Near Nice-Ville station

Hôtel Maison Durante

★★★★★

Maison Durante is a small surprise on the avenue Durante, the quiet residential street that runs from Nice-Ville station down toward the centre. Behind its gate stands a villa-style hotel of twenty-three rooms, set around a garden of palm trees, orange trees and olive trees where guests eat breakfast and read in the sun, and the effect of stepping off a city street into a green courtyard is the hotel's great charm. It is a four-star hotel with eighteen double rooms, two twins and three suites, fully renovated and air-conditioned, with free Wi-Fi. Breakfast is a highlight: a full spread with local and homemade products, served in the garden in fine weather. The hotel holds the Clef Verte environmental label. Staff are welcoming and speak English and Italian, pets are accepted when mentioned at booking, and there are five parking spaces on site, subject to availability, with public car parks nearby. The location suits anyone travelling by train: the station, with its trains to Monaco, Menton, Antibes, Cannes and Grasse, is a couple of minutes away, so day trips start with no stress. The tram line on avenue Jean Médecin, the Musée Masséna, the Russian Orthodox Cathedral and the Promenade des Anglais are all within a fifteen-minute walk, and the old town about twenty. The hotel opens from 1 March to 31 December and closes in January and February, so winter visitors should plan around that.

Choosing a room: garden-facing rooms are the most peaceful and the most attractive; rooms on the street side are still quiet because the avenue is residential. The suites suit families or longer stays. As in many villa hotels, room sizes vary, so read the descriptions when booking. With only twenty-three rooms, the hotel fills quickly during the Carnival and summer, and it closes for January and February, reopening on 1 March, which means it is unavailable for the Carnival in February 2027.

Living here: the garden is the hotel's living room and works year-round thanks to the Riviera climate; breakfast outdoors in March or November is entirely possible on a sunny day. The neighbourhood around the station has a wide choice of cheap and cheerful eateries, and the more elegant restaurants of the Carré d'Or and the rue de France are within walking distance. The station area is busy and a little scruffy in places, as station districts often are, but the avenue Durante itself is calm and pleasant.

Who it suits: travellers using Nice as a base for day trips by train, couples who want a quiet, characterful hotel, and anyone who values a garden over a sea view. It is mid-range in price, good value for a four-star with this much charm. Because it is small, the welcome is personal, and staff are happy to suggest restaurants and help plan train trips along the coast.