Itinerary for 12 days below….
I say, if the opportunity presents itself to travel with a “local,” take it!!! In this case, the “local” happens to be a friend, born and raised in Cannes, France who we met on the first day of early preschool at OC Lab School in Costa Mesa, CA.
Valentine Tran, her husband Ben and their two daughters Colette and Simone (7 and 5) spend several weeks every summer visiting family and traveling in the Cote d’Azur. She has taught French to her two daughters and has added French flavor and enthusiasm to our lives over the past 5 years.
We started planning in March 2022 for a summer family “meet up” to travel in Nice, Italy and Cannes. Our family would head to Paris first for 4 days then train to Nice to meet the Trans. Always an adventure to travel to Europe with kids. Travel tip: book flights 4-5 months in advance, but keep checking upgrade pricing/miles requirements as it can fluctuate. One month before our flight, for First Class/Business on United Airlines, the upgrade was $1,100 per person to Paris. It doubled the price of our tickets overall, but WHAT A RELIEF, to arrive at 10:45AM into France, after fully flat beds and a dose of melatonin. Our 6 and 7 year old daughters slept 7 hours!
I didn’t upgrade us on the way back because prices ranged between $3,000-5,000 per person every time I checked the United app on my phone. I’d rather be tired at home than at the beginning of vacation. Travel tip: register your kids for their own frequent flier accounts. I hope ours are million-mile fliers before 30! But, in the meantime, their accumulated miles can be used for upgrades, etc https://www.united.com
I have the United app on my phone and their online United’s Travel Ready Center for France told me I would need a negative Covid test within 48 hours of departure since I haven’t been boosted and my shot was over 270 days ago. I got a negative test. No one ever asked for proof of vaccine or a negative Covid test in the US, France or Italy on this trip.
Paris
Day One: CDG Airport, 9th Arrondissement, Le Marais
We arrived at 10:45AM ready to explore. BUT, no car/driver was waiting for us at the airport. I had prearranged this with our hotel the Residence NELL. When I called the hotel, I was told the driver must have forgotten. Welcome to France! Ha. Travel tip: unless you are super poshy…just take a cab or Metro into the city from Charles de Gaulle Airport. Even with kids, both are actually easy to locate at the airport and very convenient.
Our hotel was located in the 9th arrondissement (Arr) in Paris, about 2 blocks from the Hotel Parister where we stayed in Nov 2021. I love this Opera neighborhood as the predominant flavor is very French…cafes, cheese shops, wine bars and boulangeries frequented by locals. Earlier in 2022, the Wall St Journal had an article recommending hotels around the world suited for families. The Nell was highlighted in Paris so I booked it. https://www.residencenell.com. It was minimalistic. We did a one bedroom, one bath with fold out couch. We didn’t use the kitchenette, despite visions of coffee and croissants there based on photos from the website…instead we ventured out every morning to eat at cafes! Travel tip: this hotel was affordable at $200 euro per night, but we consciously made higher priced choices in Nice and Cannes to enhance our experience.
We explored the 9th Arr and grabbed some lunch at a neighborhood boulangerie. There are so many of these and they really do serve about the same thing, that names aren’t worth mentioning though I do highly recommend trying chicken curry salad on a baguette. We then walked to the Moulin Rouge with our daughters, which our concierge said was about a mile away. Travel Tip: do NOT walk to the Moulin Rouge with children who can read. I did not realize that the Quartier Pigalle is the Red Light District until we were walking by shops advertising sex toys and strip clubs…I introduced the girls to a game I made up on the spot called “find colorful gum stuck to the sidewalk” to distract them. OMG. The Moulin Rouge was underwhelming if not going there for a cabaret show, so we took a picture, then walked back to the hotel using a totally different path! Lesson learned.
At 5PM we met our Eating Europe guide in the 4th Arr for a Le Marais area Twilight Tour. Walking, eating and drinking for a few hours was an excellent way to see this historic Jewish quarter. Our guide paid lots of attention to our daughters. She was excellent! We had falafel and traditionally Middle Eastern dishes along with wine and cheese stops. She introduced us to the beautiful Place des Voges park which the girls enthusiastically explored. The tour was in lieu of dinner…and we were very full and tired at the end of our samplings through Le Marais. https://www.eatingeurope.com.
