After spending two glorious days in Provence on our holiday to France, we left the countryside and headed for Nice, where we were to spend the rest of our trip. We chose to book an Airbnb in Nice because we thought it would be a good base for exploring the various towns along the coast. And we were right.
Not only that, but Nice makes a great destination in itself as there's plenty to do, loads of amazing restaurants and a bustling atmosphere. I'd definitely recommend staying here if you want to explore the South of France. With that in mind, I've written about every town we visited below to give you some inspiration for your travels and help you decide what to prioritise if you're pushed for time.
St Tropez
When planning our route to Nice from Provence we realised that some of the towns we wanted to visit were handily on the way. So we packed up early and made the journey in the car, parking just a little outside of the town.
That's not to say you can't get to St Tropez directly from Nice – you can, but it's just a little of a faff. Here are the different options:
Train
Get the train from Nice to St Raphael Valescure, which takes around an hour and costs about £12. You'll then need to get either a 45-minute taxi, a one-hour-thirty-minute bus or a one-hour ferry if you're travelling between April and November.
Ferry
You can also get a ferry from Nice to St Tropez, which besides the car, is probably the easiest option. It takes around two-and-a-half hours and costs about €85 for a round trip. You'll also get a fabulous view of the French Riviera coastline this way.
Car
Driving there from Nice would take around an hour and a half, depending on traffic. And again, some of the roads are pretty high up so you should be in for some incredible views on the journey.
Whatever way you choose, I'd say visiting St Tropez is a must. It's everything you expect it to be: glamorous, chic and very pretty. We spent most of the morning walking around, exploring the flower-lined streets and taking it all in. The main shopping strip is lined with high-end brands – perfect for window shopping or splashing out on a treat. Once you're done, you can take a load off and people-watch in the beautiful tree-shaded square called Place des Lices.
You can also spend time down by the water, admiring the yachts or grabbing a drink by the marina. As you can imagine, though, the prices at these restaurants are a little steep. Instead of settling here, we found a little bakery called Le Goustado Tropezien and tucked into a sandwich on a quaint little alley.
We then headed uphill to the Maritime Museum, which as well as having great views over the town, was also pretty interesting. The museum is set inside a converted castle and the exhibitions are really interactive. It only costs €4 to get in, and in my opinion, the view makes that immediately worth it.
Antibes
We only had a couple of hours to explore Antibes, and I'd say that's plenty of time to get a good feel for the place, duck in and out of a few shops, stroll along the seafront for a bit and grab a drink.
Antibes gets prettier the closer you get to the sea. The narrow streets on the approach are filled with independent, arty shops where you'll find lovely souvenirs such as china and jewellery. The town's love of art really becomes apparent on the Av. du Verdun, which is the street just back from the marina. There you'll find the art fair, which is running until April 2024. All the way along this strip there are galleries and ceramics shops which were was so fun to look at.
Cannes
We got to Cannes from Nice on the train. It takes about 40 minutes and costs around €7 each – super easy! Cannes is bigger than St Tropez and Antibes, so you'll probably need at least half a day to explore – more if you want to spend time on the beach. A highlight for me was walking along the seafront, near the Palace of Festivals and Congresses of Cannes and seeing all of the stars' handprints on the ground. I also loved walking up the the clock tower on the hill; the views down over the town and harbour were incredible so I'd definitely recommend doing this. You can also get the tourist train up there if you don't feel like walking. For food, the market is very good. And if you're a bit of a shopaholic like me, then you'll be in your element walking up the main high street.
We didn't go to the beach in Cannes, as the beach club prices were extortionate! It just wasn't worth it in our minds. But if you were staying here and you wanted to spend the day at the beach, I can see the appeal.
Monaco
Monaco lives up to its reputation. It's chic, glam and again, very expensive. The architecture is lovely – especially the frontage of the iconic casino. After poking our heads in the foyer of the casino, we headed to a gorgeous viewpoint just behind it – one that looks out over the harbour. It was great to start here and get our bearings. We then wandered downhill, passing an iconic Grand Prix tunnel.
My favourite part of Monaco was the old town. It's quite a steep climb to get there, but it's worth it when you reach the top as you're greeted with the royal palace and a sense that you've stepped back in time as you head down the alleys.
We spent a bit of time here and in the main town before heading back up towards the casino to window shop at the high-end brands.
Top tip: If you want to spend some time in the casino, don't forget to bring your passport with you. We couldn't get in as we didn't bring them with us. It was a shame but I don't feel like we missed out too much and we definitely made the most of exploring the rest of the town.
Villefrench-sur-mer
This was my favourite trip from Nice. If I had to recommend you do a day trip from Nice, it would be here. We went for an afternoon, lying on the beach and cooling off in Crystal clear waters. We snoozed, dipping in and out of consciousness listening to kids screaming in delight and the soothing chatter between families. The beach here is not like Cannes in that it's a find-a-spot-lay-a-towel situation, but this is much more our vibe. What we realised when we were heading back to the train station was that at the other end of the beach, there are loads of little restaurants that bring their tables out right by the waterfront for the evening. You can grab a cocktail or have a romantic dinner. If you turn inland, up the steps between the terracotta houses, you'll find more bars and restaurants tucked away. This, for me, is the real gem of the French Riviera.
Èze
If you Google top places to visit near Nice, Eze always comes up. And it's not hard to see why. Even though the village is quite close to Nice, it's not that easy to get to. The best way is definitely by bus or car. If choosing the former, you'll need to take either the #602 or the x from Nice – both routes that can get very busy at peak times.
The buses will drop you at the bottom of the village. Cross the road and climb the steps and you'll find yourself meandering between Eze's narrow cobbled streets. You'll find shops selling art, jewellery and souvenirs. If you head out to the furthest point, you'll find a lovely 5-star hotel. We decided to enjoy a glass of wine in the courtyard overlooking the coast. It was beautiful and ended up being a core memory from our holiday. It was a little on the pricey side, but we're used to London prices so didn't feel the sting too much. And it was totally worth it for the view and memory.
This is every town we visited when staying in Nice. You can see how it makes a great base for exploring the French Riviera. And the public transport is so easy to navigate.
I'll be doing a blog post of recommendations in Nice as while it's nice to use it as a base, it's definitely worth exploring in its own right.
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