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The Cote d'Azur, which includes the French Riviera, stretches along France's Mediterranean coast from Toulon to the Italian border. Many of the towns here - budget-busting St Tropez, Cannes, Antibes, Nice and Monaco - have become world-famous thanks to the recreational activities of the tanned and idle rich. The reality is rather less glamorous, but the Cote d'Azur still has a great deal to at tract visitors: sunshine, 40km of beaches, sorts of cultural activities and, sometimes, even a bit of glitter.
Unless you're camping or hostelling, your best bet is to stay in Nice, which has a generous supply of cheap hotels, and day trips to other places. Note that theft from backpacks, pockets, cars and even laundrettes is a problem along the Cote d'Azur, especially at train and bus stations.
NICE Known as the capital of the Riviera, the fashionable yet relaxed city of Nice (population 342,000) makes a great base from which to explore the entire Cote d'Azur. The city, which did not become part of France until 1860, has plenty of relatively cheap accommodation and is only a short train or bus ride away from the rest of the Riviera. Nice's pebbly beach may be nothing t write home about, but the city is blessed with a fine collection of museums.
Things to See
An excellent-value museum pass (25/ 12 €), available at tourist offices and participating museums, gives free admission to some 60 Cote d'Azur museums. Unless otherwise noted, the following museums are open daily except Tuesday from around 10 am to 5 or 6 pm (sometimes with a break for rich in the off season), and entry is around 4/2 €.
The Musee d’Art Moderne et d’Art Contemporain, ave St Jean Baptiste, specializes in eye-popping French and American avantgarde works from the 1960s to the present. It is served by bus Nos 3, 5, 7, 16 and 17.
The main exhibit at the Musee Chagall, opposite 4 ave Docteur Menard, is a series of incredibly vivid Marc Chagall paintings illustrating stories from the Old Testament.
The Musee Matisse, with its fine collection of works by Henri Matisse (1869-1954), is at 164 ave des Arenes de Cimiez in Cimiez, 2.5km north-east of the train station. Many buses pass by, but No 15 is most convenient; get off at the Arenes stop.
The Musee Archeologique and nearby Gallo-Roman Ruins (which include public baths and an amphitheatre) are next to the Musee Matisse at 160 ave des Arenes de Cimiez.
Nice's Russian Orthodox Cathedral of St Nicholas, crowned by six onion-shaped domes, was built between 1903 and 1912; step inside and you'll be transported to Imperial Russia (closed Sunday morning; 3/2 €). You'll need to dress appropriately: shorts or short skirts and sleeveless shirts are forbidden.
Activities
Nice's beach is covered with smooth pebbles, not sand. Between mid-April and mid-October, free public beaches alternate with private beaches (10 € to 12 € a day) that have all sorts of amenities (mattresses, showers, changing rooms, security etc). Along the beach you can hire paddle boats, sailboards and jet skis, and go parasailing (35 € for 15 minutes) and water-skiing (20 € to 25 € for 10 minutes). There are indoor showers (2 €) and toilets (0.5 €) open to the public opposite 50 promenade des Anglais.
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