Day Two: Louvre, Eiffel Tower, Notre Dame, Montmartre
The Metro stop was close to our hotel, so we Google mapped the route and took the Metro to the Louvre. I booked “skip the line” for this museum, but we still had to wait in line…maybe it was shorter than the real line, but I didn’t see the real line so I can’t be sure. Regardless, kids were free and it was like 20 euro per adult to “wait in a relatively faster line” at the Pyramid Main Entrance. I did not book a tour because I wasn’t sure how long my daughters would last in an art gallery. They were more interested in the renaissance paintings than I had assumed. Kids are given a little Louvre booklet to go on a scavenger hunt in the museum. Mine used the booklet’s blank pages to sketch their own versions of the Mona Lisa and other paintings they liked. This art enthusiasm did not end when we left the Louvre…they kept drawing portraits, etc in those notebooks throughout our trip. Guess they were inspired!!! https://www.getyourguide.com/louvremuseum
We left the Louvre, took a great family picture and headed into the Tuileries garden. I thought we could walk to the Eiffel Tower from there and see all the sites along the way. HAHAHAHA. Not so much. We did make it across the Pont de la Concorde, but it was 95 degrees with humidity and we gave up, hailing a cab to Le Jules Verne restaurant for our 12:30PM lunch in the Eiffel Tower. Back to the humidity comment…my husband Steve had shorts on because it was so so hot in the city in July, but Le Jules Verne does not allow Sportswear (shorts, tennis shoes, etc) in the restaurant. He’d packed pants in a backpack which he quickly changed into in the bathroom once we rode the private elevator up to the 2nd floor of the restaurant. Travel tip: this is an expensive experience and you need to book it 2-3 months out, but do it at least once in your lifetime! Our best meal all vacation was at this restaurant. The waitstaff treated our daughters like princesses. They actually can make meals for kids. And the views are breathtaking. https://www.restaurants-toureiffel.com
After our 2 1/2 hour lunch experience, we took a cab to Notre Dame and saw the construction post-fire. So sad. There really wasn’t much to do here, so we continued walking back across the Ponte Notre-Dame and stumbled upon the Jardin Nelson Mandela park where the girls played for a while. Then we walked to Angelina on the Rue de Rivoli hoping to get in for their famous hot chocolate…not a chance, but we did get ice cream from the outdoor Angelina kiosk. https://www.angelina-paris.fr
We then took the Metro from Place de la Concorde station to Montemartre and saw the Wall of Love, walked up at least 1,000 steps to spent time with the artists in the famous Place du Tertre and visited the Sacre-Coeur Basilica again. We could have eaten at a number of restaurants in that area, but we chose to walk back to our neighborhood where we found a quaint wine bar with a phenomenal cheese plate = dinner.
Day Three: Versailles, La Galerie Dior, L’Entrecote-fail
The RER C train to the Chateau rive Gauche train station, a 10 minute walk from the entrance of Versailles is 100% the cheapest and fastest (30 mins) way to get to the Castle of Versailles. BUT, this station was shut down from July/August for repairs, so when we Google mapped “getting to Versailles,” we took the Metro to Montparnasse and picked up the TER N train to Versailles Chantiers station. The walk was more like a half hour, but we stopped for at a boulangerie for take away breakfast on the route and the girls were satisfied. I had scheduled a private family tour for us through Get Your Guide online and was so impressed with our guide Ivan! Travel tip: when you can find a tour catered to kids, book it. Ivan was full of fun facts kids would find interesting…and answered the question “is this real gold” all of the 1,000 times my daughters asked it. He also took us to the entrance of the Versailles gardens after his 2-hour castle tour was over, helped us buy our tickets (required in summer) and gave us advice on which areas to focus on with kids. Absolutely worth it! https://www.getyourguide.com
From Versailles, we took the TER N train back to Paris to make our 4PM reservation at La Galerie Dior. My daughters, in this season of life, would like to become fashion designers so I thought this would be a highlight for them…but it became a highlight for the whole family, even my husband. Dior’s history is quite interesting and the exhibits are beautifully done. And…no one seemed to mind that we had on “just traveled on a public train and walked all over the dusty Versailles gardens clothes on.” Our look was certainly not haute couture!!! Ha. https://www.galeriedior.com
When we left the museum, I realized we were very close to L’Entrecote de Paris, a restaurant recommended to us by 2 different French friends because it has the best steak frites in all of Paris. When you sit down, you are only asked how you’d like your steak cooked. No menu. This restaurant does not take reservations. It was 5:25PM when we arrived at a very dark L’Entrecote. I checked the sign on the door and it said they opened at 6:45PM. The girls were tired and slightly cranky from our full day of touring, we decided to walk a few blocks to grab a cocktail for the parents and a snack for the girls at a corner café. Big mistake!
