THE CABOT COLLECTION ADDS GOLF DU MEDOC RESORT IN BORDEAUX, FRANCE

Paris is hosting this year's Summer Olympics — but that's not where we kicked off the Games.

A glamorous reboot of the Orient Express is hitting the rails in 2025, and the first look inside its carriages is breathtaking.

Whenever I visit Saint-Rémy-de-Provence—which I do a few times a year to visit my parents, who retired here almost a decade ago—I roll out of bed every morning before 7 a.m., often feeling the effects of the rosé from the night before, and walk with my dad into town while the streets are still waking up. This is partly because it gets so hot here in the South of France, and partly because my dad is a creature of habit. The morning routine goes a little like this: a brisk stroll up the road to the Bar Tabac des Alpilles, where the owner Patrick brings out coffees (café express for my dad, café creme for me) and one of the other early morning regulars hands us a newspaper to thumb through.

France knocked out world and pan-American football champions Argentina after winning 1-0 in Bordeaux on Friday, in a heated game that ended with a massive brawl that followed more than ten minutes of stoppage time.

Jul 30, 2024 • 7 min read

The Skift Travel Podcast is continuing its series on the Paris Olympics. This episode features a discussion with Patrick Mendes, Accor’s CEO for Europe and North Africa. Accor is an official partner for this year’s Games, as well as Europe’s largest hotel group.

As Paris gears up for the Summer Olympics, the city has been a study in contrasts. Typically busy quarters like the Marais seem quieter than usual, while others, such as the areas around the Hotel de Ville and Notre Dame, hum with activity.

I've traveled around the world, but even after a dozen visits, Paris remains my favorite city. I never tire of its cafés, restaurants, parks, or opportunities to practice my French.

Paris is expected to welcome 11.3 million visitors during the Olympic Games, significantly increasing its population density. This surge in visitors is spurring travel demand to international destinations, such as Italy and the United States, that harness this desire to leave crowds behind, also benefiting United Kingdom, Spain, and Greece, as well as farther destinations, such as Thailand or Japan.

Over the coming weeks, some 15 million visitors will descend upon Paris for the 2024 Olympics. And many will linger longer, hitting the country’s hotspots such as the much-loved Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur, which already teems with travelers. So if you’ve been eyeing a hotel nestled in the quaint town of Gordes, or dreaming about a dip off the coast of Antibes or Saint-Tropez, you might want to think again. But that doesn’t mean you have to rule out a sojourn to the South of France altogether–other sunny locations including lesser-trafficked Marseille and the Luberon Valley, sans Masseratis and glitzy Gucci slides, are indeed worthwhile for a quiet city break.

Recently, I walked through Paris to meet a friend on the Rive Gauche. On the hour-long route from my home in Montmartre, I popped in for a croissant at a favorite boulangerie, skirted around the Palais Royal, passed the pyramid of the Louvre, crossed the Seine. Post-coffee, the walk home unfolded in reverse. I ran a few errands as I got closer to my apartment: greens and radishes at our neighborhood épicerie, a crusty and warm baguette at another boulangerie, a bottle of sparkling wine at the caviste. Pausing briefly to adjust my grip on the bags at the base of the stairs leading up to the Sacre-Cœur, I made the inevitable climb up.

Eco river tourism continues to grow fast in France – and a new four-river network brand in the Atlantic Loire Valley, Les Rivières de l’Ouest (‘The Rivers of Western France’) is launching to the UK market this year. Located in France’s largest basin of navigable rivers, Les Rivières de l’Ouest unites three departments – Mayenne, Sarthe and Anjou – and four rivers – la Mayenne, la Sarthe, L’Oudon and La Maine. Why visit? To experience France’s slow and green ‘tourisme fluvestre’ – a mix of ‘fluviale’ (river-based) and ‘terrestre’ (land-based) activities…