Olympéa by Rabanne

So inane, so loud, so rustic, and it gives me a migraine. It dominates the room with shameless arrogance, bullying everyone else like a high school bully. Its mere existence annoys me.

Oh, I really miss smelling the original scent from those years of this fragrance. They’ve reformulated it 😪 I don’t know how many times now. It still has the Olympea vibe, but something has changed. I wouldn’t buy it because it’s become so mainstream and duped, but years ago it was one of my favorites. I stick with Olympea Aqua, which has a stronger sillage, and Olympea Solar ♡.♡

The best of all my perfumes 😍

People who say it doesn’t last well, etc. It’s clear you haven’t tried previous versions and that it has been heavily reformulated.

I don’t get the hype. I feel there are better summer perfumes. I have it because someone gifted it to me; I wouldn’t have bought it myself. It doesn’t project much and doesn’t last; you have to be very close to perceive it. Nothing remarkable.

Zero charm, smells generic and cheap, like something you’d buy at a discount store for two euros. It’s sweet but lacks any elegance at all; it doesn’t convince me.

Bought it blind and loved it. Smells elegant, sweet, salty, and woody with a citrus undertone. I don’t detect the vanilla, but it’s a great purchase at a good price for autumn, winter, and spring nights.

At first, I smelled lots of ginger and mandarin, but later it smelled like talcum powder and makeup dust—very clean and light. It’s not as potent as they say, lasts about four hours, and I can’t find the vanilla. The salt gives it a soft signature. I wouldn’t buy it again, though the scent is original.

I smell too much wood, and the jasmine only intensifies it. The vanilla doesn’t soften the bitter intensity but makes it heavier. It smells like other much cheaper perfumes, like Isadora’s Nix. It’s not delicious to me, nor is it annoying; it just smells like a sober office lady. The price doesn’t seem worth it.

I bought it blind because I love its sibling, Olympea Legend. At first, it smelled great, but I didn’t fall in love with it. The salty note is prominent, which works well on my skin, but it’s a super strong perfume, even for someone who wears a lot of scent. It cloyed me a bit. It’s not youthful; it’s more dignified. I’ll give it more chances.

The first time I wore Olympéa, I felt I had a magnificent perfume in my hands. A singular complexity where the notes aren’t perceived separately, a perfect aromatic synthesis. Half an hour later, oh surprise!, it loses that majesty and on my skin it smells like Pure XS: rich, with that warm caramelized sweetness, but without that initial grandeur. Goodbye to the complexity that made it THE PERFUME. Applause, but I stick with Pure XS; being abandoned by that sublime perception disappoints me.

I always thought poorly of this perfume; I thought it would be something vintage and bad, what a pleasant surprise. It’s a very wearable and lovely scent, definitely a white floral due to the water jasmine, but creamy from the vanilla. The salt ties it all together, giving it character without losing its softness. It’s an all-rounder, a nice gift, and a good blind buy.

Scent: 9. Longevity: 4 (4 hours on skin). Sillage: soft for 1 hour. Requires reapplication. Price: could be cheaper. Packaging: 9.

Olympea is an elegant white floral; I love it. In my experience, jasmine, vanilla, and amber predominate, giving it a powdery and sober touch; perhaps the ginger adds freshness and a slight kick. I don’t perceive the feared salty note because on me it develops into a sweat-like scent. It settles into a very pleasant powdery finish. It resembles others, I suppose it has been imitated. In Mexico, a decent approximation is Diamant de Zermat, a national brand that is beautiful at $30. In Olympea, nuances stand out, but Diamant doesn’t fall short. The packaging is gorgeous; I’m happy to have the first version (unreformulated) for about $50; the first thing I noticed was that the liquid is dark amber, almost identical to the current Legend. It lasts seven hours with moderate projection; it’s not overwhelming but enveloping, which I like. It’s great in rainy weather. Who will like it: lovers of versatile florals.

I love it; I feel very feminine with this perfume. In general, I like many Paco Rabanne scents, and I’ve bought this particular one three times; I think it’s the one that identifies with me the most. For me, it’s super sweet, but not too cloying. I really love it.