If you follow my Instagram (gemmalondonlife) you will have recently seen that I went on an absolutely incredible trip to Paris with one of my all time favourite chocolate brands Lindor Chocolate. The reason for this trip was because Lindor have recently partnered with Secret Escapes for a Valentine’s Day competition and I was lucky enough to go along and experience what the competition winners would win, I know right, it was a really pinch me moment! The idea behind the prize is that for Valentine’s Day, the competition winners would win a 2 night trip to Paris, which includes a stay at the new and beautiful Hoxton Hotel (more about this later) and a visit to Lindor’s largest chocolate stores where they will attend a private chocolate making and tasting session. Is there anything more perfect than a trip to the city of love finished off with chocolate making?!
I arrived bright and early to Kings Cross & St Pancreas Station to board our Eurostar to Paris with armfuls of croissants and coffee and ready for a trip to one of my favourite cities. I think when it comes to weekend breaks cities are always my go to. I feel like you can cram so much into a few days and really feel like you’ve explored the destination and there is always so much to do. This is definitely true for Paris, it’s such a beautiful city with some of the most famous sites there are to see in the world and it’s also one of the most romantic cities I’ve ever been to.
After a short journey on the Eurostar we arrived in Paris and headed to The Hoxton Hotel to check in and have a quick change before heading to lunch in their restaurant. Even if you’re not staying at the hotel I’d really recommend trying to go to their restaurant because their lunch menu was so delicious. I had the Harissa Squash with a side of fries, because is it really a lunch out if you don’t have a side of fries?!
After lunch we then headed to the Lindor Paris store to design our own chocolate slab bars and try a few of their exclusive chocolates they only sell in that store. I decorated my slab with almonds, strawberries and chocolate hearts, which I felt was very fitting for the Valentine’s Day competition! Once we’d finished in that section we then headed to the most amazing pick n mix stand I think I’ve ever seen. The store has a section of rows and rows of the Lindt truffles in every single flavour you could ever imagine and we were told to fill our gift boxes with as many that would fit, I know, dream come true. There were so many different flavours that I had never heard of before like Almond, Irish Cream, Mint, Orange and Sea Salt. I’ve almost finished the box that I made and I did originally have the intention of taking the box into work to share but then as I’d already eaten so many I thought maybe I should just treat myself!
If we weren’t all chocolated out (definitely a real phase) we then headed to the in store cafe which has a menu of entirely chocolate related drinks (can you tell I was in heaven?!) I had the iced chocolate macchiato, which was absolutely delicious and wasn’t too heavy because it was chilled.
Once we were all finished in the shop we decided to brave the rain and go and see some of the Parisian sites. To wait for the rain to pass a little we first headed to the Louvre to take a look at the Mona Lisa, which was surrounded by a million pushing people to try and get a selfie of her, so apologies for the awful picture. After having a little walk around the museum the rain had stopped enough for us to venture outside to try and find some more sites, however this was pretty short lived and then the gales started! So instead we decided to hide in a little a little Parisian cafe with some snacks and a nice glass of red wine, whilst we dried off before shortly heading back to the hotel to change before dinner.
Having visited the London Hoxton Hotel I think I’d definitely say that the Paris branch is my favourite. It has such a grand and almost Great Gatsby feel to it, especially the entrance way with the staircase but then it’s also super cosy at the same time with all the little nucks and crannies with velvets seats that you could sit and drink coffee in all day. We absolutely loved our room, it’s had a really cosy romantic feel to it with the dim lighting and velvet accents with the most beautiful marble and gold detailed bathroom. The hotel is also in a really great central location which was perfect walking distance to lots of bars and restaurants and also walkable distance to a lot of the sites.
We headed out for an early-ish dinner to a place right in the middle of the Arc de Triomphe and the Eiffel Tower so after dinner we went for a walk along the river and caught the Eiffel Tower in all it’s glory sparkling away. We then headed back to the hotel where we almost fell into bed after such an incredible but very long day and had the most amazing nights sleep before another full day of exploring.
Luckily the weather on our second day was absolutely beautiful as it was super chilly with blue skies, which is just the perfect winter weather. After breakfast in the restaurant at the Hoxton, we walked from the hotel to the Eiffel Tower taking in all the beautiful Parisian streets where had a little explore of the area and took a few photos. The walk probably only took us about an hour, which on a beautiful day is such a lovely walk to do because you walk through the centre of Paris through all the shops and then you have a short walk along the river before you’re greeting by the magnificent Eiffel Tower. We didn’t go up the tower as I’d already done that quite a few times, but if you have time to spare I’d definitely recommend doing this as you get the most incredible view of the whole of Paris.
We really had the most magical two days in Paris, and I think it was probably one of my favourite trips to the city. If you would like to experience the city as I did with a beautiful stay at The Hoxton Hotel and visit to the Lindor store then Secret Escapes are currently running a competition on their website that ends on the 14th February over on their website. All you have to do to enter is follow the link below and fill in all the details and cross your fingers and toes that you’ll win a magically, romantic trip to the city of love!
Enter the competition here
Let me know if you enter because I would love to share with you some other tips I have from previous trips to Paris!
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