Stories · France
5 days in Nice
Not a list: a thread to follow, at your own pace.
Nice has the colour of its ochre façades and the blue of its bay, and a light painters travelled far to find. I tell it from Castle Hill, one morning, with the Promenade stretching below: everything is within walking distance, and Monaco, Èze or Antibes are twenty minutes away by train.
Day 1 · Museums and culture
To start, head to Marc Chagall National Museum. The Biblical Message in soft light, the blue stained glass of the auditorium: a museum that soothes. To get organised: how to get there; skip-the-line book your tickets, otherwise go through Tiqets.
Late morning, it’s Nice-Monaco. The train runs along the sea to the Rock: changing of the guard at the palace, the Oceanographic Museum, and a coffee on Casino Square to watch the cars go by. Practical: the public-transport route, and if you’d rather skip the queue, book your visit or also check Tiqets.
For lunch, trust the rooms full of locals rather than the menus translated into six languages.
After lunch, I make my way to Matisse Museum and Cimiez. The red villa among the olive trees, the Roman arena and the monastery next door: a gentle afternoon on the hill. Practical: here is the route by public transport, and if you’d rather skip the queue, get your tickets in advance or compare on Tiqets.
In the evening, let go: a terrace, a walk, and Nice does the rest.
Day 2 · The icons
Early in the morning, meet me at Colline du Château. This is the breath of the trip. Even one hour changes the day. 4.7 out of 5 across 25,924 reviews: few places are this unanimous. Practical: the public-transport route, and if you’d rather skip the queue, get your tickets in advance or go through Tiqets.
Around noon, meet me at Photos on cascade. It’s the kind of place that makes you go quiet for a moment, even when you thought you knew it all. To get organised: how to get there; skip-the-line get your tickets in advance, otherwise compare on Tiqets.
Lunch without a plan: the first noisy room you pass is often the right one.
In the afternoon, meet me at Viewpoint. You’ve seen it a hundred times in pictures; in person it is bigger, closer, more alive. Practical: here is the route by public transport, and if you’d rather skip the queue, book your visit or also check Tiqets.
Keep the evening free. Nice is a city that tells itself better at night.
Day 3 · Day trip
In the morning, I make my way to Antibes and the cape. The Provençal market, the Picasso Museum in the Grimaldi castle, then the coastal path around Cap d’Antibes. A day of blue. To get organised: here is the route by public transport; skip-the-line book your visit, otherwise go through Tiqets.
Then, meet me at Èze. Twenty minutes by bus and a perched village, the exotic garden at the top and the sea three hundred metres below. Walk down the Nietzsche path if your knees allow. Practical: here is the route by public transport, and if you’d rather skip the queue, book your visit or also check Tiqets.
Day 4 · The icons
Early in the morning, meet me at Fontaine du Soleil. Take the time to walk all the way around it; the best views are rarely at the entrance. Travellers give it 4.7 out of 5 (5,266 reviews) and I won’t argue with them. Practical: the public-transport route, and if you’d rather skip the queue, book your visit or also check Tiqets.
Around noon, it’s Fontaine Miroir d’Eau. It’s the kind of place that makes you go quiet for a moment, even when you thought you knew it all. 4.7 out of 5 across 470 reviews: few places are this unanimous. To get organised: the public-transport route; skip-the-line get your tickets in advance, otherwise compare on Tiqets.
For lunch, trust the rooms full of locals rather than the menus translated into six languages.
Later, it’s Mural - Nice. You’ve seen it a hundred times in pictures; in person it is bigger, closer, more alive. Practical: the public-transport route, and if you’d rather skip the queue, book your tickets or also check Tiqets.
In the evening, let go: a terrace, a walk, and Nice does the rest.
Day 5 · The icons
To start, I make my way to Cathédrale Saint-Nicolas de Nice. Take the time to walk all the way around it; the best views are rarely at the entrance. 4.6 out of 5 across 10,872 reviews: few places are this unanimous. Practical: here is the route by public transport, and if you’d rather skip the queue, book your visit or also check Tiqets.
Around noon, I make my way to Villa Masséna, musée d'art et d'histoire. Bring water, shoes that hold, and no watch. 4.5 out of 5 across 3,503 reviews: few places are this unanimous. Practical: the public-transport route, and if you’d rather skip the queue, book your tickets or compare on Tiqets.
Lunch without a plan: the first noisy room you pass is often the right one.
In the afternoon, it’s Musée des Beaux-Arts de Nice. Give it a good two hours, and leave before you are full: that is the secret to wanting to come back. To get organised: here is the route by public transport; skip-the-line book your tickets, otherwise also check Tiqets.
In the evening, let go: a terrace, a walk, and Nice does the rest.
If you’re still hungry
Other places I wish I could have fitted in: Cascade du Château, Promenade des Anglais, Old Nice and Cours Saleya, Canyoning Nice - Canyons Experience, Castle Hill and Parc du Mont Boron. Slip them in wherever a day feels light.
My advice
The TER train runs the whole coast: Menton, Monaco, Antibes, Cannes in under an hour, no car needed.
Niçois food is eaten standing: socca, pan bagnat, pissaladière. At noon, Cours Saleya.
The Prom is for mornings and sunsets; the beach for mid-afternoon, when the city is at lunch.
And if you go, tell me what you loved. Nice changes, and so do I.
A Triovol story · written by someone who would go back tomorrow
Opening hours, prices and closures change: a quick look at the venue’s website before you go avoids bad surprises.