Provence-Alpes-Cote d'Azur (France)
Nice is the capital of the Côte d'Azur and the best base on the whole Riviera: a real French city of 350,000 people with a Baroque old town, a flower-and-produce market that has run for generations on the Cours Saleya, a seven-kilometre seafront promenade the British built in the 1820s, and a light so clear that Matisse moved here and never left.
Within an hour by train or bus lie the Riviera's greatest hits: Monaco's palace rock and Belle Époque casino, the eagle's-nest village of Eze, the Rothschild villa and its nine gardens on Cap Ferrat, Picasso's castle studio in Antibes, the red carpet and old port of Cannes, Saint-Paul-de-Vence with the Fondation Maeght, and lemon-scented Menton on the Italian border. This guide books it properly — the Matisse and Chagall museums in Cimiez, the Oceanographic Museum, the Villa Ephrussi in its winter hours, the art trail along the coast — and keeps it honest about closing days, seasonal shutdowns and rail strikes. Then it matches you to the right base, from the Negresco's pink dome on the Promenade to the Hôtel de Paris in Monte-Carlo and a beachside hostel for the budget-minded, because on this coast where you sleep decides how much of it you see.
Promenade des Anglais
Nearly seven kilometres of palm-lined seafront curving around the Baie des Anges — blue chairs, pebble beaches, Belle Époque façades and the Negresco's pink dome. Free, open every day, and the spine of every Nice trip.
Vieux Nice & the Cours Saleya Market
A maze of ochre lanes, Baroque chapels and laundry-hung balconies, opening onto the Cours Saleya — flowers and produce Tuesday to Sunday, antiques on Mondays, socca from the griddle. Free to wander and best before noon.
Oceanographic Museum of Monaco
A sea-palace built into the cliff of the Rock of Monaco — aquariums of Mediterranean and tropical life, a shark lagoon, natural-history galleries and a rooftop terrace with a view from Italy to Cap Ferrat. Open daily; book on Tiqets.
Villa & Gardens Ephrussi de Rothschild
A pink Belle Époque palazzo on the neck of Cap Ferrat with nine themed gardens between two bays — French, Spanish, Florentine, Japanese, rose and more — and rooms full of Rothschild treasures. In winter, weekday afternoons only.
Nearly seven kilometres of palm-lined seafront curving around the Baie des Anges — blue chairs, pebble beaches, Belle Époque façades and the Negresco's pink dome. Free, open every day, and the spine of every Nice trip.
A maze of ochre lanes, Baroque chapels and laundry-hung balconies, opening onto the Cours Saleya — flowers and produce Tuesday to Sunday, antiques on Mondays, socca from the griddle. Free to wander and best before noon.
The wooded rock above the old town where Nice was born — no castle left, but the best view on the Riviera over the Baie des Anges, a man-made waterfall, playgrounds and shady paths. Free, open daily; climb the steps or take the lift.
Matisse's own city museum in a red-ochre Genoese villa among the olive groves of Cimiez — paintings, drawings, cut-outs and the personal objects he painted again and again. Closed Tuesdays; under-18s free.
A museum Chagall helped design to hold his Biblical Message — seventeen great canvases of Genesis, Exodus and the Song of Songs in a calm modern building in a Mediterranean garden. The largest public Chagall collection anywhere. Closed Tuesdays.
A sea-palace built into the cliff of the Rock of Monaco — aquariums of Mediterranean and tropical life, a shark lagoon, natural-history galleries and a rooftop terrace with a view from Italy to Cap Ferrat. Open daily; book on Tiqets.
The world's second-smallest country in a day: the palace rock and the 11:55 Changing of the Guard, Princess Grace's cathedral, superyachts in Port Hercule and the Belle Époque Casino de Monte-Carlo. Go by train or on a guided day trip from Nice.
The Riviera's most dramatic perched village, 429 metres above the sea between Nice and Monaco — stone lanes, arches and galleries, and on top an exotic garden of cacti and succulents among castle ruins with views to Corsica on a clear day.
A pink Belle Époque palazzo on the neck of Cap Ferrat with nine themed gardens between two bays — French, Spanish, Florentine, Japanese, rose and more — and rooms full of Rothschild treasures. In winter, weekday afternoons only.
The seaside Château Grimaldi where Picasso painted through the autumn of 1946 — his Antibes works and ceramics, Nicolas de Staël, and a sculpture terrace above the ramparts. Closed Mondays; free for everyone 3 to 8 November 2026.
The film festival town beyond the red carpet — the palm-lined Croisette and its palace hotels, the Palais des Festivals steps, the old fishing quarter of Le Suquet on its hill, and the Forville market. Easy by train, or on a guided Cannes and Antibes tour.
A walled hill village of artists and galleries, with Chagall buried in its cemetery, and just outside it the Fondation Maeght — Giacometti, Miró, Braque, Chagall and Calder in a building and garden made for them. Partial closure 16 November to 4 December 2026.
