jean-Marie Le Vert. Finally, the now traditional "Traversée de Bordeaux à la nage" (Swimming across Bordeaux) will take place on the water after lunch, offering the bravest participants the chance to compete on two separate courses, promising moments of effort and fraternity such as only this challenge can offer.
