PetiteBrigitte

Wow! An exhausting, whirlwind 3 nights in London has left Petite B incapacitated for the past 2 days!

Less than 3 hours after arriving in the city via the Eurostar, I was in an elevator with David & Victoria Beckham. Celebrating his birthday with a lavish shopping spree, the hot couple made a pit stop at the new Haymarket Hotel, just as I was checking in. The two spent several hours relaxing in a luxurious suite before heading out to a surprise dinner at Cipriani. Sporting Nicole Richie sized sunglasses, I starred endlessly at the newly blond Becks, who looks even more dreamy in the flesh. Unfortunately I realized several hours later that my tinted glasses were completely see-through. Oops— no wonder Victoria shot me a look!

Victoria was actually in good spirits, and giggled as she tripped out of the elevator and clutched on to Becks.

Several hours later and ever the pro-journalist, I was hovering in the lobby with a glass of champagne as Becks & Posh made their exit to a flurry of paparazzi waiting outside. Stopping in the lobby to straighten her dress, the two looked stunningly chic as they made a dash for the Bentley (see pics). Unfortunately my pro cameraman was MIA and I blurred all my shots (best one below). Bloody hell!

According to the Mail, this was their Birthday agenda:

With the hotel bill of £2,500 at London’s Haymarket Hotel, a restaurant bill of £25,000, a private jet costing £8, 000 each way, the specially-commissioned diamond ring costing £40,000 and drivers and security arranged for the trip, the total bill for David’s birthday trip came to more than £100,000.

On a less grotesquely superficial level, Becks reportedly started crying after receiving a touching toast from his wife at dinner. Awhh…. sexy and sentimental! PB is officially in love. Who cares if he isn’t the sharpest tool in the shed?

The Haymarket Hotel, sister to the famous Soho Hotel, is owned by Firmdale hotels and decorated by reknowned interior designer Kit Kemp– her best chef d’oeuvre to date. The service was not seamless, and the pool was still closed, but all was forgiven when the concierge sent up a bottle of Moet & Chandon with strawberries. Definitely the hottest hotel at the moment, and Petite B wouldn’t think of going anywhere else on her next trip.

HAYMARKET HOTEL

1 Suffolk Place London SW1Y 4BP
Tel: +44 20 7470 4000 Fax: +44 20 7470 4004

Email: haymarket@firmdale.com

Let’s face it: you are underpaid, overworked, and have yet to meet Daddy Warbucks. It will take divine intervention or the Lotto to cough up the 65 mil to buy your own private Boeing 757-200.

Now you can cross that item off of your “must-haves-before-I-turn-100″— because a brilliant new airline has made private jets completely passé for us Parisians. The company is called L’Avion. Operational only this year, this airline is the answer to transatlantic flying (and hopefully more viable than the ill-fated Concorde!). Call this a ‘premium budget airline.’

100% first class, with high-tech ultra-reclining seats (lumbar support, outrageous amounts of space), excellent menu and attentive service, the flight is comfortable and elegant. And with a price tag that you can afford, but the crying babies can’t. Perfection!

Flights leave daily from Orly to Newark, and cost around 1300 euros round trip– cheaper when you book as a couple! (I make a great +1).

According to king of Parisian nightlife, Fred de Bourguet, who travelled this weekend for a vacation in NYC:

“L’Avion is truly amazing. My best definition: a kind of huge private jet just for a few! With only 30 passengers, the check-in and boarding was very smooth. There was HDTV which was super, even though the DVD’s were a little old… Rocky VI, and Deja Vu.”

And what about the service?

“Everything was great, although you get the feeling that the amount of space might come at the expense of more attentive service. But the flight attendants were very cool– dressed in 50′s style uniforms,” says Fred.

Hmm…. they wouldn’t happen to look like this, would they?

Visit their site for more information. If you are a Paryorker, this might be a great option for your next trip to the Big A. Many in the fashion crowd have already signed up for the frequent flyer program!

Ah, the French know how to live.

Want to plan a unique travel experience this summer? Get some friends to pitch in and book the best booze cruise known to man. OK, so they aren’t marketing it as a ‘booze cruise’ perse, but PetiteBrigitte can only imagine the fun to be had on lazy summer days floating down the Rhone on a well-stocked barge!

Hosted by the Orient-Express and their luxury fleet of barges, you can select the itinerary for an unforgettable float through France. We’re talking rooftop pool, attentive staff to keep the champagne glass full, and spacious bedrooms in case you meet someone worthy on one of the vineyard tours.
The journey usually starts near Dijon, and ends in the south near Carcassone. In between, you will do a lot of sightseeing excursions to sleepy villages, ancient ruins, famous vineyards, and also some bike riding past fields of lavender and sunflowers. Sound dreamy? It is. Meals are served in the sumptuous dining room, prepared by accomplished chefs using local french ingredients. And did I mention…. all inclusive?!

As if this scenario couldn’t get more appealing, the crew is typically known to consist of handsome young men who speak mostly native English.

Click here for more.

Too many friends for just one boat? Don’t worry, you can go in tandem too!

Any train that brings you to the Moet & Chandon champagne vineyards in 45 minutes is HOT.

French officials have just inaugurated a new train link that will cut travel time between Paris and 12 cities in Germany, Luxembourg, Switzerland, and NE France. The new TGV link will travel faster than all other operating trains, at a stunning 325 kmh!

Reims will be only 45 minutes away, where you can see the famous cathedral (where 26 French kings were coronated), and the champagne region. Believe it or not, Strasbourg will now be only 2 hours 20 minutes away, instead of the ususal 4 hours!!

Tickets, reservations and timetables for the TGV East service will be available starting April 10 on raileurope.com. Commercial travel will begin on June 10.