Hotels we would book ourselves, from splurges to good-value bases.
Promenade des Anglais
The pink-domed icon of the Promenade des Anglais since 1913 — a museum-hotel of art and eccentric grandeur, with the Michelin-starred Chantecler, a historic bar, a spa and sea-view rooms over the Baie des Anges. The classic Nice address.
Check rates →City centre, near the Promenade
A quirky, family-run four-star where every room is a work by a contemporary artist, with a tropical garden and pool, a hammam and sauna, two blocks from the sea. The best mid-range character stay in central Nice.
Check rates →City centre, near Place Masséna
Nice's best-known hostel, a short walk from the sea and the old town — dorms and private rooms, a lively bar and social scene, and a labelled HI youth hostel. The smart budget base for train-hopping the Riviera.
Check rates →Monte-Carlo, Place du Casino
Monaco's legendary palace on the Casino square since 1864 — over 200 rooms and suites, the three-Michelin-starred Le Louis XV by Alain Ducasse, a famous wine cellar and harbour views. The ultimate Monte-Carlo address.
Check rates →Eze village
A tiny five-star hotel built from medieval houses on the edge of Eze village, 400 metres above the sea — around fourteen individual rooms and suites and a Michelin-starred terrace restaurant with one of the great views on the coast. Seasonal: closes in November, reopens in February.
Check rates →La Croisette, Cannes
The Art Deco giant of the Croisette since 1929, now part of Hyatt's Unbound Collection and newly awarded Palace status in June 2026 — 410 rooms, the Michelin-starred La Palme d'Or, a private beach, garden pool and spa. Cannes in full glamour.
Check rates →Antibes seafront, La Salis
A contemporary four-star on the Antibes seafront, steps from the sandy beach and a short walk from the old town and Picasso Museum — private beach and restaurant in season, a Phytomer spa and underground parking. A smart base for Antibes and Cap d'Antibes.
Check rates →Castle Hill and Old Town seafront
Built into the rock of Castle Hill at the end of the Promenade, with the most famous view of the Baie des Anges from its terraces, a garden pool, and the old town at the back door. Open all year.
Check rates →Old Town seafront, Cours Saleya
A dependable four-star on the seafront quay at the edge of the old town, steps from the Cours Saleya flower market and the beach. Fair prices for an unbeatable location, open all year.
Check rates →Carré d Or, city centre
A friendly four-star on a quiet street of the Carré d'Or, five minutes from the sea and Place Masséna, with family rooms, some terraces and a warm Mediterranean style. Open all year.
Check rates →Near Nice-Ville station
A calm four-star with just twenty-three rooms around a garden of palms, orange and olive trees, a few steps from Nice station. Homemade breakfast, eco-label, a rare garden in the city. Closed January and February.
Check rates →Station district (Gare)
A sociable budget stay near Nice station, with shared dorms and private rooms, a restaurant-bar and a young, relaxed crowd: the cheapest way to sleep centrally and day-trip by train. Open all year.
Check rates →Cannes centre, boulevard Carnot
A Belle Époque townhouse hotel in Cannes, a few minutes from La Croisette, known for warm hosting, homemade breakfast and an evening aperitif in the lounge. Seasonal: closes 6 December 2026, reopens in spring.
Check rates →Old Port, facing the Palais des Festivals
A white early-1900s landmark facing the Old Port of Cannes, with views over the yachts to Le Suquet, a terrace and a restaurant, steps from the Palais des Festivals and the Lérins ferries. Open all year.
Check rates →Menton seafront, Garavan
A renovated four-star on the Menton seafront facing the bay and Italy, with a pool, garden, restaurant and bar, a short walk from the old town and the Lemon Festival. Open all year, with rooms from mid-range prices.
Check rates →The practical playbook for a first visit to Nice and the Côte d'Azur — the closing days that trip people up, trains and buses along the coast, strikes and works, pebble beaches, money, safety and the seasonal rhythm of the Riviera.
Nice, Monaco, Cannes, Antibes or a perched village? How to choose a base on the Côte d'Azur, which Nice neighbourhood suits you, and the hotels that make each choice work.
A three-day plan from a Nice base — the old town, market and Castle Hill, the Matisse and Chagall museums, Monaco, Eze and Cap Ferrat, then Antibes and Cannes — with closing days and winter hours built in.
What to eat in Nice and how to eat it well — socca, pissaladière, pan bagnat and the real salade niçoise, the Cours Saleya market, local wine from Bellet, and how to avoid the tourist-trap terraces.
Why November to March is the Riviera's best-kept secret — mild sunny days, low hotel rates, the Christmas village, the Nice Carnival and the Menton Lemon Festival — and what closes, changes hours or runs on reduced service.
Why the greatest artists of the twentieth century came to the Côte d'Azur, and how to follow them: museums, chapels, villages and graves from Nice to Antibes, Saint-Paul-de-Vence, Vence and Menton, with current opening notes.
