Travel Journals a Gift Idea For Someone Travelling to Provence Côte d’Azur

Social media may be a way to show off your travel photos, but nothing is better than a keepsake that stands the test of time.

Travel Journals Gift Idea

These travel journals from My French Country Home are beautiful books. Filled with watercolour prints, each journal is 128 pages long, with space for notes, sketches, or photos. These booklets are 14.5 x 20.5 cm, fitting in a purse or tote bag. Whether you (or a friend) are heading to the beach in Nice, watching movies in Cannes, eating bouillabaisse in Marseille or touring the Côte d’Azur, these journals are a great gift idea. Combining sustainability with artistry, The books are made with 25% post-consumer recycled paper.

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Côte d’Azur, French Riviera

The French Riviera runs from Cassis (although some suggest Toulon) to the Italian border, passing through famous cities such as Saint Tropez, Cannes, Nice, Monaco and finally Menton. Since 1860, Côte d’Azur has been the French term for this stretch of the azure coastline. Road trips require planning, starting with your time constraints and the amount of time you want to drive. We cover only the highlights below, but there is more to discover in these cities and towns, meriting a more extended stay. Or, perhaps, a return trip to this sun-baked land of turquoise waters and endless opportunities for exploration.

French Riviera: The Must-See Places

Architects such as Barry Dierks, Le Corbusier, José Luis Sert, Eileen Gray and many others left their mark on the French Riviera with enduring creative architecture. Here are 10 magnificent examples.

French Riviera Books to Read

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Maureen Emerson and her husband spent in the South of France for 22 years. She remains enthralled by the stories of those who lived on the Riviera in the 1920s and 1930s and how WWII affected their lives. Maureen has published two books on influential residents of the French Riviera during that era. Her first book, Escape to Provence, published in 2008, is the true story of Lady Winifred Fortescue (author) and Elisabeth Parrish Star (Great War heroine).

Riviera Dreaming, Love and War on the Côte d’Azur Maureen Emerson’s second book is the biography of American architect Barry Dierks. You have probably never heard of Dierks despite the significant residential design work he completed on the Riviera. The story of this young American architect and his partner, Colonel Eric Sawyer, begins in 1925 on the French Riviera. Once WWI traumas faded, French Riviera residents began rebuilding their lives and luxury homes along the coast.

The Riviera Set: Glitz, Glamour, and the Hidden World of High Society is the latest book by author Mary S. Lovell, a biography about the rich or famous who spent time on the French Riviera from the 1920s to 1960. Many of these people gathered at the art deco home of Maxine Elliot Château de l’Horizon near Cannes. An American actress, Elliot, has an interesting backstory that Lovell covers in Part One of the book. Elliot’s acting career launched in 1893 with a lead role in The Prodigal Daughter on Broadway. International stage successes, rocky marriages and financial stability followed. Eventually, she arrived on the French Riviera with her Rolodex in the late 1920s.

Like many of us, Renata Haidle is based in Montana but is smitten with Provence and the Côte d’Azur. French Riviera is her first book, which contains 92 impossibly beautiful images of the towns in the region.

Virginia Johnson is a Canadian textile designer and artist. After challenging her artistic skills in New York City for seven years, she returned to Toronto, Ontario. Whether you have been to the French Riviera countless times or have always dreamed of the place, Virginia Johnson’s Travels Through the French Riviera is an insider’s guide from an artist’s perspective. Johnson is a Canadian designer and illustrator. Her book is a compilation of years of exploration along the Côte d’Azur with her sketchbook and paintbrushes.

Carolyne Kauser-Abbott

With her camera and laptop close at hand, Carolyne has traded in her business suits for the world of freelance writing and blogging. Her first airplane ride at six months of age was her introduction to the exciting world of travel.

While in Provence, Carolyne can be found hiking with friends, riding the hills around the Alpilles or tackling Mont Ventoux. Her attachment to the region resonates in Perfectly Provence this digital magazine that she launched in 2014. This website is an opportunity to explore the best of the Mediterranean lifestyle (food & wine, places to stay, expat stories, books on the region, travel tips, real estate tips and more), through our contributors' articles.

Carolyne writes a food and travel blog Ginger and Nutmeg. Carolyne’s freelance articles can be found in Global Living Magazine, Avenue Magazine and City Palate (Published Travel Articles).