Nice: Where the Alps Meet the Mediterranean in Perfect Harmony
There is a particular quality of light in Nice that painters, writers and travelers have been trying to describe and capture for over two centuries without ever quite succeeding. It is the light of the Mediterranean at its most generous and most flattering, a golden clarity that makes the terracotta rooftops of the Old Town glow like embers, turns the sea in the Baie des Anges to an improbable shade of turquoise and fills the palm lined boulevards of the Promenade des Anglais with a warmth and brilliance that makes every afternoon feel like the finest afternoon of the year. The things to do in Nice are as varied, as beautiful and as consistently rewarding as this extraordinary light itself, spanning world class art museums, one of the most vibrant and most atmospheric old towns in Southern France, magnificent hilltop viewpoints, outstanding food markets and some of the most spectacular day trips available from any city on the entire Mediterranean coast.
This Nice travel guide is written for every type of traveler whether you are arriving for a single day as part of a broader French Riviera itinerary or settling in for a week to explore the city and its extraordinary surroundings at a proper Niçois pace. Nice is a city that rewards both approaches but reveals its greatest depth and its most genuine character to those who give it time. It is simultaneously a major international resort city of extraordinary glamour and a genuinely authentic Provençal city with its own distinct language, cuisine, architecture and cultural identity that sets it apart from every other destination on the Côte d’Azur.
Understanding Nice Before You Arrive
The best places to visit in Nice are concentrated across a compact and largely walkable city that sits at the eastern end of the Baie des Anges bay between the Mediterranean Sea and the first foothills of the Maritime Alps that rise dramatically behind the city creating a backdrop of extraordinary beauty. The city divides naturally into several distinct areas each with its own character and atmosphere. The Vieux Nice Old Town on the eastern side of the city is the most atmospheric and most historically significant area. The Promenade des Anglais stretches along the entire seafront. The modern city center around the Place Masséna and the Avenue Jean Médecin contains the main commercial and shopping districts. The hillside neighborhoods of Cimiez and Mont Boron above the city offer outstanding views and some of the finest residential architecture in Nice.
Top Attractions and Things to Do in Nice
Things to do in Nice begin with the landmarks and natural attractions that have made this city one of the most visited and most celebrated destinations on the entire Mediterranean coast and extend outward into the neighborhoods, markets, museums and coastal experiences that reveal the full extraordinary depth of Niçois life and culture.
Promenade des Anglais
The Promenade des Anglais is the most famous and most immediately recognizable landmark in Nice and one of the most celebrated seafront promenades in the entire world. Stretching for approximately seven kilometers along the Baie des Anges from the Nice Côte d’Azur Airport in the west to the foot of Castle Hill in the east, it was originally built in the early 19th century at the expense of the English aristocracy who wintered in Nice in enormous numbers and found the waterfront inaccessible. Today it is the absolute heart of Niçois public life, a magnificent palm lined boulevard where cyclists, joggers, strollers and sunbathers coexist in the most convivial and most democratic public space in the city. Walk its entire length at least once in each direction at different times of day to appreciate the full extraordinary beauty of the bay and the surrounding landscape.
Old Town Nice Guide
The old town guide introduces the most atmospheric, most historically significant and most visually extraordinary part of the entire city. The Vieux Nice Old Town is a remarkably intact and remarkably vibrant Baroque city of the 17th and 18th centuries built on a dense grid of extremely narrow streets between the seafront and Castle Hill. Its buildings are painted in the characteristic warm ochres, terracottas, yellows and oranges of the Italian Baroque tradition reflecting the fact that Nice was part of the Kingdom of Sardinia rather than France until 1860 and has always had a profoundly Italian character that distinguishes it from every other French city. The Cours Saleya is the magnificent central square of the Old Town and the site of the most beautiful and most atmospheric flower and food market in Nice which takes place every morning from Tuesday to Sunday. The Rue Droite and the Rue du Jésus are the most characteristic and most photogenic streets of the Old Town lined with Baroque churches, excellent restaurants and the kinds of independent food shops and artisan businesses that give the neighborhood its extraordinary vitality.
