Five Star Fashion Tour of Paris & Milan

Paris has been the epicenter of world fashion since the 18th century, from women’s clothing down to men’s shoes. There has always been something fascinating and stylish about the city and those who live there. Your France tour begins with your arrival at Charles de Gaulle Airport where your private transfer is waiting. Inside the city, you notice the elegant wide avenues with shady trees lining the sidewalks. Public squares become charming gardens adding lushness to stone-paved streets. Opulent Italians style palazzos decorate the cityscape, most notably near the Champs Elysees.

The aroma of freshly baked macaroons and decadent hot chocolate drift out of Cafe Angelina. Audrey Hepburn, a classic fashion icon in her own right, would sit in the café and sip hot chocolate looking out to the Tuileries Gardens. Images of the Golden Triangle, the city’s high fashion shopping district connecting Avenue Marceau, the Champs Elysees, and Avenue Montaigne, swirl in through your thoughts. The beauty of the city personifies the chic designs to come. Your hotel is the embodiment of glamor, allowing you to settle in quickly and luxuriously to the city.

In the morning, you can hear the women of Paris sashaying down the street, their elegant heels tapping against the walkways of the city. Locals sit at café tables located on the sidewalk with views to passersby, everyone savoring the moment before work. The aroma of fresh, frothy cappuccinos spill out of the cafes and blend with the scent of freshly baked croissants drifting out of the local bakery. The morning is yours to delight in the splendor of the city, from the charm of the Eiffel Tower to the Bohemian allure of Montmartre providing a view of the city.

In the afternoon, your guide leads you into the lesser-known stylish world of the city, taking you to a fashion show located in a private apartment. The chic styles of the city come to you. The room is open and looks more like a contemporary studio. You sit in a plush chair and find the edgy new styles of the city modeled before your eyes. There is no denying the exhilaration you feel. You heart is pumping for many reasons. The fact that you are experiencing personalized fashion among them. Whether your preferred garment is shoes, bags, or dresses, the show is tailored to your sensibilities, making each turn of the studio runway better and better.

Wake up to the morning in Paris as the sunlight glistens off of the River Seine. Couples stroll alongside the water’s edge along the cobblestone lanes underneath the hum of the city. After breakfast, you meet your personal stylist for the day. Your stylist leads you along the lavish streets of the city to chic Carita, located in a 19th century building decorating with a Haussmann style. The open concept space brings natural light through the atrium, which provides the best light for your stylist to help your hairdresser begin your Parisian makeover.

The day is all about you and what best compliments your features, from the color of your hair to your complexion, making sure each detail builds upon the qualities you already have. When your hair has been perfected, your guide escorts you to the glamorous shops on Avenue Montaigne, known as Paris’s “Fashion Boulevard.” Large display windows offer glimpses into the trend-setting shops along the avenue. La Montaigne has been an exclusive shopping quarter exuding chic for more than a century. The cornerstone institution of Dior emanates a couture sensibility. In the evening, you step out into the elite Parisian nightlife and let the crowd marvel at your elegant transformation.

The morning washes over Paris and the excitement from your previous night on the town hasn’t waned. The glamor of the Parisian streets seems to grow in the evening when the streets become radiant with strung lights. In the morning, the creamy texture of a fresh cappuccino helps you start the day. Your guide meets you in the hotel lobby and takes you for a unique look behind the scenes of the fashion world at the Ateliers Hermes. The workshop is a temple of tradition and emblematic of craftsmanship. It is also a place few are given access, offering you another exclusive look into the wondrous fashion of Paris.

The workshop is located on the outskirts of Paris in Pantin. The unassuming exterior opens to an interior glimmering with natural light with splashes of Hermes color and décor across the gallery. The Atelier Petits Sacs is where the small bags, such as Kelly and Ilico, are produced. The sound of tinkering hammers mix with the scent of leather. Personal workstations connote the individual aesthetic of craftsmen and artisans around the floor, from books to mascots, and personal photos. A single Birkin bag can take 14 hours to make, due to the elegant design and hand stitching. You watch with enthusiasm learning what it takes to ensure high-fashion, high-quality, and a sense of undeniable desire.

