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Arrive
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Day 1 Arrival in Normandy
Arrive in Paris Charles de Gaulle today where you will be met by your driver guide and take a scenic journey through the Normandy countryside to Deauville. Known for its lavish casinos and elegant racecourse, Deauville was the favoured resort of fashionable French society and is intrinsic to the story of Coco Chanel. It was here that she holidayed with her great love, the dashing English polo player Arthur 'Boy' Capel. Deauville was also the location of the first Chanel boutique. This afternoon, begin your immersion into Coco's France with the opportunity to attend either a polo match at one of the ultra-chic clubs in the town, or a race meeting at the beloved racecourse - a favourite activity of Chanel and her set in the 1920s, and continuing to this day.
Upgrade option : En route to Normandy made a stop to visit Claude Monet's Giverny gardens.
Overnight: Hotel Barriere Le Normandy
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Day 2 Discover Chanel's Normandy
After a leisurely breakfast at your hotel you will be able to further explore the fashionable seaside town of Deauville and discover why it was the preferred summer haunt of Parisian high society. Stroll along the chic beachfront boardwalk lined with Art Deco beach huts, observe the grand and timeless architecture of the town and visit the location of Mademoiselle Chanel's first boutique. This afternoon, you may wish to follow one of Chanel's most adored pastimes if you did not have the opportunity on your arrival day, joining in the action at either a thrilling polo match or glamorous race meeting.
Overnight: Hotel Barriere Le Normandy
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Day 3 Journey to the Rue Cambon
Today your immersions into the world of Coco Chanel continue, first with a visit to the opulent Villa Strassburger which offers an insight into the fashionable society of the Roaring Twenties in Normandy. Coco Chanel and Boy Capel were known to have visited American industrialist Ralph Strassburger, a passionate horse lover, hence his home's proximity to Deauville racecourse. Continue to the neighbouring town of Trouville, another of France's storied northern beach resorts, from its heyday in the height of the Jazz era. You will then bid farewell to the coast as your driver guide whisks you to the French capital and your accommodation at Hotel Castile Paris, situated just steps from the original Parisian Chanel boutique at 31 Rue Cambon. Finish your day by taking tea at Café Angelina, an essential daily habit for Mademoiselle Chanel throughout her life in Paris.
Upgrade option: Pay a visit to the last traditional beret maker in France, for a beret fitting from the most fashionable milliner in the city, whose clients include some of the most revered fashion houses in the industry. Choose from any number of colours and fabrics, with expert advice on hand [purchases payable locally] whilst learning about the present-day fashion of beret wearing.
Overnight: Castille Paris
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Day 4 Paris : where Coco became Chanel
This morning you will be able to explore the collections at the Museum of Fashion and Textiles within the Musée des Arts Decoratif to view some of Chanel's most iconic designs in conversation with other great works of French fashion through the decades. From here, travel to the Grand Palais, where some of the House of Chanel's most exquisite and revered shows have taken place, within the glass dome of this legendary Beaux-Arts structure. Explore the ever-changing temporary exhibitions and gain a sense of the scale and spectacle of the shows displayed here. Finish your day with a personal shopping experience at Samaritaine, Paris' chicest department store. With extensive Chanel collections available, not to mention every noteworthy designer from the pages of Vogue, there will be something for every taste and budget!
Overnight: Castille Paris
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Day 5 A stroll along Rue Cambon
Further explorations of Chanel's Paris await today, beginning at the Palais Galliera, another beloved venue for Chanel runway shows and where a number of galleries and exhibition spaces are supported by the house of Chanel today. Stroll through the Golden Triangle, Paris' chicest neighbourhood, where some of the last names in 'haute-mode' have their flagship boutiques. Take a walk down Rue Cambon, home of the eponymous Paris boutique, before arriving at The Ritz Paris, where Gabrielle called home for the latter decades of her life. We will make a lunch reservation for you at the Ritz. Spend the rest of the day at leisure for shopping - we recommend that you use this time to visit the 31 Rue Cambon Chanel boutique, just steps from the Ritz Paris.
Overnight: Castille Paris
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Day 6 Journey to the Côte d'Azur
This morning you will be driven to the station where you will board a first class train to Nice, and arrive in style on the French Riviera. Here you will meet your driver guide who will escort you to the Chateau de Cremat, where Coco Chanel was a frequent guest. The distinctive Art Deco design is thought to have inspired the interlocking C's that is now emblematic of the fashion house today.
After time to explore the chateau, you will travel on to the delightful Riviera resort of Juan les Pins, a favourite destination for Coco throughout her life. Check into the Hotel Belles Rives, which in the 1920s was the home of F Scott Fitzgerald and his wife Zelda. It is very likely that they would have rubbed shoulders with Chanel and her 'Riviera Set' during the Roaring Twenties and into the Jazz Age.
Overnight: Hotel Belles Rives
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Day 7 A day in Chanel's Riviera
Spend the day exploring some of the areas of the French Riviera best known and best loved by Coco Chanel, uncovering the glitz and glamour of the jazz age and the birthplace of beach style. Visit Roquebrune-Cap-Martin, where Chanel kept a villa for a number of years. Explore the heady pine forests and olive grove filled hillsides that provided a respite from the pressures of the fashion industry as well as inspiration for future collections.
Continue along the Côte and visit some of the seafront villages that became a haven for royalty, aristocracy and celebrities of the day. You'll discover the landscapes that provided a canvas for the legendary 'beach pyjamas' - a look which epitomised the louche glamour of visitors to the Cote in the 1920s and 30s. Finish your day in Grasse to discover the rose fields owned by the house of Chanel to create 'rose absolute', the defining note of Chanel no. 5. A multi-sensory pleasure as evocative today as it was during the life of Coco, this is the perfect encapsulation of your journey in the footsteps of Chanel. This evening, return to the heyday of the Riviera Set and enjoy some live jazz in the Bar Fitzgerald at the Belles Rives.
Overnight: Hotel Belles Rives
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Day 8 Depart
After a final breakfast on the Riviera, check out of your hotel and transfer privately to Nice airport, ahead of your departure flight.
Upgrade option : indulge in the ultimate treat for a disciple of Chanel - a stay in the Suite Coco Chanel at the Ritz Paris, which Madame herself called home for 34 years.
Extension option [1] : start your journey in London to visit the Victoria and Albert Museum's blockbuster exhibition 'Gabrielle Chanel. Fashion Manifesto'.
Extension option [2] : spend a full day with a fashion stylist to discover your own Parisian style.
Extension option [3] : enjoy some sunshine on the Côte d'Azur and extend your stay at the Belles Rives for a couple of nights, to soak up the rays at the hotel's private beach club.
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Depart
