EXCLUSIVE CHOCOLATINE PROVENCE LUXURY TOUR 2010

L'OCCITANE EN PROVENCE
July 4 – 8, 2010

Four incredible days exploring a PROVENCE few can even imagine...

Highlights:
• Accommodations in a superbly appointed villa surrounded by vineyards
• Fine Provencal meals, including a picnic in the midst of lavender fields
• Behind-the-scenes tour of L’OCCITANE EN PROVENCE, and the chance to meet its founder, Olivier Baussan. Guests prepare their own special beauty product.
• Private dining experience by a Michelin-starred chef, including a guided market shopping tour
• Private wine tastings at internationally acclaimed wineries
• Hands-on participation in a decadent chocolate patisserie workshop
• Helicopter ride over the lavender fields and Provence mountains; first-class transfers in luxury, chauffeured mini-vans

•Up to EIGHT (8) GUESTS ONLY
PRICE: €9,100 net
•Please contact CHOCOLATINE for details and more booking information.

LE TOUR 2010!

Tour de France
July 3 – 25, 2010
Started in 1903 with 60 participants, Le Tour de France continues its grand tradition 107 years later with hundreds of cyclists who hail from dozens of countries. This year's race begins in Rotterdam, features 20 stages, covers nearly 2,000 miles, runs for 22 days and concludes in Paris.

Bordeaux Stage
For the 80th time, Bordeaux will welcome Le Tour with a 38-mile-long time-trial that traverses the scenic winding roads through Bordeaux vineyards and ends in Pauillac, famous for its sublime vintages.

Visitors to France hoping to watch various stages of the sporting event should reserve accommodations early, as each town along the route books fully.

Did You Know? Each year approximately 250 towns petition to host one of the Tour’s stages. The board visits each town and keeps its final decisions secret until the big reveal on the last Thursday of October.

CHILLING OUT IN BORDEAUX
Those who visit Bordeaux during the Tour (or any other time of year) can chill out at the Ice Bar, the largest of its kind in Europe. Guests don jackets and mittens provided at the door, then sit at the bar made of ice and enjoy their vodka-based cocktails in glasses also made of ice in a room cooled to a mere 14-degrees F! Bordeaux’s Ice Room is the sixth such bar –– Milan, Paris, Copenhagen, Stockholm and London also offer the chilling experience.

ENCORE NORMANDY!

Just two hours from Paris by train, Normandy is a huge draw for American visitors, not just for its D-Day beaches, but also for its lovely towns, festivals, cuisine, and museums. This year, while the Impressionist Exhibition reigns during the summer (see previous Blog), culinary perfection rules in February with a food festival that has become one of France’s most lauded gastronomic events.

Deauville: Omnivore Food Festival, Feb. 22-23
OFF is the foodie festival of the year, hosting many of the world’s top chefs, restauranteurs, winemakers, etc. The public is invited to watch the dozens of demonstrations and interviews held over the two days showcasing the savoir faire of both savory and sweet concoctions.

CAEN: Situated in the central northwest of Normandy, 11 miles from the English Channel, this ancient town is the burial place of William the Conqueror, and the scene of heavy fighting during the Battle of Normandy in 1944.

Chocolatine visited Caen last fall with our Normandy tour guides and would like to recommend these places:
To Stay: Le Clos St. Martin, in the historic center of Caen, is a charming B & B with four beautifully furnished rooms. From €115–165. Tel: 33 0 231 500 871

To Dine: A Table, reasonably priced, delightful hosts, and local fish superbly cooked. 43 rue Saint Sauveur, Tel: 02 31 865 775
La Galettoire. A wonderful, always bustling creperie in the Caen center – one of the best I’ve enjoyed. 33 Rue Saint-Sauveur, Tel: 02 31 85 45 28

TAXI TIP: We recommend the reliable company, Taxi Caen: Tel: 02 31 52 17 89

NORMANDY MAKES A BIG IMPRESSION!

Impressionist Festival
June – September 2010
Rouen, Normandy
One of the cultural highlights of Europe this year – and the first event of its kind – is the three-month-long celebration of the Impressionist painters in Upper and Lower Normandy whose beautiful, atmospheric and moody countrysides gave birth to this revered school of painting.

An incredible array of events occurs during the festival whose centerpiece is the exhibition: A City for Impressionism: Monet, Pissarro and Gauguin in Rouen, at the Rouen Fine Arts Museum. Paintings shown will come from international collections and galleries, many seen in France for the first time. In addition, concerts by works of Impressionist contemporaries, such as Debussy, Ravel and Satie will provide an ongoing soundtrack, and other regional art institutions will spotlight Impressionist art.

Other highlights will be films, theater performances, photography, fireworks and light shows, river cruises along the Seine and outdoor events, including grand picnics.

