Nice

Nice occupies a privileged position at the western arc of the Baie des Anges, backed by the Maritime Alps and fronted by a sweep of shingle beach that catches the Mediterranean light like nowhere else in Europe. It is a city of two personalities: the grand, wide-boulevarded Nice of the Belle Époque, built to entertain Russian aristocrats and English lords; and the ancient, labyrinthine Vieille Ville, where Baroque churches crowd narrow alleys and morning markets overflow with socca, pissaladière, and flowers. Both are irresistible.

The Promenade des Anglais

There are few more pleasurable rituals in travel than an early morning walk along the Promenade des Anglais. The 7-kilometre seafront boulevard — its name a tribute to the English visitors who funded its construction in 1820 — runs from the airport to the old port, lined with palm trees, Art Deco and Belle Époque hotels, and the blue-and-white mattresses of the private beach clubs. The Negresco, with its iconic pink dome, remains one of the great hotels of Europe. Even if you are not staying, take an aperitif in its gilded Salon Louis XV bar — a monument to unapologetic grandeur.

• The early morning light on the bay is best experienced before 8am
• Reserve a sun-bed at a private beach club for the full Riviera experience
• The stretch between the Negresco and the Meridien is the most architecturally distinguished

Vieux-Nice and the Cours Saleya Market

The old town is a Baroque jewel: ochre and terracotta facades, Italianate churches, and the irresistible morning market on the Cours Saleya, where flower vendors and vegetable stalls spill across the sun-dappled square. This is where Nice's Franco-Italian soul is most vivid. Eat socca — chickpea flatbread cooked in a wood-fired oven — standing at the stall of Chez Pipo, then wander to the 17th-century Chapelle de la Miséricorde. The Musée Matisse in Cimiez holds one of the most complete collections of the master's work, set in a Genoese villa overlooking ancient Roman ruins.

Day Trips: Monaco, Eze, and Menton

Nice's greatest asset may be its location. Monaco is just 20 minutes by train: an absurd, exhilarating microstate of casino grandeur, Formula 1 glamour, and the extraordinary Musée Océanographique perched above the sea. The perched village of Eze, clinging to a cliff 427 metres above the Mediterranean, offers one of the Riviera's most dramatic perspectives. Menton, close to the Italian border, is softer and less visited: its old town is perhaps the most colourful on the entire coast, and its lemon groves produce a fruit the city celebrates each February with fervour.

Niçoise Cuisine

Eating in Nice is one of the Riviera's great pleasures. The cuisine belongs firmly to the Mediterranean tradition — olive oil, anchovies, fresh herbs, and vegetables dominate — but with a distinctly Italianate accent born of centuries of Savoyarde and Genoese influence. The canonical salade niçoise bears little resemblance to its Parisian imitations: no cooking, nothing out of season, and the finest tuna and anchovies. Pan bagnat — the salade niçoise in a bread roll — is the ideal beach lunch. For a serious dinner, restaurants in the Vieille Ville and around the port offer refined takes on petits farcis, daube niçoise, and hand-made pasta.

Where to Stay

The Negresco on the Promenade remains the statement address, its guest rooms a museum of French decorative arts. For a more contemporary experience, the Hyatt Regency Nice Palais de la Méditerranée occupies a Deco building with a prime seafront position. Boutique options in the Vieille Ville or on the Colline du Château offer proximity to the old town's energy. Book well ahead for July and August when the Riviera fills to capacity; May, June, and September offer the same sunshine with considerably more breathing room.