The French Riviera and Provence, France
Getting to go to France in July was a total dream. The trip came together super last minute which made us worry because we were going to the French Riviera in the busiest month of the year. This trip was proof that with enough research you can plan a last minute trip to France in July when its the busiest and most expensive time of year and still find great places to stay that aren’t going to cost you an arm and a leg.
We flew into Nice, started our trip in Antibes and flew out of Toulouse. We rented a car and just drove everywhere. I would highly recommend doing this! Our days were filled with hanging out on the beach, drinking rosè and enjoying the beautiful Cote de Azure.
ANTIBES
We fell absolutely in love with Antibes (pronounced On-teeb). It was such a quiant place filled with so much charm. We spent our days relaxing on the public beaches and drinking lots of rosè.
STAY
airbnb - This was a great launching pad for all we wanted to do. Our host Thierry was so wonderful!
EAT
Honestly, our favorite meal was just going to a local butcher and grabbing cheese, meat and a bottle of wine and sitting on a dock watching sunset.
Restaurant L'Arazur - This was such an adorable spot for dinner on a quiet street. The food was delicious and the atmosphere was perfect.
Gelateria Del Porto - Best gelato ever! Just go!
DO
Plage Keller (they have free parking) - Walk along the rocks. Find a spot to plop down away from all the crowds!
Hotel Cap Du Eden Roc - Yall, this is such a pretentious place but it’s so beautiful and worth seeing. We thought we would just go and grab a coffee, we thought surely that couldn't be too expensive. Well, $28.00 got us two americano's. I kept my cloth napkin (pictured below), since I figured we payed for that too. haha So just know that going but parking is free and you can walk around the lovely grounds for free.
Le Marche Provencal - Visit this local market that happens everyday.
SAINT TROPEZ
We just took a little day drip out from Antibes to Saint Tropez. It was a really lovely village. The vibe of the beaches are a bit more bumpin than Antibes but that could of just been where we were. We preferred the beaches in Antibes.
EAT
Indie Beach - This was our first stop for lunch. We recommend you have a reservation as it was fully packed. We had a delicious meal right on the water. It felt very chill and down to earth. You can also reserve lounge chairs here for the day.
LE BAR SUR LOUP
Just 40 minutes from Antibes is the quaintest little village where you feel miles away from the French Riviera. We enjoyed staying outside of this little village so much and wish we could of stayed longer.
STAY
L'Escale du Ciel - Oh my gosh. This is one of our favorite bnb's. We arrived and the two pups greeted us. We then had a lovely snack on the terrace and sat by the pool for the rest of the afternoon. Since we booked this trip last minute there was only one night available but I got some serious home inspo from this gem of a place!
EAT
Hotel Paticulier des Jasmins - We had dinner at this lovely spot just a few minutes drive from the bnb and were blown away. The food and drinks were incredible and the setting was magical. It is also a lovely hotel as well!
ROAD TRIP DAY!
GrasssE
From Le Bar Sur Loup we headed west towards Provence but had a full day ahead of us of sightseeing.
This lovely town is considered the worlds capital of Perfume so of course we had to make a quick stop there. We stayed for a few hours to pick up some goodies to take back home with us and then continued on to our next location.
Verdon Gorge
Next up on the list was checking out the Gorge. It was July 4th and things were pretty crazy but we grabbed some meats, cheeses and wine of course and ate while we waited for a boat to become available. Getting to cruise along the gorge was so much fun and it was so beautiful! I had no idea something like this existed in France!
Valensole (Lavendar Fields)
There are just no words to fully explain how beautiful these fields were. They truly took our breath away. We really lucked out and happened to be there just at the peak time in July. Don’t miss seeing this!
Restaurant Francis Mallemann at Chateau la Coste
Our last stop of the day was Francis Mallemanns restaurant on our way to our hotel. We didn’t even know he had a restaurant in France but somehow saw it in a magazine and knew we had to do anything we could to eat there. It was Bastille Day and we didn’t have a reservations so our chances of getting in were slim. Somehow, they had a table and we loved every single minute of it!
LE BAUX de PROVENCE
This little village in Provence was a perfect spot for us to stop for a few nights on our way to Toulouse.
STAY
Baumanière - We stayed for two nights at this lovely hotel. It was a bit of a splurge for us but the grounds were amazing. The actual room was nothing crazy but it was a stunning property!
EAT
We ate in the little town both days as it was walking distance from the hotel. Just go into the village and pick anywhere.
DO
We honestly hung out at the hotel pool both days and just relaxed. The world cup game happened while we were there so we hopped into a local bar and watched France win with all the locals. This was a memory we will never forget!
MONTREAL
From Provence we drove 2 hours and 45 minutes to our final destination. The quiet village of Montreal (pronounced Mon-ree-all).
STAY
Camellas Lloret - One of our all time favorite Bnb’s. Everything about this place was so spot on. Annie and Colin were such wonderful hosts and were incredibly helpful with anything we wanted to do. It felt like we were just staying at a friends home…but those ones you are jealous of because they get to live in France and have an insanely beautiful home!
Chateau de Gudanes
Okay so if you have instagram than you have probably seen this beautiful Chateau that a family from Australia bought and are restoring. It has been a dream of ours to go see this place and it was only an hours drive from Camellas Lloret so we just had too! As of right now you are only allowed to stay there for their workshops but it was worth it just to drive up and see it!
Saint Remy de Provence
This was another lovely village that we visited for a few hours and grabbed lunch and walked around. We didn’t stay for long so we cant say we know a lot about it but it was definitely worth seeing!
L’Isle Sur la Sorge
We loved this adorable little town. It is known for its antiques and waterwheels. We ate lunch at the cutest little spot right on the water called Olive et Raisin. We then just walked around the lovely streets and went into some fun antique stores.
Leucate Beach
For our last day we went to this beach which was about an hours drive from Camellas Lloret. It was such a great beach spot with hardly anyone there. It is definitely a more local beach which we loved and the restaurant was amazing!
