St Tropez is famous for Brigitte Bardot, sailing and for being a playground for the rich, and all with good reason.
Bardot made the coastal town on the French Riviera famous when she danced barefoot in the 1956 film And God Created Woman. Its location on the Mediterranean Sea in south-east France means it has since evolved into a place of refinement and sophistication, without losing any of its authentic charm.
Thousands flock there each summer to take in its excellent cuisine, turquoise blue waters and sunny climate, while billionaires anchor their superyachts offshore. It is a place where elegant stores rub shoulders with the traditional fish market, and where people dress to be seen as much as to play boulle.
Where to stay
A short drive from the port is La Bastide de St Tropez, a delightful five-star hotel formed from a small château and four farmhouses, brought together around a central garden and swimming pool.
Fringed with tall Cypress trees and palms, the garden provides a tranquil space filled with birdsong and is a haven from the bustle of the small town, which can get very crowded during the summer.
The restored farmhouses now have 26 rooms and suites, each individually appointed and with either a private balcony or terrace that all face into the garden. There is an excellent restaurant called Route Des Carles, while breakfast is served on the terrace overlooking the pool.
Where to eat
The most famous venue in St Tropez is probably Cafe Senequier, with its prime position on the harbour and its bright red canopy. Its fame also means it is crowded all the time and it is hard to get a table, but other places one street back from the water can serve up a better authentic experience.
Le Cafe Restaurant, situated on the central square of Place des Lices, is one of the town's gems. An eclectic space with its own piano bar and terrace, it serves contemporary and Provencal cuisine, including leek and egg mimosa, traditional pate en croute, as well as oven-baked mussels with parsley.
The interior is mismatched to perfection, with oversized rattan lampshades, clusters of vintage table lamps and chairs piled with clashing cushions. Once done with lunch, a game of boules in the square is a good option.
Set halfway up a hill on Avenue du Marechal Foch is La Ponche, a restaurant and hotel made famous by French writer Colette.
Overlooking the sea, the restaurant is run by chef Thomas Danigo, formerly of Galanga par Monsieur George in Paris, and specialises in transforming local, seasonal fish and vegetables into Mediterranean cuisine. The menu includes ceviche of sea bream, green zucchini gazpacho, bush tartlet with Provencal herbs and citrus fruits, and coriander-basil sorbet.
For a more laid-back lunch, Chemin de l’Epi is only a 12-minute drive and La Reserve à la Plage is set right on the beach. It has an interior designed by French designer Philippe Starck. Chef Nicolas Cantrel serves up Riviera-inspired cuisine such as Peruvian style avocado guacamole, tuna carpaccio and grilled octopus with sweet potatoes and spicy mayonnaise.
Also located out of town is Chez Camille Restaurant. It sits overlooking the beach in Ramatuelle, on Traverse de la Garonne. Founded in 1913, the seafood restaurant looks out on to a cove and feels intimate.
Where to shop
The town is overflowing with chic boutiques, including Loro Piana, Dolce & Gabbana, Dior, Jacquemus and Lebanese designer Elie Saab among others, while every Saturday and Tuesday the central square turns into one of the best markets in the region. Bargains can be had on linen shirts, embroidered shopping totes, and even essentials such as children's swimwear, from as little as €10 (Dh39).
Rondini, meanwhile, has been hand-making leather sandals in St Tropez since 1927. It is something of an institution, with one style, the Tropezienne, even named after the seaside port. Situated on Rue Georges-Clemenceau, it offers various styles of flats for men, women and children starting at €100 (Dh394).
The Birkin bag is made by Hermès.
It is named after actress and singer Jane Birkin
Noone from Hermès will go on record to say how much a new Birkin costs, how long one would have to wait to get one, and how many bags are actually made each year.
