tourettes sur loup - the perfect babymoon
In June of this year Ryan whisked me away on a perfect Babymoon - to a medieval village called ‘Tourettes Sur Loup’ nestled in the South of France (13 miles from Nice). In true Beauty and the Beast style I felt as though I was living out my personal Disney fantasy. He couldn’t have chosen a more suitable place; it all centred around a central square where young and old residents gathered in the evenings to play bowls and I half expected people to burst from the shutters in song. It was like nowhere I’ve been before; quaint, picturesque, and perched on a rocky cliff overlooking the most magnificent ravine.
WHERE WE STAYED
We stayed in a beautiful little B&B ‘Histoires de Bastide’ right beside the main square in the village, with views from our bedroom overlooking the ravine. The pool was a ten minute walk away for a normal person, or a twenty minute walk for a whale-sized pregnant person like me! Each morning - our host Sandrine would set us up for our daily adventures by preparing a delicious breakfast of natural yogurt, granola, fruit, eggs and of course CROISSANTS! She was attentive, welcoming and couldn’t do enough for us during our stay… even replacing Ryan’s favourite local beer each night in the kitchen so he could have a solo drink before bed. I’d like to blame pregnancy for having us in bed at around 10pm each night, but this would be a lie as it’s definitely a theme which has re-occurred on all of our holidays and often at home - PRE-pregnancy included!
WHAT WE DID
Wandering the maze of Medieval streets is the best thing I can recommend for this little village - it’s too small to get lost in but it really is very charming.
Sit in the square, feel French and eat crêpes from the crêperie. They offer a large range of savoury and sweet crêpes and freshly squeezed orange juice! A perfect spot for people watching.
Take a day trip. As I was pregnant and not in favour of wandering around in the heat, we didn't get chance to do much other than spending a day in Nice on our way to the airport. The village is close to Saint Paul de Vence and Gourdon though, which were both strongly recommended to us.
Buy a baguette and sweet snack from the boulangerie - to set you up for a day of relaxing beside the pool.
Peruse the weekly Wednesday morning market. We bought olives, crackers, strawberries and dip for some poolside munching (and a traditional French wicker market bag to bring a little bit of France back to Liverpool).
Go searching for spots to take perfectly Instagrammable pictures! You won’t have to wander far.
WHAT WE ATE
There are a small number of delicious restaurants, but from the off I must admit that despite being vegetarian for the past 18 months - it was nigh on impossible in this small village despite eating in a different place each evening. Rather uniquely to Tourettes Sur Loup we found that a dinner reservation would last an entire evening, with guests being seated and remaining in the restaurant all night, (rather than a quick turnover with diners coming and going all night). The benefit of this was that the staff were wonderfully attentive, and in fact remembered us and greeted us as we passed by them in the village in the following days!
This is a Michelin Star restaurant, with fantastic artwork, and a lovely atmosphere. It is a small restaurant, hidden amongst the winding streets of the village, with only a handful of tables which made for a very intimate and romantic feel. We had a three course meal, and every single course was delicious. Ryan loved dessert, claiming it was best he had ever had. He was stumped at how they had managed to make chilli, cheese and whatever else was in there work - but they had! It was also my favourite restaurant of the trip!
Vegetarian friendly and the only restaurant with English translations on their menu. The night we dined the restaurant was filled to capacity so it is worthwhile booking at the start of the trip.
- Auberge des Gorges du Loup
This is a restaurant and hotel - with a much larger capacity and different atmosphere. We sat out on the terrace, (which was filled the night we dined) - and our waitress was truly wonderful and chatty. They have a lovely rose lemonade (for the pregnant-non-drinkers).
Another restaurant hidden within the winding streets of Tourettes Sur Loup. There is a beautiful white brick square where we dined outside, (although they also have an indoor restaurant). Again filled to capacity, and somehow the lone waiter managed to keep everybody happy. The crème brûlée dessert is divine.
We ate here on our first night and sat outdoors (bring a light jacket as it does get nippy in the evenings). The staff were incredibly welcoming - and we were introduced to the chef in the kitchen as we were taken to our table. I believe each evening this restaurant change their menu - it is a set menu (so being vegetarian was not an option!) The night we dined, each course was delicious - particularly their cauliflower soup to start, and chocolate ganache to finish. It is ranked number 1 on Trip advisor for Tourettes Sur Loup.
