A recent article in the New York Times’ travel section on Sunday covered the area where the Fitzgerald spent time early in the 1900s. The playground of the rich and famous, the south of France was the perfect place for Scott and Zelda to hang around those folks. Many of the literary lions hung out there at one time or another.
When I was fifteen, I lived with a family in the northeast city of Lyons, and we traveled later as a student group with Putney Student Travel, now part of National Geographic Travel, to Juan les Pins, and Antibes. I remember vividly the beautiful aquamarine color of the Mediterranean Sea with its splendid salt water that for the first time in my life I could float in!
We visited the Picasso Museum just north of there, and saw a fine collection of paintings. It was off the beaten track so make sure you get good directions if you plan to go.
Five star hotels dot the coastline
While St. Tropez and Cannes, located on the east and central parts of the coast, are a bit congested in the summer months, the west side is lower key and more relaxing. Off-season, you can avoid the crowds, but there are loads of awesome people watching all along the southern tip of France. The sun is lovely and the service at the five-star hotels that pepper the region, all in all its just superb.
When I went that summer our group stayed in a youth hostel on the Riviera, and I will never forget enjoying a large cup of café o lait – the precursor of the modern latte. It was a great way to start the day. Then we went off to explore and wander the little streets where there are beautiful gems of stucco architecture. It was hostel meets luxury – never better.
I would love to go back, and would look in the Leading Hotels of the World, or Small Luxury Hotels site or books I have on hand for a place to stay. The properties our NYC travel PR agency represents are in those groups, so that is my go-to.
Enjoy summer wherever you are!