Screenshot from media reports

The 2026 Chinese New Year celebrations in a small French village with a population of fewer than 11,000 were exceptionally vibrant, featuring dragon dances, lion dances, fireworks, kung fu performances, and traditional festival snacks, attracting scores of onlookers, according to a post by a Chinese netizen living in France, Jimu News reported.

Video clips captured by attendees at the scene show locals dressed in traditional red and blue Chinese costumes, beating drums and gongs while dancing. Some were performing dragon and lion dances and martial arts, with fireworks set off intermittently during the event, the report said.

A local Chinese woman, surnamed Li, explained that the village, Triel sur Seine, is home to a martial arts troupe called Dragon Bleu. The troupe, made up entirely of French members, organizes Chinese New Year festivities each year on a voluntary basis, drawing many visitors who come specifically for the occasion, Jimu News reported.

The event organizer, Fred, said that the Spring Festival celebration is organized by Dragon Bleu for 10 consecutive years. As the head of the troupe, Fred has a profound interest in Chinese culture, has practiced Chinese martial arts for 42 years, founded a martial arts school, and self-funds a series of Chinese New Year activities every year, the report said.

"Our martial arts troupe currently has 150 members, all locals. We travel to China almost every year and have visited the Shaolin Temple on Songshan Mountain in Central China's Henan Province and East China's Shandong Province," Fred said.

Li said the local government is supportive, providing police for traffic control and arranging fireworks, while the props and costumes are funded by the martial arts troupe itself. Preparations for the event typically begin in October. she added that the festivities are even livelier than Christmas.

Global Times