THE Auld Alliance goes deep back into the mists of time. And I’m not just talking about Scotland’s historical and cultural ties to France.
Over the decades I’ve been to France more than 40 times – walking the banks of the Seine, seeing Scotland humped at the Stade de France and just soaking up that famous joie de vivre. Join me now as I shake off the Covid travel restrictions for a joyous return to France.
There is nothing to quicken the pulse quite like your first sight of the Eiffel Tower or Sacre Coeur. I see both en route to my favourite Parisian bolthole – Le Bristol (oetkercollection.com). A night at this retreat of the rich and famous might not be cheap, but it is a glorious one-off treat.
Le Bristol is Paris writ large – my abode has an original Chagall and a terrace with views to Gustave’s tower. And there is a little-known rooftop pool. I swim here all alone under the watchful eye of a ship’s wheel fashioned in Greenock.
On my second night I seek out the more affordable Hotel Westminster (warwickhotels.com), which swims in connections with the eponymous duke. It’s lovely too, with a lavish marble lobby and situated just around the corner from The Ritz. We looked at Airbnbs for this trip, but the cheaper ones were far out and the central options were often no cheaper than hotels.
Sightseeing is a joy in Paris. I suggest you ditch expensive tours and boat rides, and get your walking shoes on to tackle what my wife calls “McKelvie’s Walk”. We start at the Arc de Triomphe and descend down the grandeur of the Champs-Elysees, past the posh boutiques, and on to a bench in the Jardin des Tuileries with the ducks. Then we cut through the heart of the Louvre, before crossing the padlock-clad Pont des Arts and then back to the Ile de la Cite, the very heart of Paris.
Here we descend the “secret” stairs to the downstream tip of the island. Dangle your feet over the Seine in the shade of the trees, enjoying the epic views as envious tourists in the passing bateaux mouches wonder how on earth you got here.
Then it’s back up to street level to check out the Notre Dame Cathedral reconstruction, before you hop across the bridge to the quieter Ile Saint-Louis. You’re not going far as a cooling drink awaits right here at the relaxed Brasserie de Ile Saint-Louis. A beer on the terrace is expensive, but a proper bottle of Sancerre is only €40.
This walk returns to the “mainland” and the Marais where – after a photo stop at the Disney-esque beauty of the Hotel de Ville – we make our obligatory stop at the Auld Alliance pub, legendary among the Tartan Army as our home from home whenever Scotland play. Our epic walk culminates in avoiding the guillotine at Bofinger in the Bastille, supposedly Paris’s oldest brasserie.
At Bofinger your efforts are richly rewarded. Book a seat in the more palatial downstairs and snare the great value set menus. If you want a romantic treat, the seafood tower at €80 is a decadent entire meal pour deux. A cheaper option is grabbing a baguette from a boulangerie and some quality cheese – Comte is always a winner and doesn’t melt too quickly – and enjoy a picnic with a view up at the Sacre Coeur.
At the other end of the scale, I love dining back at Le Bristol. Its three-star Michelin restaurant is beyond my budget but the classy one Michelin star brasserie is a relative steal and great value for such haute cuisine.
WE leave Paris reluctantly after two nights but more Auld Alliance joy is in store in my favourite region: Burgundy. It’s home to the best wines in the world for me, especially the whites.
Here, we board European Waterways’s L’Impressionniste luxury barge for a six-night cruise awash with faultless wines and superb food. “We love Scottish people and they’re always very welcome aboard,” says our Burgundian host Diana.
This sentiment is echoed by her Portuguese colleague Miguel. On the night I wear a Harris Tweed waistcoat he jokes as he pours me a Laphroaig: “My country wants an Auld Alliance with Scotland too.”
A barge is the ideal slow-paced way to explore Burgundy’s patchwork of fields, forest and emerald hills. I cruise along on deck – with daily dips in the outdoor hot tub –watching otters splash for fish and kites soar in the thermals. Bliss.
I explore the towpath on foot and on the bikes they have aboard but there are daily excursions, too, in the minibus that follows us. We visit a brace of romantic chateaus. Then head to Caveau Chanson for a very special private tasting and gourmet lunch, where our host is very up on Scottish football and says that some of their barrels end up filled with Scottish whisky.
My return to France ends not in Paris, but in less heralded Dijon – in France there is always something more. I tour Dijon’s glorious covered market, wander the half-timbered medieval core, browse the mustard shops and, yes, enjoy more great wine and food.
Airbnbs are cheap here and I see a flat on sale for less than €70,000. A move to France would really cement my own Auld Alliance! For now I’m planning a Paris return and thoroughly recommend you renew your Auld Alliance too.
easyJet (www.easyjet.com) flies to Paris’s main airport, Charles de Gaulle, from both Edinburgh and Glasgow
European Waterways – www.europeanwaterways.com