8 UAE companies helping families reduce their carbon footprint
Greenheart Organic Farms
This Dubai company was one of the country’s first organic farms, set up in 2012, and it now delivers a wide array of fruits and vegetables grown regionally or in the UAE, as well as other grocery items, to both Dubai and Abu Dhabi doorsteps.
www.greenheartuae.com
Modibodi
Founded in Australia, Modibodi is now in the UAE with waste-free, reusable underwear that eliminates the litter created by a woman’s monthly cycle, which adds up to approximately 136kgs of sanitary waste over a lifetime.
www.modibodi.ae
The Good Karma Co
From brushes made of plant fibres to eco-friendly storage solutions, this company has planet-friendly alternatives to almost everything we need, including tin foil and toothbrushes.
www.instagram.com/thegoodkarmaco
Re:told
One Dubai boutique, Re:told, is taking second-hand garments and selling them on at a fraction of the price, helping to cut back on the hundreds of thousands of tonnes of clothes thrown into landfills each year.
www.shopretold.com
Lush
Lush provides products such as shampoo and conditioner as package-free bars with reusable tins to store.
www.mena.lush.com
Bubble Bro
Offering filtered, still and sparkling water on tap, Bubble Bro is attempting to ensure we don’t produce plastic or glass waste. Founded in 2017 by Adel Abu-Aysha, the company is on track to exceeding its target of saving one million bottles by the end of the year.
www.bubble-bro.com
Coethical
This company offers refillable, eco-friendly home cleaning and hygiene products that are all biodegradable, free of chemicals and certifiably not tested on animals.
www.instagram.com/coethical
Eggs & Soldiers
This bricks-and-mortar shop and e-store, founded by a Dubai mum-of-four, is the place to go for all manner of family products – from reusable cloth diapers to organic skincare and sustainable toys.
www.eggsnsoldiers.com
The specs
Engine: 4.0-litre flat-six
Torque: 450Nm at 6,100rpm
Transmission: 7-speed PDK auto or 6-speed manual
Fuel economy, combined: 13.8L/100km
On sale: Available to order now
Haircare resolutions 2021
From Beirut and Amman to London and now Dubai, hairstylist George Massoud has seen the same mistakes made by customers all over the world. In the chair or at-home hair care, here are the resolutions he wishes his customers would make for the year ahead.
1. 'I will seek consultation from professionals'
You may know what you want, but are you sure it’s going to suit you? Haircare professionals can tell you what will work best with your skin tone, hair texture and lifestyle.
2. 'I will tell my hairdresser when I’m not happy'
Massoud says it’s better to offer constructive criticism to work on in the future. Your hairdresser will learn, and you may discover how to communicate exactly what you want more effectively the next time.
3. ‘I will treat my hair better out of the chair’
Damage control is a big part of most hairstylists’ work right now, but it can be avoided. Steer clear of over-colouring at home, try and pursue one hair brand at a time and never, ever use a straightener on still drying hair, pleads Massoud.
More coverage from the Future Forum
Score
Third Test, Day 1
New Zealand 229-7 (90 ov)
Pakistan
New Zealand won the toss and elected to bat
EPL's youngest
- Ethan Nwaneri (Arsenal)
15 years, 181 days old
- Max Dowman (Arsenal)
15 years, 235 days old
- Jeremy Monga (Leicester)
15 years, 271 days old
- Harvey Elliott (Fulham)
16 years, 30 days old
- Matthew Briggs (Fulham)
16 years, 68 days old
Conflict, drought, famine
Estimates of the number of deaths caused by the famine range from 400,000 to 1 million, according to a document prepared for the UK House of Lords in 2024.
It has been claimed that the policies of the Ethiopian government, which took control after deposing Emperor Haile Selassie in a military-led revolution in 1974, contributed to the scale of the famine.
Dr Miriam Bradley, senior lecturer in humanitarian studies at the University of Manchester, has argued that, by the early 1980s, “several government policies combined to cause, rather than prevent, a famine which lasted from 1983 to 1985. Mengistu’s government imposed Stalinist-model agricultural policies involving forced collectivisation and villagisation [relocation of communities into planned villages].