We didn’t realize as we were having that second glass of Aperol spritz that a line was forming at L’Entrecote. It was 6:40PM when we returned and waitresses were lining up to go into the restaurant and we’re thinking perfect timing until one pointed around the corner to a line of people. We walked the line to find the end…back 2 blocks, turned a corner and walked another block to the last person. The wait from that point to be seated was 1 ½ hours.
My daughters still talk about the “potty words” that came out of Mom and Dad’s mouths. I couldn’t believe we’d been so close to the best steak frites in Paris and totally messed up!!! Everyone was tired and hungry and no one wanted to wait, so we just took a cab home and had an OK dinner at a local café. So defeated. Travel tip: if someone says this is “the best” anything, assume others have heard about it and proceed accordingly! You’ve been warned. https://www.lentrecotedeparis.fr
Paris to Nice
Day Four: Train to Nice
I’d reserved 4 first class train tickets from Paris to Nice on the SNCF website a couple months prior to our trip. https://www.sncf-connect.com We chose to take the 5 ½ hour train instead of flying down because the train route through the French countryside to the ocean is very picturesque. Our seats were located on the second level of the train and included a table between them, perfect for games, activities and snacks. Getting to the Gare Lyon station from our hotel via taxi cab was easy. Arrive an hour before departure to avoid stress. There are a variety of casual restaurants at the Gare Lyon and one very fancy one also recommended by French friends: Le Train Bleu. It opened after our train left the station unfortunately. Look it up! https://www.le-train-bleu.com
When we arrived into the Nice station, we opted to walk the 5 minutes to our hotel because the few cabs at the stand were all taken. Travel tip: when in doubt, look the route up on Google Maps. This app has been as invaluable overseas as at home. I booked our hotel, the Hyatt Regency Nice Palais de la Mediterranee, through American Express travel and had used points to pay for half the cost of one king bedroom for 2 nights. Travel tip: I use AMEX Travel for fancier hotels for several reasons: points offset higher cost hotels, 4PM late checkout is guaranteed, if there is an upgrade at check in you will get it, average hotel credit per room is $100 and free daily hotel breakfast. https://americanexpress.com
When we checked in, I was a little concerned they’d make us get a second room…but they gave us a free upgrade to a slightly larger ocean view room, approved for 4 people, with a chair that folds into a bed. Travel tip: per person room limits in France are not a suggestion, but a hard, fast rule. At check in, they will ask for kids’ passports, but will typically take kids’ names and birthdates if you don’t have passports in hand. If you have more occupants than the limit, you will be asked to get a second room unless an upgrade is available.
The Palais de la Mediterranee historic luxury hotel is located on the Promenade des Anglais and has access to a private beach, Plage Ruhl. Its art deco architecture differentiates it from the other hotels on this popular pedestrian walkway. https://www.hyatt.com
First stop after unpacking: the hotel pool. We met several families from around the world in the pool area and swapped travel stories and recommendations. We then got ready for dinner, walked across the street to the Promenade des Anglais and went left (south) to go exploring. The girls found a two-level carousel to ride on and walked by the outer perimeter of Vieux Nice, the city’s old town with narrow cobblestone streets and charming shops. Travel tip: let your kids pick activities often to keep them engaged and interested.
