Nikki recently traveled on a two-part vacation to the South of France and Ischia, Italy, to start the summer season. We always look to Nikki for packing tips because she often visits more than one place when she travels and needs to be smart about how she packs. She also has excellent advice on where to eat, shop, and stay. Read below for a peek into Nikki’s early summer getaway and her travel tips.
Packing for a vacation any longer than five days is difficult because everything must be multifunctional. Nikki says she wound up wearing almost everything she brought on her recent trip, a success that comes from a sort of formula, which she shared with YOLO Journal earlier this year. “When it’s a beach vacation, I pack fun patterns, prints (stripes), and some basics.” She also mentions packing fewer shoes/ones that only take up a little space and keeping enough room for workout wear, as she likes to run. Wearing an outfit for the plane that you can incorporate into your vacation wardrobe is an important part of packing.
Nikki says the Finn sweater was perfect for travel because it’s versatile and soft, and great to layer with. She wore it on the plane with her High Sport pants, which are her go-to for travel because they are stretchy and super comfortable. Here she re-wears the sweater with the Suki pants, Hereu sandals, and a pouch from The Row
The Finn Sweater
The Suki Pant
Hereu Sandals
The Row Bag
High Sport Pants
Nikki and her husband started the trip in the South of France, with three nights in Saint Tropez, where Nikki hadn’t been in over 20 years.
Nikki matching with a Ugo Rondinone sculpture at Le Pre de la Mer, Saint Tropez. Wearing K. Jacques sandals, a brand that happens to be based in Saint Tropez!
Near Saint Tropez is Saint-Paul de Vence. Nikki went to dinner La Colombe d’Or and is here on the property with an Alexander Calder mobile from the 1930s. Highly recommend for the sights and food.
A packing tip from Nikki is to have versatile small bags. Pouches with long straps in neutral colors are best for traveling around because they easily transition from day to night.
Loewe Bag
The Row Bag
Inès Bressand Bag
Chanel Micro Bag
One of Nikki’s favorite places to eat was Le Club 55 in Saint Tropez.
Nikki loved the Port Bleu shop in Saint Tropez, which hosts three independent brands in one boutique.
Nikki is here wearing a pair of Matisse-inspired Saint-Martin sur Mer pants. The brand has female designers hand-paint motifs on vintage work jackets and trousers.
They then went to Villa La Coste, a historic town of Aix-en-Provence, where they stayed for two nights. The hotel has 500 acres of vineyards mixed with art by great modern artists, including Louis Bourgeois and Richard Serra.
Nikki next to a monumental stack sculpture by Annie Morris on the grounds of the Villa La Coste.
Don’t you wish there were more things as quaint as this? A perfect copper pot-embossed stationary at Francis Mallmann, an Argentinian Restaurant at Villa La Coste
They drove into town and visited the Atelier de Cézanne, located in the hills of Aix-en-Provence. This is where Cézanne worked from 1902 to his death in 1906.
They then drove to Lourmarin and Saint-Paul de Vence, which, Nikki says, are postcard-perfect and exactly how one would imagine the South of France to look.
They stayed at Le Moulin de Lourmarin for a night. The raffia hats are very KULE Summer 2023
Nikki et Le vin de Lourmarin
The hillside of Saint-Paul de Vence which is picture-perfect
Why are colors so much more vivid on vacation?
The homey menu at La Colombe d’Or Hotel and Restaurant, where Nikki stayed and highly recommended.
As for part two of the trip, they headed to the Italian island of Ischia for four days, where there was no shortage of beautiful architecture, bright blue waters, quaint little sea towns, and some great food and vacation cocktails to round out the trip.
The view from the Mezzatore Hotel, in Ischia, with only striped umbrellas separating you from the sea ⛱️
The Mezzatorre Hotel is a peachy castle up on a hill looking over, what feels like, infinite waters. Everyone sits outside by those umbrellas for cocktails in the evening.
View from the other side. La dolce vita!
Nikki says the striped silks were a staple day-to-day. She wore the Silk Ponza shirt and Silk Elba Pareo multiple times as beachwear and daywear. The new navy/cream color way is her personal favorite.
Stripes with a view
The Silk Ponza
The Silk Elba Pareo
The Silk Lido
The Silk Capri
The first day, they drove from the Mezzatore across the island to Cavascura, which is so picturesque it’s no surprise they filmed The Talented Mr. Ripley there.
There, they visted Terme di Cavascura, an area hollowed into the rock of a deep valley, to visit the thermal and mud baths it’s known for 🧖♀️.
They then met up with friends and visited the surrounding Italian Riviera by boat stopping at Nerano and Positano.
They met up with friends and ventured out exploring by sea, which is the best way to see the vertical hillside building of Ischia.
The boat trip lead them to Lo Scoglio in Nerano, which Nikki recommends for fresh, delicious food.
They also stopped at La Sirenuse in Positano for a drink. Nikki is wearing a Charvet striped shirt dress and yellow terry pouch she got at a gift shop in Ischia.
La Siranuse interior was sho charming with cheery color combinations and patterns.
Michael Kors, Lance LePere, and Nikki on the mountainside, on the boat ride back.
