All about Grasse

Charming Grasse

The city has 50,000 inhabitants and gives way to a rather large and very interesting old town – vieille ville, as the French say – with cozy narrow alleys and dark and narrow passages. A magnificent place to explore medieval architecture and your own imagination and listen to the charming sound of the many fountains that adorn Grasse’s cobbled squares.

There are also many small cozy squares with cafés and shops that are frequented by both tourists and locals, mainly descendants of immigrants from the French colonies. Place du Cours Honoré-Cresp is a lovely, more open breathing space in the old town and a fitting place to end an inspiring stroll.

Grasse a great vacation spot

As a summer vacation spot, Grasse is a great choice as both the town itself and its immediate surroundings of vast and exotic flower fields hold much unexpected beauty. And it doesn’t feel like a regular tourist area, as it’s not dominated by souvenir shops. Instead, it’s something completely different.

The perfume capital of the world

Grasse is primarily known for its large production of plant extracts for the world’s fashion houses, who buy the extracts and mix and add them to simple alcohol to create finished perfumes.

The scent of lavender, roses and jasmine can be felt in the air in many places – in and near the region’s gigantic flower fields. Many of these are accessible to the public, as are several of the perfume factories, of which the best known, but far from the oldest, is probably Parfumerie Fragonard, but names like Molinard, Galimard and Domaine de Manon also ring bells with professionals and customers.

Perfume has been known and used for centuries in Grasse, but it wasn’t until 2018 that the town received official recognition of sorts when its unique perfume-making technique was added to the UNESCO World Heritage List. If you’re into perfume, Grasse is simply a must-visit town.

“City must Xee attractions

Besides being world-famous for its perfume industry, Grasse also has other very interesting attractions such as intriguing museums and especially the 13th-century Cathédrale Notre-Dame-du-Puy. In addition to its ecclesiastical beauty, the cathedral contains an unexpected secret: three large oil paintings by Rubens depicting three of the 14 stations of the cross and one of the rare religious works by Jean-Honoré Fragonard. Read more about the cathedral here.

You should also follow the winding streets of the city to one of several panoramic views in the valley down to the sea, which boasts olive groves and flower fields stretching all the way to the bays of Cannes and Théoule. One of these viewpoints is located just behind the impressive cathedral.

If you like sports and golf, several of the region’s golf courses are located in the area, and there’s horseback riding and tennis in the surrounding green areas.

Flower festivals in Grasse

There are two important times of the year for both tourists and residents of Grasse. These are the two celebrations of the flowers, whose scent and aroma contribute to the perfume industry that is the economic heart of Grasse.

Roses and jasmine are some of the main raw materials for Grasse’s famous perfume industry, and a festival is held in May and August respectively to celebrate these fragrant flowers. Among other things, jasmine and May roses, which are used in Chanel No 5, are grown in protected fields around Grasse. Chanel does not use flowers grown elsewhere.

Rose festival in May

May is the month of the rose, and where better to celebrate this than in the perfume capital of the world, Grasse on the French Riviera. Every year, over a weekend in early to mid-May, the city honors the rose in all its forms at a three-day rose festival, Expo Rose.

Around 50,000 roses are imported from all over France and Italy for the three-day Expo Rose, where this venerable perfume capital is decorated with thousands of garlands.

Around 8,000 bouquets, 13,000 rose bushes and over 25,000 cut roses decorate fountains, statues, storefronts and public squares throughout Grasse. There are dance and music performances, tastings of everything rose-flavored, a market selling rose-themed gifts and food, and of course rose plants of every color and variety.

The scent in the air is amazing, not only from the tens of thousands of roses but also from the rose perfume that is sprayed via atomizers into the streets of the old town, adding to the scent explosion.

Grasse Jasmine festival in August

Every August, the annual Fête de Jasmine takes place under the warmth of the high summer sun. The festival was first held in 1946 and consisted of dancing, concerts, exhibitions and fireworks.

Today there are over a dozen flower floats from which thousands of flowers are thrown, spurring a ‘flower fight’ on the streets of Grasse. Local firefighters “douse” festival-goers in jasmine water before the party ends with a picnic, fireworks and the election of ‘Miss Jasmine’.

It’s an incredibly impressive and amazing experience, and it’s no less charming with Grasse’s atmospheric old town as a backdrop.

By Peter Sejersen – 2022