The French Riviera is the very lap of luxury. It oozes glamour and has a certain je ne sais quoi about it. Immaculately beautiful, it's a holiday hot spot for film stars, royalty and business magnates. And you can just pack a pair of shorts, some well-worn T-shirts and a dog-eared copy of Europe On A Shoestring Budget this is the French Riviera after all.

Glamour Kittens
French and fashion the words go together like Ross and Rachel, vanilla and chocolate sauce, Christmas and presents; they are inseparable. Your average French Riviera visitor follows fashion trends; she probably sets them, for all we know. Desperately chic whatever time of the day, the Riviera crowd believes in the ˜less is more fashion mantra. The beaches are crawling with women in the teeniest of bikinis if that at all perfectly accessorised with shoes, handbags and jewellery, and often the obligatory small dog (chances are it will be a poodle).
Don't get us wrong, you don't need to go over the top and look like a chicken that's raided Chanel; subtlety and understated elegance are the key.
The Rue de France in Nice is a pedestrianised shopping street that has several small boutiques, chic couturiers and shopping arcades such as the Galeries Lafayette to visit. In Cannes, there's an equal number of upper crust stores in and around the Rue D'Antibes and Boulevard de la Croisette, as well as the flea market or brocante held every Saturday near the old port. For perfume shopping, head to Grasse, a beautifully set Medieval town, where the air is heavy with the smell of mimosa, jasmine, violets and tuberose from the numerous factories extracting the essential oils that go into the making of parfum, eau de toilette, soap and cosmetics.

Beach Bodies
It's mild in winter and never too hot in the summer on the Riviera. Temperatures range from 6° C to 29° C, and on most days, the ice-blue Mediterranean is bathed in sun.
A love of the sea and sun is a definite plus for fitting in here. In Nice, the Promenade des Anglais is a superb seafront boulevard that follows the curve of the Baie des Anges, and overlooks most of Nice's beaches 15 private ones that provide mattresses, parasols, changing cabins and showers, as well as many more well-kept public beaches. There's a definite Californian air to the boulevard, with joggers and roller bladers threading through the crowds, and sun worshippers soaking in the rays on the shingle beaches, which become soft sand further down towards Cannes.

Culture Vultures
It pays to have an interest in the arts on the Riviera. There are over a hundred museums and historic monuments, two grand opera houses and artistic events all year round. Only the Riviera can offer you more than 730 concerts, 1,200 theatre performances and 90 operas annually. Its beauty inspired Renoir, Picasso and Matisse, and there are several museums dedicated to their works.
Nice sees a carnival in February, complete with fireworks, Mardi Gras parades and bonfires. There's a traditional folk festival in May, and a festival of the sea in June, while July sees a jazz fest pulling in the genres bigwigs from across the world. Nice is also home to several fine buildings, like the law courts, opera house and L'eglise Russe, a beautiful Russian orthodox church crowned with five onion-shaped domes. Simply take a walk through the old part of town, with its maze-like streets filled with antiquity, to discover more.

Gastronomes
There's a lot more to French food than baguette bread, which incidentally happens to be one of those must-haves to blend right in. The Riviera is filled with delightful places to satiate an appetite from Michelin-starred restaurants, to relaxed terrace cafis. Wine flows faster and easier than water, and don't be too surprised if a small bottle of Perrier costs more than a glass of wine. The local cuisine has a strong Mediterranean accent, with an abundant use of spices, and plenty of seafood on offer. Traditional Nicoise dishes like socca, a savoury giant pancake made of chickpea flour and olive oil, or the delicious salade Nicoise, ratatouille and aioli, a mayonnaise and garlic dip, are all worth trying. Every restaurant and cafi is an open invitation to sit back and take it all in, which is as good a way as any to discover the Riviera.

Sports Stars
Chances are that if you love fast cars, you'll love the Riviera. Only the latest models of Ferrari and Lamborghini are worth looking at; Porsches and BMWs, why, you see them all the time!
The car museum just off the A8 from Nice to Cannes is full of priceless vintage model sports cars, Formula 1 racing cars and motorcycles. Motorcar enthusiasts should also drive to Monte Carlo and take a spin on the Grand Prix circuit there.
If you'd rather speed on water, hiring jet scooters is a must. With nothing but your fear to stop you, you can ride the waves as fast as you want. Alternatively, hire a speedboat, or try your hand at paragliding, horse riding or bungee jumping.
For sport of a more sedentary and glamorous nature, head to one of the glitzy casinos in the Riviera. In Nice, there's the Casino Ruhl on the Promenade des Anglais, while Monte Carlo has plenty more to choose from, often frequented by genuine sports stars who've made this tiny tax haven their home. Entry is always with jacket and tie.

Love The High Life
If you relish nothing more than a plush hotel and a big fluffy pillow to rest your head on, the Riviera has many a palatial hotel with monumental facades and lobbies reflecting the high society lifestyle for which they set the scene. The Westminster, Excelsior and the rather ostentatious Negresco in Nice, The Martinez in Cannes and the Hermitage in Monaco are some of the best.
If you want to surround yourself with luxury, go to Monte Carlo, which itself is a symbol of luxurious living and the earthly pleasures only money can buy. Located in the principality of Monaco, it's worth spending a day here, exploring the streets overflowing with life and colour, seeing the changing of the guard outside the Prince's Palace, visiting the oceanographic museum and Princess Grace's memorial.
Equally lavish is Cannes, where the who's who of Europe gather every summer aboard their sprawling ocean-going yachts, while the Film Festival in May only pulls in more of the creme de la creme from around the globe.
Glamour kittens, beach bodies, culture vultures, gastronomes, sports fans, or those that simply lap up the high life who does fit in on the Riviera? Just about everybody, actually. This is a travel destination dedicated to frivolity, sumptuousness and pleasure, a place that's an eclectic mix of styles, just like the people who holiday here. ( Thanks Femina Mag.)

Hotes & Palaces l in Cannes : Hotel Martinez & SPA Givenchy
Hotels & Palalaces in Monaco : Columbus Hotel Monaco - Fairmont Hotel Monaco - Hotel Mirabeau Monaco -
Hotel Metropole Monaco Monte - Carlo - Beach Hotel Monte-Carlo Monaco