Summary of these 2 days at the Cannes Shopping Festival

On the occasion of Cannes Shopping Festival 2014, The Cannes Tourism Office invited us to experience this annual fashion event and prepared a lovely program to introduce us to Cannes from several angles: fashion, gastronomy and the art of living. As soon as we returned from our fabulous Euro trip with InterRail, we immediately followed it up the next day with the Cannes Shopping Festival weekend.

It was a first for us; especially for Thibault, actually! Being also a fashion enthusiast, I had heard about this event that takes place every year in Cannes in April in the specialized magazines. This time, the opportunity to experience the event live! We went to the Palais des Festivals on Saturday, April 19, in the grand auditorium to watch the Chacok and BCBGMAXAZRIA fashion show from the front row. By chance or not, the theme of the two fashion shows was centered around travel, to our greatest delight.

Without going into the details of the analysis of each collection, the outfits were dazzling with outfits in acid colors for Chacok, with stunning effect. As for the models, they were all beautiful, radiant and very smiling. The staging of the Chacok show was successful, with Harley Davidson on stage to set the scene and a video projection of an authentic motorcycle road trip, with hair in the wind, from Rio de Janeiro to Miami, from Brazil to Florida, passing through Arizona.

This is followed by a pleasant evening at Tube, a new restaurant that opened a few months ago and offers delicious, refined cuisine while being generous, in a unique setting that changes from what one is used to seeing in Cannes. No more rhinestones, sequins, and «lounge» atmospheres where you keep playing the Cafe del Mar or Hotel Coste playlist in a loop. No more. Here you will dine in a «punchy» restaurant with Catalan inspiration and a slightly industrial and urban decor, in short… We love it! The volume of the main room is impressive and the walls are adorned with contemporary, offbeat paintings. There is an immense bar with hundreds of bottles of wine stacked on the wall behind, and at the back there is a large open kitchen where you can see the team at work preparing delicious dishes using fresh and organic ingredients. During a meal you feel like you are in a Williamsburg NY We do somewhat regret the high volume of the music that made it difficult to hear each other! But we will definitely be returning soon; we had a big crush on the cuisine, it was a delight. Big kudos to Chef Bertrand Schmitt. Facebook page of the restaurant Le Tube

After this pleasant and delicious evening, we spent the night at the Canberra, a very beautiful 4-star hotel that deserves to be known and that would deserve its place on the Croisette, alongside the Majestic, the Martinez or the Marriott. The decor is very beautiful with a contemporary, elegant and fresh style, with its magnificent relaxing garden and its beautiful swimming pool. A haven of peace where tranquility reigns, right in the heart of the city of festivals! The service is excellent and the staff always pleasant and ready to help or provide information if needed. Our room was very beautiful, bright with a contemporary decor, while maintaining a cocooning atmosphere. Big kudos for the comfort of the king size bed (happiness!) and for the style/decoration of the bathroom with its colorful lighting, a truly stunning effect. The next morning, a huge breakfast was served in the dining room with its large glass windows overlooking the verdant terrace; a treat! We had an excellent (and too short!) stay at the hotel Canberra and we highly recommend this establishment. Good value for money.

It’s Sunday, we want to stay in bed, take our time, «chill» here and there between the gym and the garden, but it’s already time to check out and leave the hotel to get back to our scheduled time of 11:30 AM. The Forville market, a real institution in the city center of Cannes where you can buy the best fruits and vegetables, as well as many local specialties (olive oil, tapenade, olives, pistou, fresh pasta, honey, cheese, charcuterie, meat, fish, etc…). A place of friendly, lively and traditional life where the locals gather. Take advantage of the opportunity to enjoy fresh tagliatelle and Parmesan for a delicious dinner in the future! A must stop at the café on the sunny terrace of a bar located opposite the Forville market.

This sensory experience at the market has whet our appetite and it’s time to go to the Private beach Vegaluna at the Croisette in Cannes to enjoy an excellent Easter lunch. And what a meal! First of all, we were warmly welcomed by Cécile, the young owner who presented us with a «on-demand» Travel Me Happy menu prepared by Chef Antoine Regnault. The service is excellent, the Mediterranean-inspired dishes are delicious. The Vegaluna even thought of entertaining the children by creating a leisure area with swings and slides while the parents relax on the sun loungers facing the sea. The ideal place to spend a pleasant moment with family, friends or as a couple.

We thank you the Cannes tourism office As well as all his partners for having made us discover the city of festivals in all its different facets! An unforgettable weekend… See you next year Cannes Shopping Festival 2015 !