Castle Hill
Castle Hill known in French as the Colline du Château is the dramatic rocky promontory that rises 92 meters above the sea at the eastern end of the Promenade des Anglais and the Old Town and offers the most spectacular and most celebrated panoramic view over Nice and the Baie des Anges available anywhere in the city. The castle itself was destroyed by the French in 1706 and only ruins remain but the hilltop park with its beautiful waterfall, its Mediterranean vegetation and its extraordinary 360 degree views over the city, the sea, the port and the hills behind Nice is one of the most rewarding and most enjoyable outdoor experiences the city has to offer. Climb the stairs from the Old Town for the most authentic experience or take the free lift from the seafront.
Marché du Cours Saleya
The Marché du Cours Saleya is the most celebrated and most beautiful outdoor market in Nice and one of the finest in all of Southern France. Occupying the magnificent Cours Saleya square in the heart of the Old Town every morning from Tuesday to Sunday, it is a market of extraordinary color, fragrance and variety where the finest flowers, fruit, vegetables, herbs, olives, cheeses, charcuterie and local specialties of the Niçois culinary tradition are sold from colorful stalls by vendors whose families have occupied the same market pitches for generations. On Monday mornings the market transforms into an excellent antique and flea market. Arrive early for the finest produce and the most atmospheric experience before the tourist crowds arrive later in the morning.
Best Neighborhoods in Nice
Understanding the best neighborhoods in Nice is essential for experiencing the full variety and genuine character of this extraordinary city beyond its most famous landmarks.
Vieux Nice
Vieux Nice is the oldest, most atmospheric and most distinctly Niçois neighborhood in the entire city. Its dense grid of Baroque streets, its magnificent churches including the Cathédrale Sainte-Réparate and the Chapelle de la Miséricorde, its outstanding food market and its extraordinary concentration of excellent restaurants serving authentic Niçois cuisine make it the single most essential neighborhood for any visitor to explore at length. The neighborhood is at its most magical in the early morning before the market crowds arrive and in the evening when the restaurants and bars fill with a mixture of locals and visitors creating one of the most convivial and most genuinely Mediterranean social atmospheres in France.
Cimiez
Cimiez is the most elegant and most historically significant hillside neighborhood in Nice, a quarter of magnificent Belle Époque villas, peaceful gardens and outstanding museums that sits above the city center offering beautiful views and a completely different atmosphere from the bustle of the Old Town and the seafront. The neighborhood is home to the outstanding Musée Matisse and the Musée National Marc Chagall, the beautiful Jardins de Cimiez park and the remarkable ancient Roman ruins of the Cemenelum archaeological site. Henri Matisse lived in Cimiez for much of his later life and is buried in the cemetery of the nearby Monastère de Cimiez.
Libération and Musicians
The Libération and Musiciens neighborhoods immediately north and west of the city center are the most authentically local and most genuinely Niçois residential areas of the city where the tourist infrastructure thins considerably and the neighborhood markets, independent restaurants and daily street life of real Nice becomes much more visible and accessible. The Marché de la Libération on the Avenue Malausséna is the finest and most authentic neighborhood food market in Nice, beloved by local residents and virtually unknown to most visitors.
Best Museums in Nice
The best museums in Nice make the city one of the finest art museum destinations in the entire South of France outside of the major Paris collections.
The Musée Matisse in the Cimiez neighborhood is housed in a magnificent 17th century Genoese villa and contains the most comprehensive collection of works by Henri Matisse in the world spanning every period and every medium of his extraordinary career from his earliest figurative works through the revolutionary colorism of his Fauve period to the extraordinary paper cutout works of his final years. The Musée National Marc Chagall nearby is dedicated to the work of Marc Chagall and houses the largest and most important collection of his work in public ownership including the extraordinary series of 17 monumental canvases known as the Biblical Message that Chagall considered the most important work of his entire career. The Musée d’Art Moderne et d’Art Contemporain known as the MAMAC is the most important contemporary art museum in Nice housing an outstanding collection of New Realism, Pop Art and Nouveau Réalisme including works by Yves Klein, Niki de Saint Phalle and Andy Warhol.
