DORÉ

It’s time to take a holiday. At the Studio, we’ve been carefully mapping out our summer vacations for weeks. As you know, Garance is headed to Greece, Italy and Ibiza starting next week and we are…well… jealous. Just in case you haven’t planned your vacation yet and are still looking to get away… I thought we should ask a few of our friends for their vacation plans and tips!

Safe travels!!

Lolita Jacobs, Saint Tropez

“We have a family house a little above the village, it is the house in “And God Created Women”– from the actual from the movie! It used to be an old farm and my parents renovated it with their amazing bohemian taste (well I like to think so). It is very charming, not at all the typical villa. Full of paintings, trinkets, colored fabrics, flowers… My dream house in the South of France.”

Stay: L’Hotel Ermitage is really nice to stay at for a few days for the view and the great terrace at the end of the day. The Hotel Sube, old fashion but very charming.

Eat: I love le Banh Hoi for diner, a Thai restaurant with an amazing vibe and interior. Le Club 55 for lunch, I always have la tarte Ramatuelle with some fresh goat cheese or the crudités platter. Delicious. For a typical aperitif at the end of the day, we always go to La Place aux Herbes, have a glass of white wine and some fresh oysters Chez Madeleine.

Drink: My favorite spot in the morning is Senequier. I go there every morning to have a fresh orange juice and a brioche au sucre with my god father. We read the newspaper (Var matin for him, Vogue for me) and say hello to everyone. St Tropez is a small village and all the regulars know each other.

I also adore having a drink with my mum & dad on the terrace of the Hotel Sube. It is above the harbor. You get to observe the crowd laughing and sipping a Bellini.

Shop: The best shop is by far the beach boutique at Club 55. They have an amazing bathing suit selection, thousands of tasteful summer bracelets and beach dresses. Plus some original pillows, foulards and many other beautiful objects. Perfect place for any kind of gift.

The Place des Lices market on Tuesdays and Saturdays is great for finding the perfect wicker basket, vintage books, antique hunting with my father. There is an amazing candy stand as well, and I have a big sweet tooth.

Do: Swimming in the sea, going out at Les Caves du Roy (don’t forget your earplugs, the sound is outrageous), riding the roads of Ramatuelle on a scooter with my boyfriend and going to the secret beach of Cap Taillat.

Viviana Volpicella, Southern Italy

“My home country, Puglia, in a small town called Marittima. It’s in the southern part of my beloved Puglia. There is an international community there and privacy is the watchword.”

Stay: Rent a house from Tulsi Room in Marittima.

Eat: Corte Degli Aranci, a restaurant in Taviano, another small town.

Drink: An aperitivo at the Harbour Bar in Tricase, a small town on the sea.

Shop: Tulsi Shop. It’s a cute boutique by an Irish friend of mine, Deborah Nolan. She lives in Marittima and she sells cool dresses, sandals and bags that she loves from around the world.

Do: We (my love and I) used to rent a little wood boat (the typical name is gozzo) and we love spending all day along the Puglia coast where you can find small and pure bays.

Kate Foley, Lamu Island, Kenya

“I love that it’s so relaxed. It’s quite hard to get to so it puts people off going! I go to escape work and the hustle and bustle of NY so definitely don’t want to run into a million people. It’s also incredibly beautiful!”

Stay: I stay at a private house but the Peponi, a family run hotel, is beautiful .

Eat: Fresh fish carpaccio and gazpacho.

Drink: Order an “Old Pal” at the Peponi Bar.

Shop: I love Aman a beautiful boutique which sells a carefully curated mix of international and local clothing and accessory brands.

Do: Swim at Shela Beach, wakeboard, sail, eat and relax!

Violaine Bernard, Brittany

“Saint-Cast, a little beach town in Brittany where I spent all my summers growing up.”

Stay: I stay at my grand-parents house where I also love to have a nap under the cherry tree and also pick berries and peas straight form the garden to munch on. This is a great time for me to go there as now I’m a mother, I no longer sleep in the kid’s room!
So the best way to spend your holiday there is to rent a house. There are 7 beaches in Saint-Cast so it’s hard to find a place you can rent out further than a 10 minute walk from the beach.

Eat: Meal time is a very big deal in France. Especially in our house! I actually feel like I spend most of my vacation sitting at the table…
Lunches are usually at home with all the family but the best place to have dinner with friends is at the Jardin Délice where you can sit outside in the garden, that’s usually where we drink too!

Chez Marie is the best for crêpes and galettes, which are Brittany’s specialities. If you want to share seafood with your other half and watch the sun set, go to La Marinière, which is right by the beach and ask for David.

Drink: The best place to get a coffee is La Belle Meunière where you can eat the most amazing pastries (probably in the world!!). Their croissants and pains au chocolat literally melt in your mouth. Just be ready. For a drink or ice cream on the beach though, go to the Lézard.

Shop: The best is to go to the market every Monday where you can find clothes from Petit Bateau (cheaper than anywhere else) and also some vintage cotton and lace table wear. You can get fresh food there also and trying the “Galette saucisse” is a must. Côté Plage is good for home wear and don’t forget to get a few pairs of espadrilles at la Maison Blanche when you arrive. The big Pharmacy is always great to stock up on French beauty products.

Do: Even though it gets very busy during the summer, it’s still quiet compare to other more famous summer destinations in Brittany. Some cliff views still blow my mind (and now probably your Instagram account) even though I’ve seen them all my life. There is a sailing spot as well where you can book few windsurfing lessons. But really the best thing to do there is to explore and lay on the many beaches, relax and eat!