Dinner was back on the Promenade des Anglais at Beau Rivage. All of the restaurants on the beach of the Promenade looked similar and we didn’t plan ahead, but we were very pleased with our selection. Steve and I split a Nicoise salad, which actually originated in Nice, and we had grilled octopus, fish and wine. They made butter pasta for the girls. We watched the sun set from our outdoor dining table. We walked back to our hotel at 9PM and felt totally safe doing so on the Promenade. https://www.nicebeaurivage.com
Day Five: Nice, Villefranche sur Mer
While Steve went to Enterprise at the Nice Airport to pick up our rental car (15 minutes away by Uber), the girls and I walked half a block to Plage Ruhl to get settled into our private beach. Again, this is the beach with ties to our hotel and booking through the hotel gave us priority. There are a number of “private beaches” along the Promenade des Anglais and, for a fee, you can book lounge chairs at any of them. Ours were $30 per chair and we got four. A waiter brought our drinks and our lunch to our lounge chairs. Very convenient. Travel tip: bring water socks to the South of France. Most beaches are rock beaches and unless you are used to walking on rocks in bare feet…much more comfortable with the aqua socks!
After about 4 hours on the beach, the girls were ready to move on. We went back to our hotel and swam in the pool, then walked about a mile on the Promenade des Anglais to the Vieux Nice (Old Nice) area. Travel tip: we walked A LOT on this trip. Our daughters would start off whining typically, but we’d have end-of-trail incentives like gelato or crepes as motivation for them. Steve had read about the flower market called Cours Saleya in Vieux Nice and wanted to show the girls. Unfortunately, the vendors had packed up early that day (France!) and so while we thought we had about a half hour to check it out, we actually missed it. We did get to try socca, a pizza-style snack made from chickpeas that Nice is famous for at Chez Theresa. https://www.theresa-nice.com I loved the cobblestone streets, old churches and boutique shops. The girls loved cheapy souvenir shops in the old town and, of course, the statue of a “naked guy” in Place Massena (town square) was quite the highlight. Ha.
We walked back to the hotel and got ready to go to Villefranche sur Mer for dinner. I couldn’t wait to show this little port town to my family. It is 15 minutes away from Nice, but the road we took had sharp turns and treacherous switchbacks. Definitely glad we got the automatic transmission rental car instead of the manual! Travel tip: when renting a car in Europe, unless you own and drive a manual car…pay the extra Euros for the automatic. Driving in the South of France at least is crazy enough without worry about shifting gears.
We parked near the waterfront and ate at an Italian waterfront restaurant for dinner called Spalato. It was a welcome change after 5 days of 3 meals a day French food. The waiters were very Italian and so kind to our kids. We felt very welcome there. Our daughters loved the food, seeing the boats and also the live street performers. Oh, and GPS located a more direct, less windy road for us on the way back! https://www.spalato-restaurant-villefranche-sure-mer.com
Nice to Italy
Day 6: Nice, Diano Marina, Italy
Steve had located a laundromat a couple blocks from our hotel and woke up early to take care of this before our departure for Italy. Travel tip: we were gone for 12 days, but multiple suitcases are inconvenient when traveling from place to place, so I only packed for 6 days, planning on washing clothes midway through. It worked brilliantly. Steve didn’t even need the detergent I brought because the laundromat had it already. To order our laundry bag: https://www.airportag.com
We packed up, enjoyed the free delicious breakfast buffet and had one more swim in the pool before we were off to the Musee Matisse to FINALLY meet up with our friends the Trans. The reunion was magical. Just as our daughters were getting tired of each other, fresh faces to add to their adventures! The Musee Matisse is easy to see with kids: it’s small, the paintings are vibrant, oh, and there’s air conditioning…a must in 90 degree heat. Travel tip: one thing they don’t have is museum parking, so look immediately for street parking to avoid an uphill hike.
Post museum, we drove about an hour south to Diano Marina in two separate cars as our Peugeot could only fit our family. The drive was short and uneventful, but the views of the Mediterranean were beautiful. Valentine Tran had picked out our hotel using search criteria of air conditioning, pool and on the beach…not surprisingly, most hotels in this area of Italy do not have air conditioning. Travel tip: do go “off the beaten path” for cost-savings and fewer tourists, but always use Valentine’s search “filters” for summer months. When we arrived at the Grand Hotel Diana Majestic, our daughters were thrilled to find that we had two rooms and plenty of space. We unpacked and they immediately went to the hotel pools…one giant one and one that was only about 3 feet deep (an oversized spa with a whirlpool). The parents enjoyed cocktails and catching up. https://www.dianamajestic.com
Dinner that night was at our hotel and very low key. Everything, including off-the-menu prosciutto and melon salad, was excellent.
