Thanks to Distant Francophile, I get lots of emails from all over the world. Sometimes these emails are from fellow francophiles wanting to say hello. But most of the time the emails come from humans who are in the middle of planning a trip to France. I get questions on what to pack and where […]
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Regular readers will know just how much I love answering questions from this awesome community. As with my day job, and my coaching, I prefer sharing things you’d actually like to know, rather than just guessing what you’d like to read about. So you’ll know that I was very happy to write this post, given […]
Squee!!! I’m super excited for this post. Why? Because I get to update you on the success of Planches & Plonk! Planches & Plonk is the dream business of our friends Graham and Damon. Graham and I got to know one another years ago when we started blogging at around the same time. When Scotty […]
In the seven year history of Distant Francophile, one post has stood out clearly as the most popular. Since it was posted in 2015, it’s had far more views than any other. Curious to know what francophiles and travellers are keen to learn about? Champagne. And specifically our do-it-yourself visit to the Champagne region. Now, […]
Ten years ago this week my family and I were getting ready to return home following our first visit to France. On our last day in Paris, as we prepared to brave the 24 hour flight to Australia, Scott and I splurged by ordering two glasses of champagne. We sipped them, gazing out toward the […]
When it comes to visiting France, do you consider yourself an independent traveller? If you happen to be reading this, there’s a strong chance you do. It’s also likely that you enjoy making your own bookings and plans, as well as doing your own trip research. And I’m almost certain your research often involves scouring […]
More than a few years ago now, I made my first solo visit to Paris. I learned a lot, about travelling alone and about myself. Later, I shared that initial experience over at My French Life™, along with my thoughts on why Paris is an excellent destination for solo female travellers. Nobody will be surprised to […]
I’ll come right out and say it. From my perspective, 2017 has been an amazing year. I know not everyone will be nodding in agreement (and my heart goes out to you), but I honestly knew before it began that 2017 would be a transformational one for me. My excitement started building a couple […]
There are lots of things I love in this world. My family, friends and France are absolute givens, as well as being kind of obvious. Any regular reader would have guessed those things with relative ease. My slippers, red wine and getting dressed every morning would probably be a little harder for many of you […]
It is around seven months until we head back to France. While that seems like an eternity (I’m wishing it was seven weeks, or even better, seven days) I am in full on planning mode. While I’ve developed some fairly decent desktop research skills, I still can’t go past recommendations from people who have already […]
I’ve just started reading the highly acclaimed book by author Elaine Sciolino, The Only Street In Paris. Life on the Rue des Martyrs. It’s far too early for me to write you a review. Given the way I’m struggling to find time to read right now, you can expect that in a few months – […]
When Paris was so tragically attacked last month, many people questioned whether we were still planning to travel to France, and specifically Paris. While our travel plans were never in danger of changing, we were curious to understand what had changed in France after the Paris attacks. Personally, I was hoping for nothing – but […]
What is it about Provence that makes it so compelling? It could be the views. The light. The art. The warmth. It may very well be the rosé. Regardless, everyone who travels there falls head-over-heels in love with the place. And if you want to get a taste of the best Provence has on offer, […]
It’s time for the last instalment in our little ‘do-it-yourself tour of Champagne‘ series. And today I want to share our Ruinart experience with you all. Following our visit to Veuve Clicquot, we walked back into the centre of Reims where we ate lunch and visited the famous cathedral. We then wandered back to Ruinart, […]
I never thought I’d ever be able to name a favourite place in Paris. When we first visited Paris I loved absolutely everything, and equally. But over the years one special Parisian landmark has drawn me back again and again. In fact, it is now the only place I definitely have to spend time in […]
Well, summer has definitely hit Paris this week. And the high temperatures reminded me that I still owed you all an updated summer packing list. My first Packing For Paris In Summer post was more of a guess than a guide. But as it turns out, I didn’t do a bad job of packing clothes […]
Ok, so a little while ago I shared how we managed to get ourselves to the Champagne region of France, and how we got around once we were there. Now, let’s get to the good stuff – the Champagne houses themselves. Because we were keen to visit the crayeres or chalk mines, we ended up […]
There are so many restaurants in Paris, choosing where to eat can sometimes seem like a bit of gamble. You want to get value for money from every travel dollar, while at the same time finding something authentic and yummy. And you absolutely want to avoid tourist traps. As a result, I’m always on the […]
While this post is still very relevant, just to be sure, we did Another Do-It-Yourself Tour Of Champagne on our last visit to France. You can check it out here. As I’ve mentioned before, I’ve always been quite surprised by how long it took us to visit France’s Champagne region. Especially given how much we […]
Welcome to June everyone. I am writing this month’s inspiration post from Paris – and seriously, you can’t get any more French inspiration than by spending time in Paris. I’ve found some great new vantage points for people watching and have come up with a stack of other French themed bits and pieces to share […]