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The Place:
La Voile Rouge
The Scene:
The birthplace of the St. Tropez beach club, La Voile Rouge is a seaside sanctuary of French aristocracy that has no qualms seating a grandmother in a Chanel pantsuit next to a topless-teenager having Chandon sipped from her belly button. Accessed by road or via ship-to-shore transport from harbor yachts, the beach club is one of the toughest lunch reservations during July and August high season. The beach club is divided between a main restaurant serving French seaside specialties, open-air bar and super-cute beach shop with pricey linen fashions and swimsuits.
One of the most famous institutions of the 31 beach clubs along Pampelonne's Beach, La Voile Rouge is a dining, drinking and be-seen stretch of sand no more than 200-feet long yet famous worldwide. Loungers, or Matrasse Service, rents for near $50 per person and doesn't even include alcohol. Beachside seats sell out fast and by noon there is little more than a few scattered stretchers to be had in the shade - at least during peak summer months. The crowd falls anywhere between puberty to senility, but nonetheless bronze, chic and irresistibly French.
JetSet Tips:
At least try to speak a few words of French, don't be picky about your seating and never stare at arriving celebrities like Victoria Beckham or Naomi Campbell too long or too much.
Last Word:
La Voile Rouge is a classic French beach club institution and guests should regard all their traditions as sacred. Do as they do and don't ask questions, the French reject routine-oriented Americans as passé and may even ask guests to leave if they don't fit into the overall scene.
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