Nice Food Guide
The Nice food guide reveals one of the most distinctive and most genuinely fascinating regional food traditions in all of France. Niçois cuisine is the product of centuries of Italian influence, Mediterranean abundance and Provençal tradition creating a food culture that is entirely its own and that differs substantially from the cuisine of both the rest of France and of neighboring Italy.
Essential Niçois Dishes and Foods
Socca is the most iconic and most authentically Niçois street food in existence, a large thin pancake made from chickpea flour, olive oil and water cooked in a wood fired oven and served hot, crispy at the edges and soft in the center, seasoned simply with black pepper. It is eaten standing up at the stalls of the Cours Saleya market and at dedicated socca restaurants throughout the Old Town and is one of the most simple and most genuinely delicious food experiences in Nice. Salade Niçoise in its authentic local form bears almost no resemblance to the version served in most restaurants around the world. The genuine Niçois version is a salad of raw vegetables including tomatoes, cucumbers, broad beans, spring onions and radishes with hard boiled eggs, anchovies, black olives and tuna dressed simply with olive oil and never with any cooked vegetables or green beans. Pan Bagnat is the Niçois street sandwich, essentially a salade niçoise in a round bread roll that has been moistened with olive oil and is one of the finest and most portable meals available at the market. Pissaladière is the Niçois answer to pizza, a thick bread dough base topped with slowly caramelized onions, anchovies and black olives that is one of the most beloved and most distinctly Niçois dishes in the entire regional culinary canon. Daube Niçoise is a rich slow braised beef stew made with red wine, olives, herbs and orange peel that is one of the most deeply flavored and most satisfying dishes in the Niçois culinary tradition.
Monaco Day Trip From Nice
The Monaco day trip from Nice is the most popular and most immediately rewarding excursion available from the city. The Principality of Monaco is just 22 kilometers east of Nice and is reachable in approximately 20 minutes by train making it the most accessible and most dramatically different day trip destination on the entire French Riviera. Monaco is the world’s second smallest country and the most densely populated territory on earth, a tiny but extraordinarily glamorous principality of extraordinary wealth, spectacular architecture and a way of life so extravagant and so concentrated that it produces an almost overwhelming effect on first time visitors. Visit the magnificent Casino de Monte-Carlo, the extraordinary Oceanographic Museum founded by Prince Albert I, the beautiful Old Town of Monaco Ville perched on its rocky promontory above the sea, the magnificent Cathedral where Princess Grace is buried and the extraordinary Formula One Grand Prix circuit that winds through the streets of the principality every May.
Cannes Day Trip From Nice
The Cannes day trip from Nice takes you to the most glamorous and most internationally celebrated resort town on the French Riviera. Located approximately 33 kilometers southwest of Nice and reachable in approximately 30 minutes by train, Cannes is most famous internationally for its annual Film Festival held every May which transforms the city into the most glamorous and most intensely covered cultural event in the world for two weeks each year. Outside of festival season Cannes offers the magnificent Croisette seafront boulevard lined with the most prestigious palace hotels and designer boutiques on the Riviera, excellent sandy beaches, the charming historic quarter of Le Suquet on its hilltop above the old port and boat trips to the beautiful Lérins Islands just offshore where the mysterious Man in the Iron Mask was imprisoned in the fortress of Saint-Honorat.
Antibes Day Trip From Nice
The Antibes day trip from Nice introduces one of the most charming, most historically significant and most genuinely rewarding destinations on the entire French Riviera. Located approximately 20 kilometers southwest of Nice and reachable in approximately 25 minutes by train, Antibes is a beautifully preserved ancient Greek and Roman city that later became one of the most important French fortified towns on the Mediterranean coast. The magnificent Château Grimaldi houses the outstanding Musée Picasso where Pablo Picasso lived and worked during an extraordinarily productive period in 1946 and left the entire production of that year to the city as a gift creating one of the most intimate and most joyful Picasso museum experiences in the world. The Marché Provençal in the covered market hall is the finest and most authentic food market on the Riviera and the Old Town with its beautifully preserved medieval streets and its magnificent sea walls overlooking the Cap d’Antibes is one of the most atmospheric historic centers in all of Southern France.