Days 7-9: Diano Marina, Italy
This part of our vacation was much more relaxing than the first half. Our schedule, for 3 full days, was:
breakfast, beach, lunch, pool, cocktails, dinner.
And, the cost savings vs South of France is worth noting. It allowed us to spend more on other experiences. Our final bill, including 2 rooms, 4 nights/5 days, lunch everyday, drinks and dinner, was $1,900. This ended up being less than just one night, two rooms only at our next destination: Cannes.
Our two rooms were about $150 each. The Trans were able to book one big suite for their family of 4 with a giant terrace overlooking the ocean for $450 a night through https://www.hotels.com There are only two suites like that in the hotel and difficult to book. Travel tip: there are small jelly fish in the Mediterranean Sea. Wear goggles swimming to ensure you see them to prevent stinging.
Cannes
Day 10: Diano Marina, Eze, Cannes
We were up bright and early for our final Italian buffet breakfast, ready to go back to France and experience the final days of our vacation. The Trans headed right to Cannes to spend more time with her family. Steve and I drove an hour to the hillside town of Eze, France first. Because we arrived early, we found parking right at the base of Eze and didn’t have to park remote and take a shuttle to the town’s entrance. We began the hike up the mountain, stopping almost immediately for some energy in the form of gelato for the girls. Travel tip: do buy tickets for the Le Jardin Exotique at the top of the mountain. The views of the South of France are well worth the hike. There are lots of shops and restaurants and expensive-looking art galleries on the way up. It was 90 degrees, so once we made it to the top and took our pictures, we quickly descended and had lunch at La Villa d’Eze restaurant back at the base of Eze. As we were eating our cheese, charcuterie and salads, the crowds started pouring in from buses across the street. Travel tip: arrived before 10AM!!! https://www.lavilladeze.fr
Another hour and we were in Cannes at our hotel, the historic Hotel Martinez on Boulevard de la Croisette stretching along the shore of the Mediterranean Sea. Valet parking our Peugeot amongst the Bugattis and Bentleys, and walking into the lobby in our just-hiked-up-Eze-in-90-degree-heat clothing, towing two tired kids behind us, I definitely felt out of place. This hotel was a scene. Women were dressed in “couture NASCAR”…LV, Hermes and Gucci symbols all over. It was awesome. But, we stood out. https://www.hyatt.com
Our rooms weren’t ready so we grabbed drinks at the opulent Martinez Bar, complete with Cuban cigars in the giant humidor. Then, we walked to meet the Trans at Le Petit Train near the Cannes Film Festival theater.
More sweatiness, but we made it. The Petit Train is Valentine’s favorite way to show newcomers her city quickly. It travels from the theater down La Croisette, through Le Suquet (the old city) and up the historic hill to Notre Dame de l’Esperance church. The conductor paused for 15 minutes to allow passengers to take photos of Cannes from this high point. The train has headphones connected to a guided tour of the city in multiple languages. I’m not sure the girls listed to the guide, but they definitely loved riding the little train, despite the heat…and of course, meeting up with their friends again.
After the train, we went for gelato, then walked back to our hotel, picking up a couple bottles of wine along the way. Ben, Colette and Simone came with us while Valentine spent time alone with her mom. Dinner was around the corner from the Martinez at the Trans’ favorite Lebanese restaurant in Cannes, Restaurant Al Charq. The staff was very accommodating and kid-friendly. And, the cuisine was a nice change! https://www.alcharq.com
Day 11: Cannes
Since I’d also booked this hotel through AMEX, breakfast for our family was free. And what a spread! The hotel has many guests from the Middle East, and so among the traditional French and American selections were also baba ghanoush, hummus, pita, tabouli, and other traditionally Middle Eastern offerings. We thoroughly enjoyed it and the wait staff was very attentive.
