ZARA
CANDY FESTIVAL

2022

Melon
blackcurrant
Lemon

Pineapple
Apricot

Cedarwood
Amber
Musk

As with all the other Zara offerings, the name is curious, as this is a fully fruity fragrance and it doesn’t invoke thoughts of candy too much to me. Actually, that was my big surprise here; fruity fragrances can go extremely sweet, cloying, candy-like, but I think Zara did a good job keeping this one smelling pretty natural and fresh (although it does get sweet as well).

Listed fruits are melon, blackcurrant, lemon, pineapple and apricot. I’d describe the scent initially as a mandarin-esque citrus , but there’s a sweeter vibe as well. I do not get pineapple or melon per se, but apricot I can see, maybe even mango. I actually really like it a lot and scent-wise Candy Festival is one of my favorite fruity scents.

Voted as close comparison (on Fragrantica) is Louis Vuitton’s Afternoon Swim, which I agree with, as that is in fact mandarin-forward. Candy Festival definitely is a bit more overall fruity, rather than purely citrus. Like a mix of Afternoon Swim and Pacific Chill.

It leans ever so slightly feminine, with a subtle muskiness, but not as much as many fruity-musky ones that are being released and I’d say this will be considered very unisex by most.

Performance wise it’s lacking for sure, but so are most of the much more expensive options in this style. It won’t get you through a day, no matter how much you spray, but as a fragrance to just spray on at home, going to bed, doing a quick run to the store etc., this will do a great job in the Summer. For the €12,95/100ml price, it’s hard to not (for the first time for me) find some excitement in this Zara release, which unfortunately will be hard to find after a while, as most Zara releases get discontinued as quick as they fade away.