Day Trips From Nice
The day trips from Nice available to visitors extend well beyond Monaco, Cannes and Antibes to encompass some of the most spectacular and most varied destinations on the entire French and Italian Riviera. Eze is a magnificently preserved medieval hilltop village perched 427 meters above the sea between Nice and Monaco offering the most dramatic and most photographed views on the entire coast and an extraordinary parfumerie where the art of Riviera perfume making can be discovered in depth. Menton is the most Italian feeling and most quietly charming town on the French Riviera, a city of extraordinary Baroque architecture, magnificent gardens and the finest lemon festival in France held every February. Grasse in the hills above Cannes is the perfume capital of the world, a beautiful medieval hill town where the most celebrated perfume houses including Fragonard, Galimard and Molinard have been producing the world’s finest fragrances for centuries.
Getting Around Nice
Getting around Nice is straightforward and enjoyable thanks to an excellent public transport network and a compact and largely walkable city center. The Nice Tram network has three lines of which Line 1 and Line 2 are the most useful for visitors covering the city center, the Old Town, the train station and the airport. The local bus network operated by Lignes d’Azur covers the entire city and the surrounding coastal towns. The Train des Merveilles scenic railway connects Nice with the beautiful mountain villages of the Maritime Alps hinterland. Cycling is increasingly popular in Nice with a dedicated bike sharing system and an excellent network of dedicated cycle paths along the seafront and through the city center. Walking is the finest way to explore the Old Town, the Promenade des Anglais and the Cimiez neighborhood.
Nice Nightlife Guide
The Nice nightlife guide covers a city of sophisticated and varied after dark options that reflect the dual character of Nice as both a major international resort and a genuinely authentic Provençal city. The Old Town is the most vibrant and most atmospheric area for evening dining and drinking with the Rue de la Préfecture and the Place du Palais lined with excellent wine bars, cocktail bars and restaurants that fill with a lively mixture of locals and visitors every evening. The Rue Masséna and the Place Masséna area in the modern city center contain the largest concentration of bars and clubs in Nice. The Wayne’s Bar on the Rue de la Préfecture is one of the most legendary and most consistently popular bars in the entire city. The beach clubs along the Promenade des Anglais transform into sophisticated cocktail bar and lounge experiences in the evening during summer.
Nice Shopping Guide
The Nice shopping guide reveals a city of excellent retail variety spanning luxury boutiques, excellent local food producers and some of the finest markets in Southern France. The Avenue Jean Médecin is the main commercial shopping street of Nice, a long pedestrian friendly boulevard lined with major French and international retail chains and department stores. The Rue Paradis and the Avenue de Suède in the Carré d’Or Golden Square district contain the finest luxury boutiques in Nice with flagship stores of major French fashion and jewelry houses. The Old Town offers the most authentic and most interesting independent shopping in Nice with excellent olive oil producers, artisan soap makers, Niçois food specialty shops and independent fashion boutiques concentrated in the streets around the Cours Saleya market.
Nice Itinerary
Nice Itinerary 3 Days
A Nice itinerary of 3 days gives you enough time to experience the essential highlights of the city while also making the most rewarding day trips to Monaco and one other Riviera destination.
Day 1 is devoted entirely to Nice beginning with the Cours Saleya market in the morning followed by an exploration of the Old Town including the Cathédrale Sainte-Réparate and lunch at one of the socca and pan bagnat stalls. The afternoon is spent climbing Castle Hill for the finest panoramic views over the city followed by a long walk along the Promenade des Anglais and dinner in the Old Town.
Day 2 is the Monaco day trip departing by train in the morning and spending the day exploring the Casino de Monte-Carlo, the Oceanographic Museum, Monaco Ville and the Cathedral before returning to Nice for the evening.
Day 3 begins with the Musée Matisse and the Musée National Marc Chagall in the Cimiez neighborhood in the morning followed by the Antibes day trip in the afternoon for the Musée Picasso and the Marché Provençal.
Extended Nice Itinerary
A Nice itinerary of five or more days allows for the Cannes day trip, an excursion to the beautiful village of Eze, a visit to Grasse and deeper exploration of the city’s museums, neighborhoods and food culture alongside proper time to simply sit on the beach and absorb the extraordinary light and beauty of the Baie des Anges.
