A new destination and already a new favourite.
After a few hours of flight, we touched down on the tarmac at Nice international
airport, a must-see for those who want to take a little trip to the Côte d'Azur.
Luggage in hand, we go to retrieve our rental car. R8 or M4, we can't decide.
Come on, we'll be satisfied with the 430 hp of the BMW racing car, to drive the 100 kms that separate
us from the small village where celebrities and jet-setters make their home every summer. Saint-Tropez! Its dream villas that sell for
millions of dollars, its luxury hotels, its famous port and its essential shops.
Art is also proudly represented there. The 7th art in particular with the
Museum of cinema and the Gendarmerie. Not to mention a few good deals
... and yes, they do exist, even on the French Riviera! Let's hit the road! With such a fabulous car, it would have been a
shame not to wear a timepiece worthy of the name. So on the way, we stop off at
the CAP 3000 shopping center in Saint-Laurent-du-Var. The first of its kind in France
when it opened in 1969, and directly inspired by the American
shopping centers of the time. Still in search of our watch,
we enter the FERRET store. Hublot, Cartier, Rolex, while the most
beautiful watch brands are represented there, the reputation of the house has also been built
around its tailor-made jewellery creations. La Maison Ferret is a jewellery watchmaking
company that has existed for over 50 years. We offer a local and international clientele
more than fifteen brands from the major Swiss watchmaking houses and jewelery houses.
We also develop our own collections We are fortunate to have a jewelery workshop, so we
can respond to privileged requests from customers for jewelery manufacturing
with exceptional stones. For example, we are in the process of
finalizing a ring for a client who is due to come and collect it later. A very pretty
6 carat diamond accompanied by two other stones. We can't wait to discover her
reaction when she sees this jewel. A young lady seems to be satisfied, just
like the previous customer who came to collect her TUDOR timepiece, following an
overhaul in their watchmaking workshop. A workshop which should expand
soon, given the projects underway. At the heart of a new premium
zone scheduled for 2021, the Ferret boutique is indeed preparing to migrate
into an area that's 4 to 5 times more spacious. The Ferret boutique will develop
around a new 500 square meter shop So some great projects coming soon. This will allow us to be able to welcome
new brands such as PANERAI, IWC and OMEGA within a large store that will be truly
reflected and thought of as a real experience offered to customers, with areas dedicated to
brands and with reception areas for all customers It's a chance for us to return very soon!
Watch on our wrist, we return to our vehicle. And after just 1.5 hours, we
arrive at our destination. In order to make the most of the
landscape, we head higher up. The visit of Saint-Tropez starts, it seems,
here, at the foot of the ramparts of the Citadel! Dating back to the 17th century, made up
of a hexagonal keep housing the modern and living museum of maritime history,
this listed monument is one of the most visited historical and cultural places.
But, to be entitled, every morning, to this breathtaking view of the bay of Saint-Tropez, know
that the most wealthy are ready to hustle for it. To explain all this to us, our specialist
in prestigious real estate, Lydia Denimal, in collaboration with Spark & Partner,
met us on the heights of the village. Welcome to Paradise. Listen, given the scenery I
think it lends itself to it. Saint-Tropez is still a small village where we
find great Provencal authenticity, since it is still a very charming little village on the Côte
d'Azur. However, people who wish to settle here wish to settle on the periphery of Saint-Tropez.
For example, here, we are in one of the most prestigious and exclusive places in
Saint-Tropez - the park district. It is a rare and unique opportunity
that today we can visit this magnificent villa which is for sale.
It is sold furnished with a very chic, very refined decoration, which highlights the
beautiful spaces and volumes it can offer. A little gem of nearly 650 m2 of living space, with no less than 6 bedrooms
including a Master Suite, Cinema room, billiards table, massage
room and heated infinity pool among the many assets of this villa which also benefits
from the most well-kept landscaped grounds. In terms of exteriors, we are also talking
exceptional. We have a landscaped garden of over 6000 square meters,
everything is finished down to the smallest detail and this is what
really gives this property a magical side. Neither magic nor miracle on the other
hand when it comes to the budget. The sale price of this villa is 32 million euros!
