Half the fun of going to Saint-Tropez, a place synonymous with luxurious indolence, is telling people you’re going there. I found that the news usually resulted in poorly concealed envy on the part of the listener (followed by poorly concealed delight on my part). The other half the fun is lounging at fashionable beach clubs, shopping at designer boutiques in town and wine tasting in the vineyard-blanketed hinterlands.

Though it has fewer than 5,000 residents, the ancient town of Saint-Tropez itself becomes clogged with traffic in the high season, and even its pedestrianized streets can get overcrowded. I sought a plush refuge away from the hubbub. The Travel Office reserved two resorts in the countryside, both with historic main buildings and nearby private beach clubs. I also considered staying undercover at Cheval Blanc St-Tropez, in walking distance to the center, but the busy street running past the property, the postcard-size beach and the supersize rates made me skeptical of its value proposition. 

Airelles Saint-Tropez

The countryside around the town of Saint-Tropez is as lovely as you would imagine, marked by vineyards, gardens and villas. The winding roads can also be narrow and slightly unnerving. Fortunately, just as I began to curse my decision to hire a rental car instead of a driver, the oleander-lined driveway up to our first resort popped into view around a bend.