Best Time to Visit Nice
The best time to visit Nice is from May to June and September to October when the Mediterranean climate is at its most perfect with warm sunny days, comfortable temperatures between 22 and 28 degrees Celsius and the summer crowds at their most manageable.
July and August are the hottest and most crowded months on the French Riviera with temperatures regularly exceeding 32 degrees Celsius and the city and its beaches becoming extremely busy. The Nice Jazz Festival in July is one of the finest and most celebrated music festivals in France and is a wonderful reason to visit during this period despite the crowds.
April and May bring the Cannes Film Festival which transforms the neighboring city into a spectacular event of global significance and fills the entire Riviera with an extraordinary energy and excitement. November to March is the quietest and most affordable period with mild temperatures by Northern European standards, very few tourists and an authentic and local atmosphere that reveals the genuine everyday character of Nice more clearly than any other season.
Is Nice Safe for Tourists
Is Nice safe for tourists is a question that most first time visitors ask before planning their trip. Nice is a very safe city with a well developed tourism infrastructure and a professional police presence throughout the major tourist areas and the seafront. Pickpocketing can occur in the Cours Saleya market, on the Promenade des Anglais and in busy tourist areas of the Old Town. Keep your belongings secure and use a crossbody bag in crowded spaces. With basic precautions Nice is an extremely safe and genuinely welcoming destination for all types of travelers.
Closing Thoughts
Nice is a city that earns a place in the very highest tier of European travel destinations not through a single overwhelming landmark or a single defining cultural institution but through the extraordinary totality of the experience it offers. The combination of the most beautiful seafront promenade in France, one of the most atmospheric and most vital old towns in Southern Europe, two of the finest single artist museums in the entire world, a food culture of remarkable distinctiveness and depth, a Mediterranean climate of extraordinary generosity and the most spectacular collection of day trip destinations available from any city on the entire coastline creates an experience that is genuinely and completely greater than the sum of its already extraordinary parts. The things to do in Nice will fill every day of your visit with beauty, flavor, discovery and the particular quality of light and life that has been drawing the world to this magnificent city for two centuries.
This Nice travel guide has covered everything from the best places to visit in Nice and detailed neighborhood guides to the Nice food guide, the best museums in Nice, day trips to Monaco, Cannes and Antibes, the Nice nightlife guide, the Nice shopping guide and all the practical information you need to plan an extraordinary visit to the Queen of the French Riviera.
Frequently Asked Questions
What are the best things to do in Nice?
The best things to do in Nice include walking the Promenade des Anglais, exploring the Old Town and Cours Saleya market, visiting the Musée Matisse and taking day trips to Monaco, Cannes and Antibes.
How many days do I need in Nice?
A Nice itinerary of 3 days covers the essential city highlights and the Monaco day trip while a Nice itinerary of five days adds Cannes, Antibes and deeper exploration of the museums and neighborhoods.
What is the best time to visit Nice?
The best time to visit Nice is from May to June and September to October for the finest combination of warm weather, beautiful light and manageable tourist crowds.
Is Nice safe for tourists?
Yes. Is Nice safe for tourists is a common concern but Nice is a very safe city with basic precautions including keeping belongings secure in crowded markets and tourist areas being all that is required.
What is the Monaco day trip from Nice like?
The Monaco day trip from Nice is the most popular Riviera excursion, just 20 minutes by train and offering the Casino de Monte-Carlo, the Oceanographic Museum and the extraordinary glamour of the world’s most famous principality.
What is the Cannes day trip from Nice like?
The Cannes day trip from Nice takes approximately 30 minutes by train and offers the magnificent Croisette boulevard, excellent beaches and the charming hilltop quarter of Le Suquet above the old port.
What is the Antibes day trip from Nice like?
The Antibes day trip from Nice is approximately 25 minutes by train and offers the outstanding Musée Picasso, the finest food market on the Riviera and one of the most beautifully preserved historic old towns in Southern France.
What are the best day trips from Nice?
The best day trips from Nice include Monaco, Cannes, Antibes, the hilltop village of Eze, the perfume capital of Grasse and the charming border town of Menton near the Italian frontier.