The West became aware of the catastrophe through a series of BBC News reports by journalist Michael Buerk in October 1984 describing a “biblical famine” and containing graphic images of thousands of people, including children, facing starvation.
Band Aid
Bob Geldof, singer with the Irish rock group The Boomtown Rats, formed Band Aid in response to the horrific images shown in the news broadcasts.
With Midge Ure of the band Ultravox, he wrote the hit charity single Do They Know it’s Christmas in December 1984, featuring a string of high-profile musicians.
Following the single’s success, the idea to stage a rock concert evolved.
Live Aid was a series of simultaneous concerts that took place at Wembley Stadium in London, John F Kennedy Stadium in Philadelphia, the US, and at various other venues across the world.
The combined event was broadcast to an estimated worldwide audience of 1.5 billion.
What can you do?
Document everything immediately; including dates, times, locations and witnesses
Seek professional advice from a legal expert
You can report an incident to HR or an immediate supervisor
You can use the Ministry of Human Resources and Emiratisation’s dedicated hotline
In criminal cases, you can contact the police for additional support
The Uefa Awards winners
Uefa Men's Player of the Year: Virgil van Dijk (Liverpool)
Uefa Women's Player of the Year: Lucy Bronze (Lyon)
Best players of the 2018/19 Uefa Champions League
Goalkeeper: Alisson (Liverpool)
Defender: Virgil van Dijk (Liverpool)
Midfielder: Frenkie de Jong (Ajax)
Forward: Lionel Messi (Barcelona)
Uefa President's Award: Eric Cantona
The specs: 2018 Mercedes-Benz E 300 Cabriolet
Price, base / as tested: Dh275,250 / Dh328,465
Engine: 2.0-litre four-cylinder
Power: 245hp @ 5,500rpm
Torque: 370Nm @ 1,300rpm
Transmission: Nine-speed automatic
Fuel consumption, combined: 7.0L / 100km
Juliet, Naked
Dir: Jesse Peretz
Starring: Chris O'Dowd, Rose Byrne, Ethan Hawke
Two stars
Lexus LX700h specs
Engine: 3.4-litre twin-turbo V6 plus supplementary electric motor
Power: 464hp at 5,200rpm
Torque: 790Nm from 2,000-3,600rpm
Transmission: 10-speed auto
Fuel consumption: 11.7L/100km
On sale: Now
Price: From Dh590,000
Miguel Cotto world titles:
WBO Light Welterweight champion - 2004-06
WBA Welterweight champion – 2006-08
WBO Welterweight champion – Feb 2009-Nov 2009
WBA Light Middleweight champion – 2010-12
WBC Middleweight champion – 2014-15
WBO Light Middleweight champion – Aug 2017-Dec 2017
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Why are asylum seekers being housed in hotels?
The number of asylum applications in the UK has reached a new record high, driven by those illegally entering the country in small boats crossing the English Channel.
A total of 111,084 people applied for asylum in the UK in the year to June 2025, the highest number for any 12-month period since current records began in 2001.
Asylum seekers and their families can be housed in temporary accommodation while their claim is assessed.
The Home Office provides the accommodation, meaning asylum seekers cannot choose where they live.
When there is not enough housing, the Home Office can move people to hotels or large sites like former military bases.
Sole survivors
- Cecelia Crocker was on board Northwest Airlines Flight 255 in 1987 when it crashed in Detroit, killing 154 people, including her parents and brother. The plane had hit a light pole on take off
- George Lamson Jr, from Minnesota, was on a Galaxy Airlines flight that crashed in Reno in 1985, killing 68 people. His entire seat was launched out of the plane
- Bahia Bakari, then 12, survived when a Yemenia Airways flight crashed near the Comoros in 2009, killing 152. She was found clinging to wreckage after floating in the ocean for 13 hours.
- Jim Polehinke was the co-pilot and sole survivor of a 2006 Comair flight that crashed in Lexington, Kentucky, killing 49.