After breakfast, we took an Uber to the Marche Forville to meet the Trans. This Marche is the biggest in Cannes, opens at 7:30AM daily and Valentine said it’s frequented mainly by locals buying fresh produce, meats…fewer tourists. The paella looked amazing as did the fresh pasta. I was sad we’d just had a giant breakfast. Travel tip: if planning on buying vintage Chanel or similar items, go to this Marche on a Monday. That’s when antique vendors and bargain dealers host their wares. https://www.marcheforville.com
Valentine led us around the market turning our attention to certain items, then we walked the Rue Meynadier, a walking street lined with bakeries and boutiques, to her favorite cheese shop. It being the last night in Cannes for all of us, Valentine’s family and friends planned a “send off” picnic at the beach. We were in charge of bringing a cheese plate: my favorite assignment. Valentine’s daughters call this particular cheese shop the “stinky cheese shop” and it was…and it was awesome! https://www.fromagerie-ceneri.com
From there, the families parted ways again so the Trans could have lunch with relatives…and the Hong family headed to the Carlton Club Cannes. It’s technically not the private beach club for Hotel Martinez-that one was already booked when we checked in the day prior-but since the Intercontinental Carlton is being renovated and is unoccupied, its Carlton Club is Hotel Martinez’ temporary “overflow.” We were totally fine with this! I could have stayed all day. We booked a canopy bed for $250 that fit our whole family. Steve and I ordered a bottle of Moet & Chandon and toasted a trip well done: a treat for our last day. Lunch was served by our waiter at a table set up in front of our bed. The ocean was steps away. And, not only did the kids’ have swimming and water sports as an option, but Carlton also had a free kids’ club with arts and crafts. The girls painted several pictures during the 4 hours we enjoyed there. https://www.intercontinental.com
We stopped back at our hotel to get ready for the send-off party and had some snacks and drinks back at the Martinez Bar since we had a $200 hotel credit from AMEX. Valet parking brought our not-so-fancy Peugeot and we were off to a Cannes’ local beach just south of our hotel. Valentine’s friends and family, including her brother visiting from Berlin, welcomed us warmly and shared food (the stinky cheese was on point!) and wine and stories on the beach while all the kids jumped off the pier and swam in the Mediterranean one last time. We watched the sunset, then headed back to the Martinez to finish preparing for departure.
Day 12: The Long Road Home
All good things must come to an end, but after 12 days of traveling, we were ready to head back to California. We all agreed this vacation’s itinerary was just the right amount of time away, with a good balance of urban travels and beach relaxation.
We checked out of the Hotel Martinez with a significantly larger overall hotel bill than at the Majestic Diana…but the luxury experience was well worth it. Waiting for our Peugeot, we saw actor Ed Burns, his former supermodel wife Christy Turlington and their two kids emerge from a Mercedes van. Couldn’t have asked for a more appropriate send off from our poshy hotel. Back to reality, we mapped a gas station near the Nice Airport (30 minutes away) and began our trek home. Luckily Steve figured out which gas to use of the 4 options at the pump…
Dropping off the rental car at Enterprise was easy. Finding the shuttle to take us to the proper terminal was not. We dragged the girls up and down the wrong terminal getting bad directions from people in airport uniform until I followed a group of people outside and across the street to a sign that said terminal transit with a crowd waiting underneath it. Travel tip: find out which terminal you are leaving from ahead of time and plan accordingly. There are only two terminals, but they are not close to each other.
United has one flight from Nice to Newark daily and this flight had been cancelled the day before…which meant the airport staff had to figured out how to get two flights out in one day. Chaos ensued. Our flight left 2 hours late, and there was a mad disorganized rush at boarding featuring one lone United worker scanning tickets with what looked to be his iPhone. Forget the usual, “people-traveling-with-children-under-the-age-of-2, uniformed military, Global Services” category boarding. A crush of sweaty people surged toward the man with the scanner to get onboard. BUT, at least the flight wasn’t cancelled!!!
We all watched about 5 movies from Nice-Newark-Los Angeles in our cozy Coach seats. Our daughters actually looked like zombies! Feeling the full effects of binge TV watching.
The suitcases both arrived without issue and the car and driver were on time.
Happily tucked into our own beds at about 9PM, I told the girls to rest up for our next adventure!
We Don’t Sit Still 