WHERE TO STAY IN ROUEN: Integrated into a beautiful 16th-century building, the new Hotel de Bourgtheroulde in Rouen (opening in March 2010 especially for the big festival) offers superb 4-star accommodations with 80 rooms and suites, a fine restaurant, brasserie and bar. There is also a huge indoor swimming pool, wet and dry saunas, fitness center and Spa. Its location is excellent – right in the center of historic Rouen, within walking distance of all the famous monuments.

FEBRUARY IS FESTIVAL TIME ON THE RIVIERA!

LEMONS! La Fete du Citron
Menton, Côte d'Azur
February 12 –March 3, 2010

Sitting just a few kilometers from the Italian border, the town of Menton (which used to belong to Genoa) is a sunny, wind-sheltered, mountain-ringed town whose claim to fame is the luscious lemon. Every years since 1930, for two weeks, this Côte d'Azur town puts on a festival that would sweeten even a sourpuss. La Fete du Citron – The Festival of Lemons – celebrates the golden citrus which grows in profusion here, year-round.

Highlights include the Parade of the Gold Fruits with incredible, eye-popping flotillas built entirely of lemons and depicting castles and super-heroes, architectural models and popular characters. There’s also the Moonlight Parade, an Orchid Festival, spectacular fireworks, and the Salon de l'Artisanat, which offers tastes of lemony concoctions and confections.

Parade of the Golden Fruits: Sundays: Feb. 14, 21 & 28 at 2:30 p.m. Moonlit Parade: Thursday, Feb. 18 & 25

Tickets for each event can be purchased online:
http://www.feteducitron.com/menton-french-riviera-lemon-festival-uk.html#5

NOTE: Chocolatine has an expert guide in the town of Menton, available for touring, etc.

Very NICE Carnival!
Nice, February 12 – 28

After enjoying the Fete du Citron, revelers can head west along the coast to Nice for a Mardi Gras party at the Nice Carnival – one of the largest such events in the world. Every year there is a theme and 2010’s is: The King of Planet Earth with more than 20 mind-boggling floats, including huge paper maché figures, that travel the town in daily processions.

More than 1,000 musicians and dancers who come from across the globe provide street entertainment alongside the parades and amazing “flower battles” that take place day and night on the Promenade des Anglais. Fancifully-dressed “flower-people” travel aboard floral floats and throw out thousands of flowers out to the public lining the route. Fireworks and the setting aflame of the parade’s paper “King” make for a dazzling finale.

Flower Parades: Feb. 13, 17, 20, 24, 27
Carnival Parades: Feb. 14, 16, 21 & 28

Events can be booked online: https://reservation.nicecarnaval.com/?lang=eng
At the Ticket office at the Nice Convention and Visitors Bureau…
And at temporary ticket offices set up along the parade route (2 hours before the events).

POTPOURRI! PARIS & PROVENCE in 2010

TURNER & THE MASTERS
National Galleries, Grand Palais: February 22 – May 24
One of the world’s great landscape painters, J.M.W. Turner’s work is also considered a segue into the Impressionist style to follow. The magnificent exhibition at the Grand Palais showcases the artist’s work as it evolved into his unique signature style through more than 100 paintings. Hanging alongside them are works by many of the artists who influenced him, including Titian, Canaletto, Poussin and Rembrandt.

Hours: Fri. – Mon. 9 a.m. to 10 p.m.; Tues., 9 a.m. to 2 p.m.; Wed., 10 a.m. to 10 p.m.; Thurs. 10 a.m. to 8 p.m.

PROVENCE EXCLUSIVE!

REMINDER: Please be sure to tell clients about Chocolatine’s exclusive L’OCCITANE, WINE & CHOCOLATE sojourn, July 4 – 8. From the luxurious villa accommodations surrounded by vineyards to the full-day private tour of internationally renowned L’Occitane by company founder, Olivier Baussan, this is a one-of-a-kind experience for travelers who wish to explore Provence as few others have.

Prestigious wine tastings, private dinners prepared by a Michelin-starred chef, a hands-on pastry and chocolate workshop and tasting are also highlights.

Contact us for more details.

READY... SET... SALES!

HAPPY NEW YEAR! Chocolatine toasts you and yours and wishes you a happy and healthy New Year!

SALE! SALE! SALE!

It’s an annual ritual for the locals and a rite of passage for travelers lucky to be in Paris in January. More than 1,000 stores will post their “SOLDES” signs, from January 6 until February 10. Shoppers line up early in front of their favorite stores (both large department stores and trendy neighborhood boutiques) where clothing, accessories and house wares can be found at discounts from 20 to 70 percent.

Here are a few good shopping strategy tips to share with travelers:

• Browse a couple of days before the sales begin to get acquainted with shops and merchandise that has personal appeal

• Shop during the week, rather than weekends.

• Focus on specific neighborhoods.

• Wear comfortable shoes for the lines and those marathon runs to the next store.

(Did you know that the French government regulates the sales event and that the big bargains are offered only during specific times in January and July?)