Accommodation in Nice
If it’s your first visit to the French Riviera then a good place to stay would be Nice or Cannes. The reason for this is that both resorts have excellent public transport systems and are on the main coastal rail line which runs from St Raphael to Monaco. From Nice you can also catch the bus 100 which takes you along the lower corniche road. At the last check, the cost was a mere 1.50 euros! From the lower corniche road you will get magnificent views across the bay at Villefranche and of course the approach to Monaco and Monte Carlo.
In terms of accommodation then Nice has hundreds of hotels and you can find accommodation to suit all budgets. Our page at Hotels in Nice France will give more information. In addition to a wide selection of hotels, Nice also has hundreds of restaurants and boasts a marvellous old town and flower market which provide an ideal outdoor eating experience during the hot summer evenings. The main pedestrian area has one restaurant after another and if you like Italian food, you will be spoilt for choice although of course there are restaurants to suit every taste.
If you are planning to hire a car then Nice has plenty of car rental agencies although beware that it’s very difficult to find a parking place on the narrow one way streets of Nice and you can spend ages driving around trying to find a parking spot during the summer months. The rental agencies normally arrange for you to pick up the car from one of the main car parks in Nice. Not being able to find easy parking on the streets, you may well end up having pay for expensive car parking fees during your stay.
Having said all this, having a car does allow to get to some of the more remote beaches and Capes of The French Riviera and if you can face the summer traffic jams, it will allow you to get to St Tropez which is not easy to get to and has no railway station near. With regards to St Tropez, you can catch a tourist boat from Nice or Cannes to St Tropez which will give you about 5 hours to look around the resort but this will probably not give you enough time to visit the famous beaches of the Pampelonne which are some 4 miles outside of the resort in the district of Ramutelle.
Things To Do In Nice
Don’t forget that Nice is a great base for trips into Provence and for visiting towns like Aix en Provence. If you don’t have a car then why not take the ‘Chemins de Fer de Provence’ 1-metre gauge railway which departs from Nice and goes to Digne-les-Bains. The Chemins de Fer de Provence station is located at 4 bis Rue Alfred Binet and is not far from the main station at Nice. If you want to shorten the rail journey you can get off at one of the many stops on the way such as Saint-Martin-du-Var or Puget-Theniers.If you decide on a bus trip out of town then why not take the number 100 bus from Gare Routiere along the lower Corniche road to Monaco or Menton. The bus ride only costs one Euro and takes you along one of the most panoramic coast roads in the world.
Nice France Hotels
There are hundreds of hotels in Nice with the most famous being The Negresco. Other well located and less expensive hotels include TheNice Riviera which has an indoor pool, The Armenonville hotel with it’s large garden, the De La Fountaine Hotel which is a short walk from the bars and restaurants, and the Hotel Windsor with it’s garden and pool. The rooms of the Windsor hotel have been decorated by contemporary artists. There are even Tintin posters on the walls and a lift in the style of a rocket ship with a countdown to lift off!
For Nice weather go to our Rivera weather page.