Les Grandes Vacances is the French manifesto against the cult of urgency. It is a declaration that for eight weeks, productivity can wait. Whether you are watching Louis de Funès on a rainy Tuesday or stuck in a traffic jam near Lyon, Les Grandes Vacances is not a period of time. It is a state of mind.
Over time, Les Grandes Vacances have evolved to reflect changing social and economic trends. In the 1960s and 1970s, for example, Les Grandes Vacances became more democratized, with more French people able to afford vacations. This was largely due to the introduction of paid vacation time and the rise of package tourism. Les Grandes Vacances
It was the freedom of having no plans.
The destinations are largely predictable and deeply coded: Les Grandes Vacances is the French manifesto against