Kate Dougherty, Colorado to Oregon

“I’ll be joining my boyfriend Ben Towill and my brother Patrick Dougherty on a bike journey from Colorado to Oregon. The NY Times has been following them on their cross-country biking ride, which they began in Virginia 5 weeks ago – Ben writing & Patrick taking the photos. All stories are focused on finding healthy alternative farms and people doing inspiring things with food across the States, raising money for a NY Charity called Just Food. ”

Stay: With our tent and sleeping bags on our bikes, we will be camping each night in some wildly beautiful National Parks like Grand Tetons and Yellowstone in Wyoming.

Eat: Lots of energy bars and buffalo jerky.

Drink: Lots of water, cheap beers and of course a Negroni wherever I can find one!

Shop: I will be sending postcards along the way!

Do: Averaging 75 miles a day for this 4 week 2,000 mile adventure, I’d say we’ll just be doing lots of biking, sleeping, drinking, and meeting as many inspiring people as we can along the way.

Lola Rykiel, California

“I’ve been going for solo holidays trips all over the place but since I tried this place, I just keep going back. I love NY lifestyle but it is very stressful and sometimes I just feel like I smoke too many cigarettes, drink too many coffees and spend all my day emailing, texting, answering without interruptions. It is important for me to free-up from these little addictions and reconnect with pure and simple things.
I like the idea of taking good care of yourself. For me holidays are no longer about partying and doing crazy wild things. I want to finally go slow, go to bed early and be in the nature (and get daily massages too!).”

Stay: The Pearl Laguna, a health detox meditation retreat. A beautiful lush farm, in the hills of Laguna, California.

Eat:An alkaline diet. Vegetarian fresh meals home cooked with most ingredients grown in the gardens. No sugar, no meat, no fish, nothing that is not whole, but we do eat delicious goat cheese and fresh eggs from the farm as well as plenty of fruits and veggies, all locally grown and very tasty.

Drink: Homemade juices, every day there is a different kind: pear and cucumber, clementine and watermelon, and green juices. A lot of alkaline water that is part of the detox too, No rosé, no lattes, no diet coke. These are the enemies!! When I come back to the city I still try to keep away from them. I last one week maximum. MAXIMUM.

Shop: The detox is about detoxing from shopping! So there is nothing to buy, except Katresha’s skincare that is sold at the farm and I always buy every product.

Do: Meditation in the morning for one hour, Hike 3 hours a day (that’s hard), cut off my phone and Instagram (detox of social media addiction), swim in the sea (the salt and the sea are really good to clear bad energy), get massages everyday (it is part of the program), relax, read, try to give myself some time away from the city and to be in contact with nature.

Caroline Issa, Ibiza

“I love Ibiza because, despite it’s party animal reputation, up in the hills tucked away it is an oasis of beauty and relaxation. Counter-intuitive, I know – but absolutely true. Plus the food! Delicious! I’ve been going for the last 5 years and love that if we want to socialize we can dip into it, or just rest, read and eat up in the hills amongst the amazing greenery and enjoy.”

Stay: Up in the mountains in my friends’ Stefano and Monica’s amazing villa, far away from the craziness

Eat: La Paloma or my other favorite, but that one’s a secret so I can still get a reservation!

Drink: Margaritas by El Chiringuito beach.

Shop: Usually the local supermarket for evening BBQs!

Do: Stay by the pool and swim, read and stuff myself silly!

Cisco Gorrow, Bali

“I try to soak up the sun, surf, relax and enjoy the beautiful & gentle Balinese people and culture.”

Stay: In my eyes, there are three main places to stay when you come to Bali. The Bukit is the furthest southern tip of Bali. Here you can find the best surf reefs & biggest waves and great views of Bali. The second place is Canggu which is close to Seminjak. I prefer the more quite Canggu area. Here I stay at Villa RedDoor. In Ubud, I usually stay a night or two at the Como Shambhala Estate.

Eat: I spend most of my time in Canggu where I usually have my breakfast after my morning surf at Old Man’s located on Batu Bolong which is a laid back beach hang out. They make the best avocado on toast. If I don’t have time to make my own lunch and I am ok to deal with the traffic, I go to my all time favorite place in town called Zula. If I feel like an Indonesian fine dining experience for dinner I go Bambu. The food here is light, spicy and exciting.

In Ubud most places are Yogi friendly and mainly vegetarian and vegan. This is Bali’s capital for the health conscious food movement. In general every Warung serves fresh food and freshly squeezed juices in Ubud so you cant go wrong.

Drink: For some live music and a good crowd, I swing by Old Man’s on a Friday or Sunday night. For a nice cocktail and a great view, I go to KuDeTa in Seminjak. When I’m in Uluwatu, I have a sundowner at Single Fin.

Shop: My favorite shop to stock up on sarongs (you can never have enough!!!), beautiful silk shirts and scarfs, is Kalyan in Seminjak. If I need anything for the beach from bikinis or surf accessories I go to Drifter which is a local surf concept store where you can generally find something good.

Do: I like to kick start my day with an early morning surf at Batu Bolong or a yoga class at Samadi Bali. We do day trips to Balian for great waves, Padang Padang for beautiful white sand beaches & great surf or Belangen for a nice uncrowded tropical beach. If I want to pamper myself I go to Devira for a massage or call them for a home visit.