The scent of buttery croissants practically fills the city in the morning. Boats begin to cruise up and down the River Seine. Graceful Parisian women once again stroll down the avenues en route to work or the university. After breakfast, your private transfer escorts you to the airport where you will board a private jet to Milan, savoring the comforts and luxury of your personal ride to the fashion capital of Italy.

Milan was a symbol of chic design in the Middle-Ages and Renaissance, known to produce luxury goods for the wealthy cities of Venice and Florence. The city has maintained its affinity for quality, becoming the center of silk and textile productions in the 20th century, and now is synonymous with the names Armani, Versace, and Prada. The stunning décor of the city can be seen in the architecture itself, inspiring designers from around the world in the image of the Milan Cathedral. The Duomo has 135 spires and 3,400 statues creating a fairytale crown on the structure, and adding endless splendor to the fashionable sensibilities of the cityscape. Your private transfer meets you at the airport and whisks you to your designer hotel, offering you a seductively luxurious atmosphere.

In the morning, the beauty of Milan shimmers in the pearled façade of the Cathedral and a sought-after glance at Leonardo da Vinci’s The Last Supper, located in the Convent of Santa Maria delle Grazie. The fashions notable through Milan glide on the backs of locals like a personalized runway show for the city, gracing the cobblestone streets and decorating the streetcars. After breakfast, your private guide and transfer takes you into the Italian Alps to the remarkable shores of Lake Como.

The stone-paved streets meander beneath the leafy trees, taking you a world away from the bustle of Milan. The old Roman gate known as Porta Pretoria provides an orderly grid to the historic city center. Romanesque fortifications embellish the dramatic climb of the tower gate in Piazza Vittoria. The water shimmers an opulent azure. Inspiring colors emanate from the greenery encompassing the fjord-like lake, extending 31 miles in length. Gianni Versace divided his time between the tranquil lakeside town and the bustling fashion-forward ambiance of Milan. From Villa Serbelloni, you can look out on the terraced gardens and see the vivacious greenery of the mountains rolling down to the water in the marvelous manner of a 19th century Italianate garden. Later in the day, you return to Milan, eager to drape yourself in lavish garments and bask in the opulence of Milan’s historic Opera House.

The style of Milan becomes apparent the more time you spend in the city. In the morning, the sunlight pierces the atrium ceiling at the Galleria Vittorio Emanuele II, the oldest shopping mall in the world. The elegant cafes fill with locals sipping rich espresso and nibbling on fresh brioche smeared with jam. After breakfast, your guide sweeps you into the world of the city’s fashionable, where style and fashion blend and the city boasts both. The Quadrilatero d’Oro is Milan’s answer to Paris’s Golden Triangle, however in Milan it is the Golden Rectangle. Four streets converge to create a style icon’s dream encompassing Via Montenapoleone, Via della Spiga, Via Manzoni, and Via Sant’Andrea.

The streets shine with haute couture, famous designer names, whimsically decorated windows, and hidden boutique shops showcasing glamor and grace. If it is something more Bohemian you’re searching for, your guide leads you to the Brera District, in search of the quintessentially edgy style hidden inside the historic core of the city. Unique pieces dress the windows. You feel as though you have wandered into a distinctive fashion underworld where only the best styles brighten the hidden shops. From a monochrome trench coat at Luisa Beccaria’s boutique shop to an elegant perfume at the niche perfumery Profumo, the styles of the city are yours for the taking.

In the morning, the decadent aroma of fresh espresso winds through the streets and passes by the elegantly dressed windows along the Golden Rectangle. The bags of Marco Poloni look ethereal underneath the natural light. The custom-made shoes from Berluti offer personalized style to any and every customer.

After breakfast, your private transfer meets you at the hotel and escorts you to the Milan-Malpensa Airport for your flight home. You have not only witnessed the treasured styles of Paris and Milan but have experienced the grandeur of fashionistas and the imaginative majesty of chic icons.