Not having this amount in the bank, we opt for the hotel ☺
But before returning to our rooms, we take a short detour through the port.
Facing the yachts are the red tables of the legendary Sénéquier café.
Brigitte Bardot, Karl Lagerfeld, Kate Moss, Vanessa Paradis, many
stars have frequented the place. With a capacity of 734 berths divided into
two water zones, for an area of 9 hectares and a location in the heart of the
village, the port of Saint-Tropez is one of the major centers for a
yachting stopover in the Mediterranean. Each year, this small well kept port
welcomes nearly 6 million visitors. A few kms away, far from this crowd, it is in a hotel lost in nature that
we have chosen to deposit our luggage. Welcomed by birdsong, we need nothing more to
fall under the spell of La Tartane Saint-Amour. Planted in the heart of a pine forest, the
intimate 5-star establishment is an oasis of calm and greenery where the words relaxation
and well-being take on their full meaning. We are at Hotel La Tartane, it is a small, 28-room, 5-star hotel located
2.5 kilometers from the center of Saint-Tropez. The advantage is that we are calm and we really
personalize the reception of our customers. We have 4 suites, we have 4
junior suites and the rest are standard rooms, all with a private terrace. Here, no corridors, but private exterior
access for each of the bedrooms. Le Saint-Amour thus offers the privacy of small
detached houses, surrounded by lush vegetation. Relaxation, in addition to the Spa
with treatment and massage cabins, and a magnificent heated outdoor swimming
pool can serve as a place of escape. Let's go back to the heart of this favorite little
village of “All of Paris” and the international Jet Set, for a little shopping trip.
Nearly 800 shops make up the Saint-Tropez landscape, and needless to say,
all the luxury boutiques are here. Opposite the Chanel store,
there's an emblematic monument, known to all moviegoers around the
world: the Gendarmerie de Saint-Tropez. Now transformed into a Museum,
since its inauguration in June 2016, it retraces the entire history of the
Gendarmerie and the cinema, of St-Tropez. The adventures of Louis de Funès were
certainly related to the success of the place. So you have several universes that have been
staged here: a universe of the history of the gendarmerie and the gendarmes in Saint-Tropez.
Then a world of cinema, the world of cinema and films that were shot in Saint-Tropez since there
are more than 70 that were shot in Saint-Tropez. And of course the universe of the 6 films
of the Gendarme de Saint-Tropez saga. They filmed a scene here in
the gendarmerie building. Then all the interior scenes
were shot in studios in Nice, because at that time the gendarmerie
was occupied by the gendarmes themselves There is a nice surprise when you arrive in the
cinema hall, you are greeted by Louis de Funès. The life size bronze sculpture
of Louis de Funès, at 1.58m. He was a small man in size but tall in talent
since he was a multiple artist, musician, painter, actor, very demanding with himself
and someone who liked to relax at home and in particular in his rose garden. So here we are in the lodge of the
emblematic actresses of Saint-Tropez. Romy Schneider and Brigitte Bardot.
You have behind me the model of Romy Schneider and then the world of
Brigitte Bardot through her films and testimonials from people
who have known them well. Johnny Hallyday, to whom a temporary
exhibition was devoted, knew “BB” well. Since 1956 and her role in "And god ... created
woman", the Bardot myth has continued to grow, to the point of being entitled to her statue
showing the actress in a shell, installed opposite the museum, right in the middle of Place Blanqui.
Not far from there, famous for its pétanque games under the Plane trees, the Place des Lices
is an absolutely essential place to visit. We sip a Pastis while watching the daily pétanque
games where local players and show business stars compete against each other
with "bottles" and "tiles". Twice a week, Tuesday and Saturday morning,
the square turns into a Provencal market. Fruits, vegetables, seafood, crafts or clothing, you will find it all. The square
is full of life and colors. Colors that also dress the windows of art
galleries, which are numerous in Saint-Tropez. 100m away, on Boulevard Louis Blanc,
we enter the St-Martin gallery. Already present in Courchevel, Megève,
Arcachon, as well as at Pyla and Cap Ferret, since 1970 the gallery has endeavored to
permanently present the great names of Contemporary Art on the international scene,
but also to support young emerging artists. Jenkell and Tordjmann are there, as
are Mitro, and Boucheix who had the opportunity to be launched by Salvador Dali,
Fazzino and his 3D pop art, and Novarino. Without forgetting 2 other
"Frenchies" who are rather popular. David Cintract is an artist that I
love because he brings something new after this neo pop-art, and all these artists. He created a movement called free pop.
