Top Picks for Hot Spas in Paris

Spa Anne Sémonin at the Bristol

Doni recently visited the signature Anne Sémonin spa at the Bristol Hotel. One of the older, more established spas in the city, Spa Anne Sémonin now has outposts worldwide. Ms. Sémonin, who sold the spa to Aline Marcadet in 2003, was one of the founders of the aromatherapy movement in the spa world. At the spa they will customize products to suit you and you only, adding an essential fragrance here and there to their facial products and massage oils. The product line is absolutely sublime. The spa itself is just treatment rooms, but if you take advantage of the amenities of the hotel, you can set up a spectacular day for yourself that might include a workout with their trainer in the fitness room, a swim in the rooftop pool and lunch, followed by a customized facial and massage. We think this would make the ideal gift for someone coming for a big birthday. The spa exudes a Zen calm, boasts beautiful decor and offers a couples' room that would be sweet for a mother-daughter treatment.

Dior at the Plaza Athénée

Doni also visited Dior at the Plaza Athénée ' a true sensory overload. The entrance features a larger-than-life screen playing the most recent Dior fashion show. Shortly thereafter you'll notice a beautiful small reflecting pool, which harks back to Greece, and if you look closely you'll notice tiny lights sparkling at the bottom. They have numerous treatment rooms, each with those tiny sparkling lights on the ceiling; a sauna and steam room; and a glorious lounge for pre- or post-treatment relaxation.

Top Picks for Hot Tours in Paris

Cook'n with Class

We love the cooking classes here. Cook'n with Class is currently rated the No. 1 attraction in Paris by TripAdvisor, beating out even the Eiffel Tower!

One and Only Paris Photography

We recently discovered a darling couple who offer a package called You and the City. They will spend several hours with you, taking spectacular professional photos of you with the ultimate backdrop: Notre-Dame and all of central Paris. This makes for an ideal gift if you're going for a big birthday, with a new lover or for a long-awaited mother-daughter trip.

Wine of the Month

La Victoire 2006
Available at Grand Wine & Liquor
Retail price: $19.99

Victoire . . . Within Reach

Most wine drinkers agree that Bordeaux is the preeminent French wine region (Burgundy enthusiasts, please forgive me). At the high end there are Château Lafite, Margaux and Cheval Blanc, which epitomize the region's power and prestige. Yet their superstar status makes them seem completely out of reach. We ought not let the cachet of Bordeaux be offputting.

Recipe of the Month

Though irrefutably Bordelais, the little cakes known as cannelés have conflicting origin stories. One attributes their development to a group of nuns. A more sentimental spin credits resourceful Bordeaux residents, who scooped up flour spilled from sacks during unloading at the port and used it to make the cakes for impoverished children.

Cannelés have a reputation for being difficult to make, and we're not going to completely debunk that notion here. The batter is simple enough. What's challenging is achieving the proper texture'that caramelized crust encasing a creamy vanilla- and rum-scented interior'that makes a cannelé a cannelé and not just any other cake.

Music

Are you a fan of the blues?

If so, you have a chance to see some wonderful blues bands in Seine-St.-Denis, a suburb of Paris, in March and April.

Art & Exhibitions

The YSL retrospective comes to the Petit Palais March 11 (through August 29). This much-talked-about show will be reviewed by GG2P when it opens. Stay tuned.

Come Shopping with Us

Walk  Download our DIY tours.

Shop  There is still room to join us on our shopping trip to Paris June 26 to July 2. We'll hit the summer sales, when all stores take 40'70 percent off their spring/summer collections.

Book  Consult us before you book your hotel, your tours or your spas'we can help. We are now working with many partners and will be launching a new Book It page on our site shortly'in the meantime, if you are traveling to Paris, please email us.

Find yourself on our home page like Flora Richard of Paris. Buy your own GG2P merchandise and send us a photo!

Win 4 VIP Passes to Focus on French Cinema 2010

Enter for a chance to win four VIP passes to Focus on French Cinema 2010, the most-talked-about festival of French and Francophone film. The festival takes place just 30 minutes from Manhattan, at the prestigious Performing Arts Center at Purchase College, New York. Twelve newly released French-language films will be screened from April 9 to 11. The weekend also includes a not-to-be-missed guest appearance by actress of the moment Sylvie Testud, who is flying in from France to present the US premiere of her film Gamines. VIP passes cover access to the film premiere and the gala, as well as all the films and events for the weekend.