Trips by Simone

A perfect day in Paris looks different when someone who knows the city plans it for you.

Not just the Eiffel Tower and the Louvre. The neighborhood café where locals actually have breakfast. The museum that holds one of the world's great Impressionist collections. The bistro in Le Marais that doesn't need a review because everyone who goes comes back. The table at dinner that takes three months to get and is worth every day of the wait.

The iconic stops are iconic for a reason, but the moments that stay with you are usually the ones you wouldn't have found on your own. Finding those is exactly what I do best.

Ready for Paris? Let's get started.

Does travel feel more expensive right now? It's not your imagination, and it's not one thing.

Demand at the top end of the market has grown considerably. More travelers competing for the same number of genuinely excellent hotels, private guides, and limited-access experiences means pricing has moved in one direction.

International premium cabin pricing has shifted significantly since 2022 and hasn't come back down. The windows where pricing softens are shorter than they used to be. Then there's the currency piece. A strong dollar helps in some markets and doesn't in others. Knowing where and when it matters is part of the planning.

What this means practically: the travelers who get the most out of their budget right now are planning further ahead, staying flexible with timing, and being strategic about where they spend well versus where it doesn't change the experience.

If you're trying to make sense of what a trip should actually cost right now, I'm happy to walk through it with you.

The in-person experience at a Formula 1 race can’t be beat. From roaring engines to VIP vantage points, these hotels and cruises put you in the heart of the action. 🏎️🏨

Read more in the full story, then let’s connect to plan an unforgettable race-weekend experience.

F1 Hotels (and Cruises) with the Best Views of the Race | Virtuoso These balconies and cruise ships in Monaco, Singapore, and Las Vegas are prime perches for Formula 1 race weekend. Just don’t forget the earplugs.

Two travelers can book the same hotel in the same destination and have completely different experiences. Usually, it comes down to when they went.

Shoulder season is one of the most consistently underused tools in travel planning. The weeks just before or after the peak in most destinations mean meaningfully fewer crowds, similar or better weather, and prices that reflect the difference. The destination is largely the same. The experience of being there is not.

Time of day is just as consequential. The most visited sites in the world look completely different at 7 a.m. versus noon. That's not a minor distinction.

Then there's booking timing. For the properties and experiences that actually fill up, waiting until a few weeks out rarely works. The best rooms, the best guides, and the best tables are usually gone. Knowing when to move is part of the job.

When timing is right across all three of those, the trip feels significantly different. That's something I pay close attention to with every itinerary I help plan.