Le Journal

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  1. Aerial of Château de Théoule and La Plage Blanche — the castle ramparts of the property at the south-western edge of Théoule-sur-Mer, with the rows of white-umbrellaed sun loungers in formation on the white-sand beach below and the Mediterranean alongside.

    Destinations · May 11, 2026 · 8 min read

    A coastal day from Valbonne.

    An April-voice editorial on the Wednesday-off coastal day from Valbonne — thirty minutes south to Théoule-sur-Mer and La Plage Blanche at Château de Théoule (Leading Hotels of the World). Loungers reserved by the hour, Mediterranean lunch on the sea-facing terrace, the Michelin-starred Mareluna upstairs at the same property, and concierge-arranged private boats out to the Esterel coves you cannot reach by road.

  2. Tourrettes-sur-Loup seen from across the valley — the medieval village perched on a long ridge of stone, beige limestone built into the rock with a drop into the scrub-oak greenery below and the lower hills above Vence behind it.

    Destinations · May 10, 2026 · 9 min read

    Tourrettes-sur-Loup, by an editor who lives thirty minutes away.

    A Mike-voice editorial on Tourrettes-sur-Loup, the violet capital of France perched above Vence. Dubosq Et Fils for olive wood (depuis 1958), Le Clovis for lunch (reopened March 2026, with a wine cave next to the kitchen), Spelt — La Table for dinner. By an Afore editor who has been visiting for over a decade and lives thirty minutes south in Valbonne.

  3. Èze rooftops with the French flag and Cap-Ferrat in the bay beyond — the cinematic Riviera vista that has put Hollywood on this coast since 1955.

    Destinations · May 6, 2026 · 8 min read

    A Map to the Riviera Hollywood Has Been Quietly Sketching for Seventy Years

    An editorial map of the Côte d'Azur as Hollywood has used it for seventy years — Hitchcock's Saint-Jeannet villa, Bond's Villefranche harbor, GoldenEye's Thorenc hairpins, the Iron Man casino, and the Provence villages used for A Good Year and Magic in the Moonlight. By April, for Le Journal, May 2026.

  4. The Crudité at Detour, Grasse — broccoli, radish, sugar snap and snow peas, peppers, courgette, carrots, with the leek hummus and a herbed dip — on opening night.

    Destinations · May 6, 2026 · 7 min read

    Detour, Grasse

    April reviews Detour, the new Grasse restaurant from Kendall Lane (chef), Ross (sommelier), and Makenna Held & Chris Nylund of La Pitchoune. Opens at 3 PM, sources from ten named Provence producers, and is the most overdue restaurant innovation on the Côte d'Azur.

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Saint Jean in Valbonne. The night of the 24th. Most travel writing about the south of France stops at lavender. ValbonnMovies shot here. The 79th Cannes Film Festival opens tonight. The Festival is for the films being shown. Here are the Tourrettes-sur-Loup. Thirty minutes northeast of Valbonne, perched on a cliff above Vence — a medieval village whose enYou don't have to stay there. Hôtel Les Roches Rouges, Saint-Raphaël, on the Esterel coast where the red volcanic rock The Valbonne antique market. The first Sunday of every month, Place des Arcades — the square that holds the Friday vegeA Provence wine day. The Côtes de Provence is the largest rosé-producing wine region in the world. Its vineyards stretc