We are back and finally adjusted to ATL time.  We had a great trip and thank you so much for all of the arrangements and making it a wonderful graduation trip.  

La Mirande

We loved La Mirande in Avignon! It was very charming and cozy – we love that vibe.  

The breakfast in the morning was fantastic – so fresh and local.  

The cooking class the first day was a little bit of a snafu.  Per the hotel, it is geared toward guests; however, our class was all locals who spoke no English.  My high school French did not help much.  Plus, the chef did not speak any English either!  They have a rotation of chefs that teach the class and we had the one guy who spoke no English.  He was entertaining and tried his best.  The lunch we cooked was delicious and the wine great.  

The dinners were perfect and the hotel restaurant was very elegant.  We enjoyed the kitchen tour as we have never been in a Michelin starred kitchen before.  

Bike Tour

The bike tour was a big hit and makes me want to do a longer bike trip again.  Amy and I did the Loire valley years ago and would be fun to do one with the family.  The guide was great.  We also stopped and did the Van Gogh light show experience during the bike trip and it was very cool.  

Monaco

Monaco was unreal during the race weekend.  As soon as we arrived for check in, we could hear the F1 cars practicing.  Ian took off and went right to the terrace overlooking the track.  We were literally right on top of the track.  The whole scene was over the top – the cars and outfits on display were something we’ve never seen before!

Race day was very cool.  We got to our seats early and watched the parade of cars and drivers.  Our seats were perfect.  We had a good view of a long stretch of track and a first row seat to the party on the yachts in the harbor. I highly recommend the K grandstand and the higher row seats like we had.  The top three rows have little seats and not just a bench.  It rained for about 10 min and the kids didn’t want to leave and we stayed until the end.  I knew Ian would love it but Ansley and Madison were really into it too.  Ansley is now binge watching the Netflix F1 Drive to Survive series.  Amy loved the scene and thought the Ferrari drivers to be very cute.  

Boat Tour

The boat tour day along the Riviera was awesome and the boat quite nice.  Our driver had a lot of gossip about the happenings on the yachts and we enjoyed it.  Eden Roc lived up to its billing and Madison was in heaven.  We need to stay there at some point! The food and view were top notch – thank you for arranging.  Plus, arriving by boat was pretty cool.  

Driving Tour

The driving tour and visit to Saint Paul de Vence was a nice last day.  Our driver called an audible and suggested we skip Cannes since it was so congested with construction post film festival.  We went to Antibes instead and loved it.  The guide was great and very knowledgeable.  

Things to Note!

*The dinners in Monaco were all prix fixe during the race weekend.  The food was great and the scene was very South Beach – a lot of good people watching.  The last two nights thing settled down and the menus went back to a la carte and “normal” Monaco pricing.  

Heading Home

Trip home was smooth and the car service and layover in Paris both went off without a hitch.  

Thank you to the Kreisler Family for sharing their awesome family vacation to Monaco + Provence! Contact Resort to Laura Madrid to plan your oh so chic holiday to Monaco and the South of France!