We also have artists like Rubinstein, who really revolutionized the kinetic art
of Vasarely by creating 3 paintings in 1. How can one ignore this
fish, or worse, this gorilla, planted in the middle of the gallery. Impossible ! Silicone tamer, Eddy MANIEZ dresses
his creations with hundreds or even thousands of pins. Each piece is worked
instinctively, without plan or diagram. A master in the art of illustration, 3D drawing,
video animation and painting, Quebecer François Boutet applies all his experience as a digital
art creator in a very unique and personal style. Totally avant-garde digital sculptures,
which seduced Stephen Lafeuille. We try to work the old fashioned way, to go to
the workshops, choose our pieces, and buy them, so that we can present them to our customers.
Someone who comes back in 2 months will find new things because the gallery changes, moves,
evolves, so that's what also makes the gallery interesting - it is to constantly find new things,
I love that and I attach great importance to it. Noted ! We will meet again in a few months! After this busy day, it's time for a little fun.
We head to our hotel, La Tartane Saint-Amour, for a delicious cocktail….
Before taking a seat at the Grand Café table. A past master in the delicate art of
Asian cuisine, Maitre Koy prepares us dishes with flavors from around the world.
Tears of the tiger, sliced duck breast with spicy Thai basil or sautéed shrimps with garlic
and Sichuan pepper, it all makes us dream... The day is ending, and it's time for us to
pack our bags and return our rental vehicle. We climb into our BMW M4 for the very last
time, heading for the Franco-Monegasque border. This is where the "Your Car"
company has chosen to set up shop. In the garage, vintage vehicles mingle
with the most recent sports cars. A single place, for 2 concepts! We are in Villefranche sur Mer, between Monaco and Nice. So Monaco for its prestigious and vintage
cars. But we'll get to that later. And Nice for its international airport where
we pick up our customers every week. Because our concept is to provide sports, premium,
four-seater vehicles with a trunk in which a small family or friends can put their luggage, and have
the opportunity to enjoy their holidays together. The idea of our concept is also to be able
to offer luxury vehicles, because they are luxury vehicles, at very advantageous
prices so that everyone can enjoy them. Up to 50% savings on traditionally applied rates. For less than 300 euros, driving an
exceptional car becomes possible. What is nice with my partner Marc is that we are
very complementary. I would rather be in classic, traditional, old, collector cars, Marc
is more about modern, powerful fast cars. The concept that I was explaining earlier
of Premium four-seater car rental, we can also at the request and needs
of our customers provide them with much more sporty 2-seater vehicles, like
the Audi R8 roadster we had earlier. Like this legendary Land Rover '88' Series 3 model
from 1973, or this 1986 Mercedes 500 SL, the Your Car concept is also based on the renovation
and purchase and sale of older vehicles. Our favorite ? The beautiful German car
we climb aboard, alongside Alain. So here we are in a magnificent Mercedes 190 SL
from 1957, which we fully restored in 2018. As always, we try to keep as many
original elements of the car as possible, such as the steering wheel in
it, or elements of the dashboard. See how beautiful it is, these really are
the original parts of the car and look at a little subtlety which is very very nice.
These are the turn signals which are not on the comodo like a modern car but which
are here, on the left and on the right, they are on the steering wheel, it
is really something extraordinary. So we obviously take great pleasure
in doing our job, finding old cars, restoring them and bringing them back to
life, and above all in finding new owners. In this case, this car is
for sale so fans take note! On the way, our driver drops
us off at the Monaco heliport, from where we will take off on new adventures.
