Villa Cana, Cassis, France (onefinestay): This is the summer of indulgence, the summer of no regrets, the summer of finally realizing your truest self: Grace Kelly on the French Riviera. It’s the moment you’ve been waiting for when you can book a holiday home that’s more coastal palace fit for royalty than hippie beach shack fit for the whole family… and do it with zero guilt, especially if that rental just so happens to be this fabulous villa in Cassis, France.
Curating the perfect vacation day lounging by the pool is great and all, but it’s not the most important consideration while on holiday. That honor goes to making sure that your day also features gallery-wall perfect aesthetics. In this space, we’re envisioning taking jealousy-inducing photos of you and your crew that channel the vibrant, sun-washed colors and vintage feel of an iconic Gray Malin photograph.
Villa Cana has the DNA for providing a singular holiday experience built into its very bones. In a former life, it was a hotel that hosted the likes of Virginia Woolf and Winston Churchill. We’re sure those two luminaries would consider it an honor for you to add your name to the property’s vaunted list of guests.
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Oh, why can’t Americans do beachside decor like the French? The sand and sea is steps away, but you won’t see any seashells or ships or kitschy knickknacks on the walls or tables at Villa Cana. It’s all French shabby chic in this glamorous home.
This property is downright palatial. It has the space to comfortably host 24 people at one time, which means it’s the perfect venue for that long-awaited reunion you’ve dreamt of planning while trying to keep yourself occupied during the longest year ever.
But if your heart has embraced its antisocial hermit tendencies and isn’t yet ready to handle a crowd, you don’t have to give up your Villa Cana dreams. In the democratic spirit of the French Revolution, you can choose to use only a select number of the bedrooms in the house and pay a reduced rate. Liberté, égalité, fête.
This room has really embraced the full millennial pink trend. While there’s nothing like a pink velvet couch, we think the balcony with Mediterranean views is this room’s most fashionable feature.
There are 12 bedrooms in Villa Cana, each with its own unique decorative touches. So, it shouldn’t be too hard to make sure you’re stumbling into the right one after a night sipping on the finest champagne. ::wink wink::
Repeat the two magic words after us: “fully serviced.” This is what all vacations should be. Embracing being totally lazy while the cooks and other assorted staff bustle around and provide all of the food, drink, and chore-doing services that you could possible want.
It’s hard to decide whether good views or prime location is the most important quality in a vacation rental. But when you’re here living your best Grace Kelly life, there’s no need to choose. You can think about whether you want to make the short walk to the beach or the short walk to the village of Cassis while you’re drinking your coffee and staring out at the azure sea.
Resurrect the parade of silver screen stars who made the French Riviera their summer playground by insisting on a viewing lineup that consists only of Hollywood classics.
How do we love to lounge? Let us count the ways. And more importantly, let us count the number of spaces available in which to indulge this most luxurious of pastimes.
Just add in a hammock and a slight breeze, and we think this might be our favorite room in the house. In addition to a pool, impeccably groomed lawns, and Mediterranean beach access, the grounds of this home also feature orange trees ensuring that your nose can take an olfactory vacation of its own.
This home screams classic French Riviera: speed boats and carafes of bubbly, vintage beach umbrellas and string bikinis.
If celebrities know anything, it’s where and how to throw a properly indulgent vacation. For decades, some of the top stars of the day—Audrey Hepburn and Coco Chanel, Elizabeth Taylor and Beyoncé—have repaired to this chic French coast to experience some much needed R&R. And if we’ve learned anything, it’s that you can never go wrong by following in their footsteps… well, at least when it comes to travel.
Book Your Stay: Villa Cana, Cassis, France: $8,750/night via onefinestay
