Grace Kelly travel tips

As the birthplace of American democracy — where the Founding Fathers debated and signed the Declaration of Independence and the US Constitution — Philadelphia is best known for its rich history. Well, that and cheesesteaks, and that movie about that boxer.

Nestled along the promontory overlooking the St. Lawrence River, with distinctive architecture including its iconic soaring turrets, the Fairmont Le Chateau Frontenac is the stuff of hotel legend. One glance at the fortresslike structure and it's easy to see why many consider it the most photographed hotel in the world.

Airline rage? Passengers being duct-taped to their seat? Arrests after landing? That is the state of much of air travel today – and it makes a lot of people yearn for the Golden Age of Travel – when Pan Am ruled the skies. And people actually dressed up for the occasion.

For those looking to visit Sicily and experience it in a new way, a good place to start is the Villa Igiea in Palermo. A cherished landmark, the villa is testament to a great Italian dynasty, theFlorios, who were widely chronicled in Europe for both their business acumen and social prowess, as the Astors and Vanderbilts were in the U.S., during the Belle Epoque. Designed in neo-Gothic and Art Nouveau styles, Villa Igiea was purchased by the Florios to be used as a health retreat for an ailing daughter. Instead they turned it into a hotel, which would come to be known for a glittering guest list that included kings and emperors and film-world royalty like Roberto Rossellini and Sophia Loren. In 2019, Rocco Forte Hotels purchased the historic property and initiated a multi-year refurbishment overseen by Olga Polizzi, director of design and deputy chairman of RFH.

Palm Beach Cannes, an iconic destination on the French Riviera since the 1920s, is set to reopen during the Cannes Film Festival after undergoing a four-year renovation. The new launch will feature the first-ever waterfront saltwater pool on the Riviera, offering magnificent views of the Bay of Cannes. Additionally, there will be a fitness center, wellness area, luxury boutiques, and a large ballroom.

With its crystalline waters and sublime beaches, Sardinia’s Costa Smeralda, a 20- kilometer tranche of seaside running along the island’s northeast coast, has been a go-to for the world’s elite for decades. When Prince Karim, Aga Khan IV, who led a consortium that developed the area in the 1960s, first surveyed a then barren landscape he reportedly said, “There is a multitude of fine sandy beaches and no one to walk on them.” But once the posh retreat—sustainably planned and created by top architects of the day—opened for business it drew a rarified crowd, including Greta Garbo, Grace Kelly and Gianni Agnelli, who came to experience the unique beaches, or at least gaze at them with admiration from their nearby yachts.

The French Riviera is often defined by what made it famous in the first place: Historic grande dame hotels, spectacular scenery, visions of jet setters basking in champagne-soaked glamour, and cruising the coast in vintage convertibles a la Grace Kelly. These scenes remain beyond Slim Aarons’ iconic photography, and each summer, a parade of well-heeled travelers arrive, toting the latest bags from Chanel and Dior.

Recently listed for $12.5 million, and situated 50 minutes from Monaco, Les Moulins du Villars on the French Riviera is an estate with important historical significance and a special connection to Grace Kelly.

The Hôtel de Paris is a Monte Carlo institution just steps away from the famous Casino of Monte Carlo and steeped in history. Originally opened in 1864, the property has recently undergone an extensive renovation, creating a hotel that is filled with modern touches but that also is deeply respectful of its Belle Epoque tradition. In addition to providing a very luxurious experience, one of the hotel’s most important undertakings is its deep commitment to sustainability.

Reading this breathtaking account of the transformations of the French Riviera over the last two millenniums is like riding shotgun with a racecar driver in the Monaco Grand Prix.

For nearly a century, the Monte-Carlo Beach hotel has been welcoming well-heeled guests—including Grace Kelly, Leonardo DiCaprio and Rihanna—to the French Riviera. After two years of renovation, the hotel reopened last year with a chic, minimalist redesign by architect India Mahdavi that pays homage to the 1930s. The reborn Monte-Carlo Beach features three restaurants, a PAOMA spa, and a new emphasis on sustainability.

There’s a common misconception that entrepreneurs are so single-minded that they don’t have any time for hobbies. That they have to be so focused on their business that they can’t shift their attention to something that is simply interesting to them.

It was the shower for me. A shower convinced me that more luxury fashion brands should explore expansions into hotels and resorts. This particular shower was in my suite at the Bulgari Hotel Paris, one of the legendary Italian brand’s newer properties opened in December of 2021. For some reason, a lot of luxury resorts and hotels like to tout “rainfall” showers as a feature of their rooms, but for the most part, and in the hundreds of properties I’ve visited, such “rainfall” showers usually feel like a downpour let down. But not at the Bulgari Hotel Paris: this shower was transformative, the droplets so fine yet plentiful and luxuriously soft that I knew I had never felt real rain in actual nature like THIS.