Holiday Destination: Monaco

I've just come back from an incredible 4 days in Monaco and crash landed in what feels like the middle of November. Take me back to sunshine, cocktails and people watching outside a casino any day! 

There is so much to see and do in Monaco, we struggled to fit it all in. We chose the week to go primarily for the Top Marques car festival, which happened to be on our final morning, so still had 3 and a half days to explore the A-listers hot spot on the French Riviera.

PEOPLE WATCH

If you can't people watch in Monaco, then when can you?! Grab a space near the front at Café de Paris, order a banana split (seriously good stuff) and watch the cars drive past. You can sit there for hours and watch the world go by.

SIGHTSEEING 

We set out on our second day for a whole day of sightseeing and thoroughly enjoyed it. Walking through the back streets led us to incredible views, quiet parks and unique shops. My top places to visit would be the cathedral, the casino, the Port de Fontvieille and the palace.

VIEWS FOR DAYS

The gardens and photogenic spots in Monaco are second to none and will definitely be adding to a few new Instagram posts over the next few days. We visited the Jardin Exotqiue and Jardin St Martin, both easily accessible and completely instagrammable.

SHOPPING

The shops in Monaco really speak for themself. From Chanel to Cartier, D&G to Dior and Zara just to add into the mix, I loved going around all of the shops hunting for my dream purchase. I found myself a handbag in The Kooples that I just couldn't resist so it ended up coming with me! If you fancy a luxury weekend spree, Monte Carlo pretty much has you covered.

The final night in Monaco was definitely a night to remember. The night started in Buddha Bar with an incredible meal and cocktails, followed by a once-in-a-lifetime trip to the casino and ended with drinks at Café de Paris. The casino was beautiful inside - with marble bar areas, a jazz band setting the atmosphere, hand painted ceiling detail and enough men in tux's to kit out the extras for the next 4 James Bond films. If you're in Monaco, fancy dressing up for a night and having a bit of fun, the casino is definitely the place to go.

Holiday Destination: Paris

Paris has always been somewhere I'd love to visit and celebrating my 21st was the ideal excuse to head there for a few nights away. I hadn't looked into the city too much, meaning that our itinerary was quite spontaneous but I had spoken to a few people about their highlights and looked through recommendations, in order to make it the perfect city break. Here's what we got up to during our 3 night French excursion...

WHAT TO DO

Landmarks are always high on my to-do list when visiting a new city and Paris was no exception. Our bus transfer from the airport dropped us at the doorstep of the Eiffel Tower - a great first impression. Later in the week, we also climbed the Tower (when in Paris, right?!) to admire the greatness of the architecture, as well as the incredible views across the city.

We visited all of the landmarks over two days which was a great way to hit everything in one go but in over 30 degree heat, I would definitely choose the metro next time, rather than walking. The first day consisted of the Notre Dame and Ile Saint-Louis, allowing us to explore more of the traditional Paris, mingling with the locals in delicatessens and down the quiet streets.
The following day accounted for Moulin Rouge, Arc de Triomphe, The Louvre and Champs-Elysees. We went FULL tourist.

One of my itinerary highlights was the second night of the trip, when we visited Parc de Princes to watch a PSG game. We both love watching football and seeing this was Neymar's first game, we couldn't miss it. The tickets were easy to book and print online and cost us around £35 each for pretty good seats. It was such a fun night and definitely something I would do again, if visiting an iconic European football club.

Eating and culture

I have a real soft spot for French food and always enjoy finding a local patisserie for lunch (and post-dinner pastries!). The cakes in Paris are like no other and just looking at the pastel perfect window displays will tempt you to visit.

We ate at two amazing restaurants while in Paris which I thought I would share with you. On our first night, we headed to a simple restaurant, 'Bistro Chez France', where we indulged in steak, fish, lots of vin and the most sublime apple tart tatin. The restaurant was a short walk from the Eiffel Tower, hidden in the back streets, but seemed very popular with locals and the service was fantastic and personal.

'Le Grand Colbert' finalised our trip in the most spectacular style. The brasserie style restaurant impressed as soon as we entered - the art-deco lighting, mosaic flooring and attention to detail was not to be missed. We had no idea that this restaurant was a setting for the film 'Something's Gotta Give', but luckily, it wasn't tacky with any memorabilia or Jack Nicholson enthusiasts. If you head here, definitely try the classic french onion soup and make sure you save room for pudding - their pavlova is to die for!