Being a maritime city, Marseille is perhaps best known for its legendary sailing events. Although despite the city’s exquisite harbour, where vessels of different shapes, sizes and value gently bob up and down on the translucent water all year round, a scene that is world-renowned for hosting some of the world’s most exclusive sailing events, Marseille also plays host to a myriad of cultural, colourful and candid festivals and carnivals.

The Festival of Marseille is one such event, which has been referred to as being a “reflection of the city’s soul.” What is particularly spectacular about this annual event it is focus on appealing to a multi-faceted miscellany of cultures.

The inimitable reputation that the Festival of Marseille has built up for itself over the years for being uninhibited by boundaries, for being undaunted by touching upon the controversial, and for exploring the most cutting edge in art, culture, theatre, music and dance.

This truly remarkable festival never fails to attract the most highly acclaimed of artists and performers to engross themselves in a remarkable cultural experience.

This year the Festival of Marseille is taking place from June 9 until July 7 and promises to as culturally diverse and mind-opening than ever.

A mosaic of exhibitions will line Marseille’s atmospheric streets, the rhythmic sounds of theatrical performances will emerge from of Marseille’s buildings, in which quirky-looking doors will lure visitors to stop what they are doing and go and take a look.

Visitors will also be drawn to Marseille’s squares which are rapidly swelling in numbers as people gather to catch site of the many “cine-concerts” that will be projected onto large, open-air screens.

Read full post

With salaries generally high, with an average five hours of sunshine in January and 12 hours in July, and with property seemingly resistant to the drop in prices many areas have been subjected to in recent years, it is of little surprise that the Cote d’Azur remains a popular place to both live and visit.

Although now the Cote d’Azur’s outwardly indomitable popularity has been made ‘official’, since it was announced that the Cote d’Azur, along with Paris and the Atlantic coast trial Rhone-Alpes have been named as the best places in France to work and live.

The results of a survey, which was conducted by the recruitment firm Apec, were published on The Connexion, one of France’s leading English-language newspapers.

The survey interviewed young professionals living in France who said that the high standard of living and economic dynamism, made the Cote d’Azur, Paris and the Rhone-Alps, the regions of France where they dreamed of being based.

Read full post

Jacques and Laurent Pourcel, the twin sons of a winegrower who grew up on the shores of the Mediterranean in the Herault region of France, are currently the youngest chefs to hold three Michelin stars.

These world-renowned French chefs opened their first restaurant, Le Jardin des Sens in Montpellier, in 1988, which was quickly awarded in recognition for its elegant, creative Mediterranean cooking.

In 2000, the talented duo branched out onto an international stage, opening restaurants in Geneva, Casablanca, Paris, Tokyo, Bangkok and Marrakesh.

In Paris, the restaurant ‘La Maison Blanche’, located at 15 ‘so chic’ Avenue Montaigne, is perched above the ‘Theatre des Champs Elysees’, and provides a piece of heaven looking right across the Paris roof tops. Having taken Paris and pretty much every city in the world by storm, the Montpellier twin chefs are returning to the south of France and opening a restaurant in Cannes.

Named the Sea Sens, this super-chic new restaurant is located in The Five Hotel, one of the most luxurious hotels in the whole of Cannes. The restaurant’s lavish décor comprises of deck chairs beneath huge flower murals, whilst its decidedly exquisite menu includes Asian-spiced cuisine, Blue Lobster and truly delectable dessert creations, and a Sunday brunch that has been described as being one of the ‘best on the Cote d’Azur’.

Read full post

In the late 1800s Russian, Belgian and English royalty flocked to the town of Grasse on the Cote d’Azur to construct stately “Belle Epoque” mansions, and in doing so helped to pin the French Riviera firmly on the map as being a favourite holiday destination for the aristocracy.

For the last three centuries, Grasse has been considered to be the ‘perfume capital of the world’, an industry which today pulls in 600 million Euros a year and produces almost all over the perfume made in France.

Although Grasse has not always enjoyed being at the height of noble culture that it first experienced in the late 19^th century.  During the 1970s when the likes of St Tropez, Cap d’ Antibes, Cap Ferrat and Cap Martin were luring the world’s most affluent and elite to purchase lavish second homes to escape to in the winter, the town of Grasse had lost its patina.

Four decades later, the situation in Grasse could not be more different and the town has certainly returned to its former glory as being one of the most sought-after places on the Cote d’Azur to be seen in. Talking about the rise and demise of Grasse, Jill de Moleyns, who works for Riviera Estates said:

“It [Grasse] was where everyone wanted to come to because of its perfume reputation. Then the local council built a lot of cheap housing for the wave of North African immigration and people started to look elsewhere.

“But Grasse is getting back to the city it used to be. As the oldest part of the Cote d’Azur, Grasse has a fantastic, safe historic centre and the houses have great character.”

Read full post

Held at the Ephrussi de Rothschild Villa at Saint-Jean-Cap-Ferrat, one of the most exclusive, luxurious and naturally stunning locations on the whole of the Cote d’Azur, is the Roses and Plants Festival, a highly anticipated and popular event aimed at presenting beautiful displays of different types of roses.

From 6 – 8 May, 2012, the Ephrussi de Rothschild Villa’s famous Rose Garden of Beatrice will be hosting the region’s third Rose and Plants Festival.

Demonstrating the love and enthusiasm that the Baroness Ephrussi de Rothschild had towards roses, some of the most talented and recognised rose growers from France, Europe and beyond will gather in this luxurious French garden in early May to showcase their breath-taking creations to the crowds of visitors who eagerly ascend on the Ephrussi de Rothschild Villa to witness rose growing at its very best.

All of the arrangements of roses on display at the festival will be significantly enhanced with their colour, fragrance and vivacity augmented by their harmonious surroundings of palm trees, fountains and pink umbrellas.

This particularly colourful festival on the Cote d’Azur enchants its visitors with not only some of the most stunning rose displays they will have likely to seen,, consisting of both old and modern roses, but also perennials of exotic plants and flowers from around the world.

Asides musing through the wonderful displays of roses and exotic flowers and plants, guests attending this year’s Rose and Plants Festival at the Ephrussi de Rothschild Villa will have the chance to attend perfume workshops held by the legendary rose grower Delbard.

For the second year running the inimitable French Delbard Roses, with their animated colour and sweet-smelling fragrance, is working in partnership with this eagerly-awaited event. As well as French Delvard Roses being involved in the festival, Fragonard, the legendary perfumer from Grasse will be presenting his unique range of fragrances at this year’s event.

Read full post