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I am FINALLY writing about the girls trip that I took to Southern France this past June. There is so much to fill you in on and a fun little surprise at the end!

First, let me talk about how this girls trip came about.

I have been a long time follower of Lauren/Aspiring Kennedy and she recently started putting together these elaborate and fun group trips.

She did a couples trip to Normandy, a girls Christmas market trip that took them to London City, The Cotswolds, and Scotland, and this Southern France girls trip was the trip that she had been dreaming of doing from the very beginning.

Her philosophy is that we are all connected via social media and that there are truly good people out there.

We vicariously live each other’s lives by watching each other’s stories and double-tapping photos on our feed. We talk to each other via DM’s, we all yearn for connection and friendship.

That is why she put these trips together. Instead of talking to each other behind screens, let’s talk in person. Put away our phones, put away technology, and let’s go back to pre-technology where you are forced to connect on a personal level.

Are you still following me?

This Southern France girls trip consisted of 32 women who did not know one another and yet we all came together and had the time of our lives.

Sure, there were some girls that came that brought their mother or best girl friend, but majority were solo travelers just seeking the same desire as the rest of us: real, lifetime friendships.

This trip was 100% out of my comfort zone and saying YES was incredibly exhilarating and terrifying at the same time.

The same questions floated through my head, “what if the girls don’t like me? what if I don’t find a group to hang out with? what if my roommate hates me? what if I’m just alone? what if, what if?!”

It’s incredibly scary to subject yourself to that kind of vulnerability but that’s how you grow and that’s how you change and guess what? Everyone is in the same position as you and everyone is just as anxious.

I came home from this trip with a full heart, no regrets, and some amazing new friendships.

One of the best parts of this trip for me was that I had zero control and I LOVED it.

I’m usually the one planning every single trip and it was so refreshing to hand over the reigns and have Lauren plan it all.

You literally just pay, buy your flight, and show up. ALL the hard work is done for you and let me tell you, Lauren handled this like a BOSS.

All our transportation, lodging, food (aside from stuff we wanted to buy ourselves), and activities were taken care of.

You didn’t have to do any of the planned activities. You could wake up one morning and decide, “meh, I’m going to lay by the pool all day” (which I totally took advantage of) or you could wake up one morning and decide to go to a pilates class in the garden and then hop on the bus and go to a medieval town.

Here were some of the planned activities:

  • Cooking class
  • Wine tasting
  • Private pilates class
  • Picnics
  • Painting
  • Game night (BINGO)
  • Day trips to nearby towns

The Chateau

We stayed at the dreamiest château, Château les Carrasses.

It is located in the Languedoc region of Southern France and the property is just stunning.

You can bike all around their property, which has its own vineyard, and it’s just miles and miles of beauty.

It’s close to the medieval town of Carcassonne and many other small villages and towns.

I mean, is this not your idea of vacation? I chose to stay back a couple days just to soak up Southern France’s sun.

Me and the girls would go out early in the morning and grab our lounge chairs and we would tan, jump in the pool, grab drinks and food at the patio bar, and repeat.

Seriously, so relaxing.

This was one of the private villas that a group of girls stayed in. Yes, villas with a private pool. I’m telling you — DREAMY.

Activities

Like I mentioned above, there were activities planned for the group every day but you had the option of attending or staying back.

The first day we were there, we headed to the beach!

I’ve never dipped my toes in the Mediterranean and the beach we went to allowed me to do so!

The water was still pretty cold but we were able to enjoy the day at the beach!

A group of 32 women rolled up to this beachside restaurant where they rented out lounge chairs. Haha, it was definitely a sight to see. 32 women getting off a tour bus. It was basically like a tour group of women ;)

I don’t remember the name of this restaurant but we had a terrible experience here. Like beyond terrible.

They were so rude to us and were definitely doing so because we were American. They refused to serve us (even though we had prior reservations so they KNEW 32 of us were coming) and they yelled at us for being inside the restaurant to try to order food. They said they would come serve us outside. It took them TWO HOURS to get me a glass of water. Which I kept asking for and they kept saying it was “coming.” That’s what they said for everything. It was like a four hour dining experience.

Everyone around us (that were French), were served properly. Such a shame. They definitely lived up to the French stereotype which is super unfortunate.

BUT, let’s not be downers here. The beach was still glorious after a 42 hour travel day the day prior :)

This was one of the day trips to the medieval town of Carcassone.

The history behind it is so fascinating. It was basically a fortress to keep out the enemies.

We were also free to take a cab (the château helped us arrange one) to the town’s farmers market. We each picked up a pint of strawberries to eat by the pool. Goodness, they were so fresh and flavorful!

Omg, this was my FAVORITE town on the trip. This was Roquebrun.

They had the most gorgeous doors and the town was so quaint and the restaurant we ate at really redeemed the French ;)

They were the sweetest couple and they spoke not a lick of English but we were still all able to somehow communicate everything we wanted.

Isn’t that beautiful? We don’t know each other’s languages but we were still able to dine properly and felt so much love.

I actually went paddle boarding with my friend in this river!! You can swim in it, if you prefer, but they also have kayak and paddle boarding rentals a little up the river.

I didn’t bring my bathing suit so I just straddled the paddle board as she paddled for us. So technically, she did all the hard work, haha…and we didn’t flip or fall into the water!

Annnnd this was the picnic that we set up in one of the gardens at the château. It was so idyllic French!

Spring/Summer 2020

If you followed along on my Instagram stories and saw all the fun I had and inquired about spring/summer 2020…well…we’re doing it again!

Yes, WE.

Lauren and I are teaming up and planning something awesome for early summer and it’s going to be somewhere completely new but the same level of luxe, fun, and memories!

Be sure to follow us both at @aspiringkennedy and @tablefortwo where we’ll announce all the details very soon!

This was the last night and it was a theme cocktail and dancing dinner.

Appropriately titled, The Pink Party!

Stay tuned for more details coming soon on Spring 2020!

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6 Comments

  1. Hi Julie, Sorry to hear of your bad experience during your wonderful trip to France. It seems that the majority of your experiences were great. I have been to France many times including the region that you visited and never experienced rude service. There are unhappy people in all kinds of jobs that tend to take it out on visitors. I feel that the current occupant at the White House does not make it easy for American citizens. He spends a lot of time insulting people around the world to the point, that some like those you encountered in France think that this is a generalized American trait. It is not the case of course, most Americans are kind and friendly people. On a food note, one thing that I came to admire in Parisian groceries and fruit markets, is that customers cannot touch the produce. As most buy on the day needed, the customer tells the vendor, I will use this today or tomorrow and he/she will select the fruit or veggie just ripe for you.

    1. You are right. The majority of my experience was great and it was just unfortunate that this one incident put a bad taste in my mouth and memory. The current occupant at the White House is such a disgrace and definitely not a representation of true American people!

  2. Y’all looked like you were having so much fun!!! I’m definitely going to keep an eye out for the news regarding next year.