Nice is the unofficial capital of the French Riviera, and in high summer the Promenade des Anglais can feel like the whole coast has shown up at once. So this guide leans the other way too: the salmon-pink lanes of Vieux Nice at breakfast, the Cimiez hill with its Roman ruins and the Matisse museum, the fishing boats down at Port Lympia, a plate of socca eaten standing up at the Cours Saleya market. The famous sights are all here, with honest advice on when to go so you spend your mornings on the beach and not in a queue.
How to use this guide: the tabs at the top move you between itineraries, places to see, restaurants, hotels, experiences and day trips. On any tab, open the map for a much clearer picture of how Nice fits together, from the old town and Castle Hill down to the Baie des Anges and out along the tram line. On your phone, tap Get the App (or add this page to your home screen) so the whole guide is one tap away. Short on time? Jump to the ⚡ Quick Facts below.
This complete Nice travel guide covers getting around by tram and on foot, the cheapest way to travel, airport transfers from Nice Côte d'Azur, when to visit Castle Hill and the Cours Saleya market, where to eat socca and salade niçoise away from the tourist traps, easy Riviera day trips to Monaco, Èze, Antibes and Menton, and the money-saving tips most visitors learn too late. Whether you are here for the beaches, the light that pulled Matisse and Chagall, or a week of eating along the coast, bookmark this page before you book your flight.
Nice is the capital of the Alpes-Maritimes department in southeastern France, spread along the Baie des Anges on the Mediterranean, with roughly 340,000 residents in the city and close to a million across the wider area. It sits where the Alps meet the sea, sheltered by hills, with the pebble beaches of the Promenade des Anglais curving for several kilometres and the baroque old town, Vieux Nice, packed tight beneath the Colline du Château. French is the language, though the Niçard dialect still colours the street names and the local kitchen.
Whether you have a long weekend or a full week, the sections below cover how to get around, which neighbourhood to stay in, where to eat like a local rather than a visitor, and how to pair the city with the string of Riviera towns just a short train ride away.
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