{"id":672,"date":"2025-04-21T10:02:04","date_gmt":"2025-04-20T22:02:04","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.publicholidaycalendar.com\/?p=672"},"modified":"2025-04-21T10:02:04","modified_gmt":"2025-04-20T22:02:04","slug":"french-vacation-time-how-many-days-off-do-french-workers-really-get","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/www.publicholidaycalendar.com\/en\/french-vacation-time-how-many-days-off-do-french-workers-really-get\/","title":{"rendered":"French Vacation Time: How Many Days Off Do French Workers Really Get?"},"content":{"rendered":"

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Hey there, holiday lovers! It’s your Holiday Little Assistant back with another deep dive – today we’re cracking open the croissant-filled question: How much vacation time do French workers actually get?<\/b> Trust me, their work-life balance will make you want to say “ooh la la!” \ud83c\uddeb\ud83c\uddf7 <\/p>\n

The Jaw-Dropping Basics <\/h2>\n

Hold onto your berets, folks: French employees get a minimum of 5 weeks (25 days!)<\/b> of paid vacation per year by law. Yeah, you read that right \u2013 it\u2019s not a typo. That\u2019s on top of 11 public holidays<\/b> (like Bastille Day and Christmas), bringing their total to over 35+ potential days off annually. And if that sounds insane compared to your 10 PTO days? Welcome to France\u2019s legendary “droit \u00e0 la d\u00e9connexion” (right to disconnect) culture. <\/p>\n

Questions Related to French Holiday Time <\/h2>\n

1. “Do French people really take ALL their vacation days?” <\/h3>\n

Absolutely \u2013 it\u2019s practically a national sport! 89% of French workers use their full allowance (vs. just 50% in the U.S.). Bosses encourage it, and some companies even fine employees<\/i> who don\u2019t take enough leave. Crazy, right? <\/p>\n

2. “What about those insane \u2018RTT\u2019 days I\u2019ve heard about?” <\/h3>\n

Ohhh, you mean the famous R\u00e9duction du Temps de Travail<\/b> (RTT). If you work more than 35 hours\/week (common for salaried folks), companies must give you extra comp days \u2013 up to 22 additional days\/year<\/b> in some sectors. C\u2019est incroyable! <\/p>\n

3. “But don\u2019t Americans get more public holidays?” <\/h3>\n

Actually, France\u2019s 11 public holidays look<\/i> modest next to the U.S.\u2019s 10-12\u2026 until you realize most French workers get 100% paid leave<\/b> on these days, whereas American retail\/service staff often work holidays unpaid. Ouch. <\/p>\n

4. “What\u2019s the catch?” <\/h3>\n

Well, salaries can be lower than in the U.S.\/UK (median \u20ac2,340\/month), and taxes are high. But hey \u2013 would you trade $$$ for 8 weeks of summer break? The French sure would. <\/p>\n

So in summary: between mandated vacations, RTT days, and public holidays, French workers can clock over 7 weeks off\/year<\/b> \u2013 plus their famous 35-hour workweeks. No wonder they\u2019re always on strike for more! \ud83c\uddeb\ud83c\uddf7\u270a <\/p>\n

FAQpro tip: Planning a Paris trip? Avoid August when the entire country shuts down for les grandes vacances<\/i> \u2013 even pharmacies close! <\/p>\n

Thanks for reading, mes amis! Now excuse me while I draft my application for French citizenship\u2026 <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Hey there, holiday lovers! It’s your Holiday Little Assistant back with another deep dive – today we’re cracking open the croissant-filled question: How much vacation time do French workers actually get? Trust me, their work-life balance will make you want to say “ooh la la!” \ud83c\uddeb\ud83c\uddf7 The Jaw-Dropping Basics Hold onto your berets, folks: French…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":671,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_kadence_starter_templates_imported_post":false,"_kad_post_transparent":"","_kad_post_title":"","_kad_post_layout":"","_kad_post_sidebar_id":"","_kad_post_content_style":"","_kad_post_vertical_padding":"","_kad_post_feature":"","_kad_post_feature_position":"","_kad_post_header":false,"_kad_post_footer":false,"slim_seo":{"title":"French Vacation Time: How Many Days Off Do French Workers Really Get? - Public Holiday Calendar","description":"Hey there, holiday lovers! It's your Holiday Little Assistant back with another deep dive - today we're cracking open the croissant-filled question: How much va"},"footnotes":""},"categories":[278],"tags":[392,393,390,389,391],"class_list":["post-672","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-blog","tag-employee-benefits-france","tag-france-paid-time-off","tag-france-vacation-days","tag-french-public-holidays","tag-french-work-leave"],"amp_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.publicholidaycalendar.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/672","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.publicholidaycalendar.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.publicholidaycalendar.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.publicholidaycalendar.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.publicholidaycalendar.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=672"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"http:\/\/www.publicholidaycalendar.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/672\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":673,"href":"http:\/\/www.publicholidaycalendar.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/672\/revisions\/673"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.publicholidaycalendar.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/671"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.publicholidaycalendar.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=672"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.publicholidaycalendar.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=672"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.publicholidaycalendar.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=672"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}