Time-lapse video of the 2023 Bastille Days Eiffel Tower replica going up
Watch a time-lapse video of the 2023 Bastille Days Eiffel Tower replica being built for the festival this weekend in Milwaukee’s Cathedral Square Park.
Mike De Sisti, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
The iconic 43-foot-tall replica of the Eiffel Tower has been erected in Milwaukee’s Cathedral Square Park, signaling that the Bastille Days street festival is about to begin.
Bastille Days, Milwaukee’s annual four-day French-themed party, returns for its 41st year on Thursday. The free festival features live music and performances, a marketplace with local vendors, plenty of French food and wine to purchase, and the popular nighttime 5K race.
From French Cancan dancers to baguette sandwiches and festival-related road closures, here’s what you need to know about Bastille Days 2024.
When and where are the French national holidays?
Bastille Days takes place at Cathedral Square Park in downtown Milwaukee, 520 E. Wells St., from Thursday, July 11 through Sunday, July 14. The festival runs from 11 a.m. to 11:30 p.m. Thursday through Saturday and from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. Sunday.
Storm the Bastille 5K: When is it and how do you register?
Bastille Days kicks off each year with the Storm the Bastille 5K, a 3.1-mile run that commemorates the storming of the Bastille, the 18th-century French prison that sparked the French Revolution. The race route runs through downtown Milwaukee and the Third Ward.
This year, the race starts at 9 p.m. on Thursday, July 11. Participants must register online; registration costs $35 per person. Early packet pickup will be at the Milwaukee Athletic Club from 4 to 7 p.m. on Tuesday, July 9. Packet pickup on race day will be from 7 to 8:30 p.m. under the white tent at the corner of Wells and Jefferson Streets.
If you’re not interested in running, you can sign up to walk the race. Walkers can complete 1.5 miles, finishing halfway at the Milwaukee Athletic Club water station. More than 3,000 runners and walkers of all paces are currently registered for the race. Registration includes a Storm the Bastille t-shirt, a timed bib number, and beer or bottled water after the race. More information on the race website: runsignup.com/Race/WI/Milwaukee/StormtheBastille5k.
What is celebrated during the Bastille Days?
Bastille Days, Milwaukee’s annual French street festival, is one of the largest French celebrations in the country, attracting more than 250,000 visitors each year.
It marks the French holiday of Bastille Day, which takes place every year on July 14. Bastille Day commemorates the storming of the Bastille on July 14, 1789, a violent uprising that helped usher in the French Revolution, explains History.com . The Bastille was a military fortress and prison that housed gunpowder and other valuable supplies for the revolutionaries. To the revolutionaries, it also represented the tyranny of the French monarchy.
This is the 41st year Milwaukee has celebrated Bastille Days. The festival was first held on Cathedral Square in 1982. It celebrates the Juneautown neighborhood, its founder, French-Canadian fur trader Solomon Juneau, and French culture.
Food, activities and entertainment during the Bastille Days
Bastille Days features more than 30 local restaurants and vendors selling French-inspired goods, food, wine and other alcoholic beverages. Returning restaurants include Beignets Français, Lake Park Bistro, Lagniappe Brasserie, Crème & Crepe Café and Crawdaddy’s on Greenfield.
There are five stages of live music and entertainment spread throughout the festival, with a lineup of more than 60 acts. Popular performers include Madame Gigi’s Outrageous French Can-Can Dancers, Tamarind Tribal Belly Dancers, Professor Pinkerton’s Irreverent Orchestra, the third annual “This Is It! Drag Show” and the Milwaukee Ballet. Roving street performers will also be in attendance.
Festival attendees can meet fortune tellers and henna artists, explore the Cathedral of St. John the Evangelist and check out the French Bulldog kissing booth. Saturday from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. is Bastille Days’ “Kids Day,” featuring a beignet breakfast, the Kohl’s Art Studio, French lessons with Milwaukee French Immersion School and a kid-focused entertainment program.
Click here for the full music and entertainment programme.
Road closures during the Bastille Days
East Kilbourn Avenue from North Jackson Street to North Milwaukee Street will be closed from 10 a.m. Monday, July 8 through 8 p.m. Monday, July 15 for the Bastille Days festival.
The following roads will be closed from 10am on Tuesday 9th July until 6am on Monday 15th July for the French National Day:
- East Kilbourn Avenue from North Jackson Street to North Van Buren Street
- North Jefferson Street from East Wells Street to East Kilbourn Avenue
- North Milwaukee Street from East Kilbourn Avenue to East State Street
- East Wells Street from North Milwaukee Street to North Van Buren Street
- North Jackson Street from East Wells Street to East State Street
The following roads will be closed on Thursday, July 11 from 8:00 PM until at least 10:30 PM due to the Storm the Bastille 5K:
- North Broadway from East Menomonee Street to East Juneau Avenue
- East Menomonee Street from North Broadway to North Milwaukee Street
- North Milwaukee Street from East Menomonee Street to East Wells Street
- East Mason Street from North Milwaukee Street to North Jefferson Street
- North Jefferson Street from East Wisconsin Avenue to East Wells Street
- East Wisconsin Avenue from North Jefferson Avenue to North Prospect Avenue
- North Prospect Avenue from East Wisconsin Avenue to East State Street
- East State Street from North Prospect Avenue to North Jackson Street
- North Jackson Street from East State Street to East Juneau Avenue
- East Juneau Avenue from North Jackson Street to North Broadway
- North Astor Street from East Kilbourn Avenue to East State Street
Parking Bastille Days
Visitors can purchase a parking spot at the BMO Tower, 771 N. Broadway, one block from the festival. There are only 700 spaces in the garage, so arriving early is encouraged.
How to get to Bastille Days via The Hop
The Hop tram’s M-Line can take festival-goers directly to Cathedral Square Park; simply alight at the Cathedral Square stop. The Hop will operate an extended service until 1am on Friday and Saturday to accommodate festival-goers, with an additional tram running from 10am to 10pm on Saturday.
The Hop will briefly suspend service on Thursday from 9:00 PM to 10:30 PM due to the 5K run. Service will resume at 10:30 PM and will last until midnight.
For more information about Hop routes and schedules, visit: thehopmke.com/interactive-map.
More information about Bastille Days 2024
For more information about the Bastille Days, visit: easttown.com/bastille-days.
For more information about the Storm the Bastille 5K and to register for the race, visit: runsignup.com/Race/WI/Milwaukee/StormtheBastille5k.
