LET US FROLICK IN THE LAVENDER
One place that Michael has ALWAYS bugged me about going to is the South of France—Nice, Cannes, St. Tropez, etc. I have always loved France, but have never been down to the southern coast. Last year I won the battle with our trip to Sardinia, so this year was his turn. Boy was he right…
We arrived through the Cote d’Azur (Nice) airport via Amsterdam and immediately saw the crystal Mediterranean, snowy Alps and gorgeous french architecture. It was an amazing view to kickstart our vacation. We spent five glorious nights at the Five Seas Hotel in Cannes, which was A++++. The hotel is centrally located right in Old Town, across from the old port and very close to shops/dining. The hotel also has its own private beach club, which they’ll shuttle you to in an adorable little golf cart.
The first full day we were there, we had a local guide/driver take us ALL OVER the coast, seeing pretty much anything you’d care to see along the Riviera—Nice, Antibes, Villefranche Sur Mer, Monaco, etc.). It was a long day, but well worth getting to see all of these amazing places.
On our second day, we chartered a private sailboat and headed out for a day on the sea. We anchored between two beautiful and remote islands off the coast of Cannes: Ile Saint Honorat and Ile Saint Marguerite. St. Honorat only has a handful of inhabitants, which are all monks and all stellar wine makers. Apparently the Monastery survives off of their wine and honey production, so boats flock there to bring back some of their treasures. They don’t export (like at all, even to Cannes) so it’s worth the trip to buy something you can literally only get there—plus, the wine is realllyyyyy good.
On our third day, we went back out with our driver and headed north to the Provence region. When I say it’s like another world from the coast, you can’t even imagine how different it really is. The adorable stone buildings with the french blue shutters, the gorgeous landscape amongst the French Alps, the friendly people selling handmade pottery and local items, the lavender fields that smell as amazing as they look. It’s all just a dream. We stopped by three amazing villages (St. Paul de Vence, Tourette Sur Loup, and Gourdon) before visiting the Fragonard perfumerie in Grasse. it was an unbelievable day and definitely worth seeing if you’re staying down on the coast.
On our fourth and final day, we just decided to kick back at the hotel beach club and watch the waves. Cannes actually has some really nice, sandy beaches, which was super surprising to me. It was the perfect way to end our amazing trip.
All in all, the French Riviera by far exceeded my expectations. I thought it would largely be another European resort region, overrun with tourists and knick knack shops. The reality could not be farther from the truth. Even as we were driving through Provence, we were looking up holiday villa rentals so we could come back with our whole family and share in the wonder. For a couples getaway, honeymoon or family vacation, this area hits the nail on the head.