A weekend spent wandering around Nice
There’s a reason why artists such as Matisse, Chagall, Picasso, and Renoir fell in love with Nice.
We visited Nice last month and the weather was perfect. Of course, being February, the sea was absolutley freezing but that didn’t stop people from running and jumping in for a quick swim! And let’s not forget how amazing french boulangeries are. Is there anything better than the smell of freshly baked bread in the morning? Actually yes, croissants straight out of the oven… just the thought makes me want to get on a plane to France. Honestly, how can you not fall in love with this place!
Is there anything better than breathing in the salty sea air and dipping your feet in the cold sea after a long walk around the city? If you walk along the Promenade des Anglais towards the #ILoveNice sign you’ll find yourself on the Rauba Capeu Sundial at the foot of Castle Hill (Colline du Chateau). This is a great place from which to start your trip.
Take the stairs across the road from the #ILoveNice sign up to the Bellanda Tower and you’ll be able to enjoy beautiful views of the city and French Riviera coastline. At the very top, from Castle Hill, you’ll be able to see the old town, the port and beyond.
From Castle Hill you can also see the cours Saleya Market. Head over to the market and try their Pissaladiere (onion tart – really good) or you can try Socca which is a pancake made with chickpea flour. And when in France… eat all the bread, pastries and cakes because life is too short and they’re the best.
Time to wander around vieux Nice! I love how charming this part of the city is, I could get lost here for hours. If you’re looking for unique gifts there are so many beautiful boutiques around here. One of my favourite shops was; Le Palais d’Osier, which sells wicker baskets, bags, chairs…I wanted to buy everything! And the Parapluies shop which is just beautiful to look at.
There’s no shortage of beautiful buildings and streets in Nice. Make sure to visit the St Nicholas Russian Orthodox Cathedral, it is incredibly beautiful.
And the most exciting part? The CARNIVAL! We were lucky enough to see some of the structures built for the carnival and even got a little sneak peek at some of the performances. The Nice Carnival is one of the world’s major carnival events, alongside the Brazilian Carnival, Venetian Carnival, and Mardi Gras in New Orleans. It’s held annually in February and sometimes early March in Nice. If you want to see more of the carnival, I’ll leave the link to the main website here.
I will defintely be visiting again, absolutely loved it.
If you are planning on travelling to Nice for more than a weekend, I recommend visiting Menton and Cannes which are quite easy to get to. Menton is 37 minutes on the train and Cannes is 30 minutes away.
Moving around Nice is really easy, you can reach all sites on foot which also means you get to really experience and fully immerse yourself in Nice life. If you feel tired, there is a little train that takes you on a tour of Vieux Nice. It’s called the mini-train tour and lasts around 30 minutes.
The mini-trains leave every 30 minutes from Promenade des Anglais (in front of Hotel Le Meridien). Make sure to take cash with you, it’s around 10 euros per person.
I hope you enjoyed this post, would love to know what you think. And if you have already been to Nice, would love to know what your favourite places were.
Amparo's Travels & Musings 
Great post and wonderful photos. I had a chance to visit Nice shortly before the pandemic crisis and was in awe of its beautiful coastline and colourful architecture. Having Monaco just a stone’s throw away provided us with a fantastic opportunity to visit a new country! Thanks for sharing and have a good day ☺️ Aiva
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Thank you for your comment Aiva! Monaco is wonderful! I loved it! I went with no expectations at all as I kept being told “it’s really small, not much to do…” But it was worth it. Spent hours exploring 😃
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