The Riviera: Saint-Tropez, Cap-Ferrat and Monaco

Météo-France's 1991–2020 normals for Nice put September highs near 25°C and nights close to 18°C, only a few degrees below August, with about 250 hours of sunshine and rain on around five days. October turns cooler and wetter. The Saint-Tropez hotels on this route stay open into October.

The reason to come is Les Voiles de Saint-Tropez, organised by the Société Nautique de Saint-Tropez, founded in 1862. Around 250 yachts take part, from century-old classics to modern racers and maxis, and they berth in the old port. The regatta usually runs from late September into early October.

Begin with four nights at Cheval Blanc St-Tropez, on Bouillabaisse beach about 2 km from the village: 32 rooms and suites designed with Jean-Michel Wilmotte, and a private beach. Dinner is at La Vague d'Or, where Arnaud Donckele holds three Michelin stars; it closes on Wednesdays. The alternative is La Réserve Ramatuelle, a private domain in the garrigue with villas of three to six bedrooms.

Next, three nights at the Grand-Hôtel du Cap-Ferrat, A Four Seasons Hotel, on the peninsula for more than a century. Six hectares of gardens run down to Club Dauphin and its heated seawater pool. Le Cap holds a Michelin star under Yoric Tièche. Close by is the Villa Ephrussi de Rothschild and its nine themed gardens. The hotel can arrange a yacht back to Saint-Tropez for another day with the fleet.

Finish with three nights at the Hôtel de Paris Monte-Carlo, built in 1864 on the Place du Casino. Le Louis XV–Alain Ducasse holds three Michelin stars; Le Grill holds one. The Thermes Marins spa and pools cover 6,600 m².

On the flying: Nice Côte d'Azur is the gateway, with a business aviation terminal that has its own customs, and a helicopter terminal. Cannes-Mandelieu has a 1,610-metre runway and takes aircraft up to 35 tonnes. La Môle–Saint-Tropez is closest but demanding: 1,071 metres of runway, 24 hours' prior permission and an instructor-led training flight for jet crews. It accepts flights from outside Schengen from 1 July to 15 October, so in late September the right aircraft and crew can land members from abroad a short drive from the regatta.

By helicopter, Nice to La Môle takes about 20 minutes, Monaco to Saint-Tropez about 22, and Nice to Monaco's Fontvieille heliport around seven. Cap-Ferrat is 40 minutes by road from the airport. OUIJETS sources the aircraft for each leg and times them around the racing, so the week is spent on the water rather than on the coast road.

Ask your advisor about Les Voiles de Saint-Tropez and a week timed to the racing; a yacht day from Cap-Ferrat to Saint-Tropez; the Buy-Out, from Bouillabaisse beach to the Place du Casino.