I am going to Riviera in about a month. Could anyone suggest some nice sandy beaches (public prefered) for swimming in Nice, Monaco, Villefrance, Cannes or Antibe? Because I heard beaches in Nice are a bit rocky... Thanks!

If you don't find any nice sandy beaches on the Riviera, take a drive over to the other side of the Med. The beaches are wide, clean, and cheaper than the Riviera.

Take a look at the beaches on this site. It's just a photo album about this region but there are a lot of shots for the beaches near Argeles.

http://www.pyreneesmediterraneanliving.com/

The photos cover the whole year. And, if you want to dip your toes into Spain, it's just a few hours and you can be into the Costa Brava area of Spain.

Blackduff

I just returned from Villefranche-sur-Mer and loved it. I used it as a base, without a rental car, to explore the area. The beaches there are sandy and gorgeous with nice swimming and it has a laid-back atmosphere. By train you could get to Antibes, from there, in 30-40 minutes, although I didn't do that. I did go to Monaco, and there were some small and sandy beaches near the harbor but I don't think you would go to Monaco for the beaches. I also spent an afternoon at the beach in Nice. Lots and lots of people swimming, and sunbathers galore, all on pretty big rocks but nobody seemed to care. The people watching was fantastic and you could spend many happy hours toodling around on the promenade, too.
You don't say where you will be staying?
Nice is the big transfer point if you stay elsewhere in the region, whether by train or bus. The stations are not very near each other...

I've enjoyed the sandy beaches in Cannes a few times. We stayed in Nice though, although I'd prefer Villefranche-sur-Mer over Nice.

sglass,

We are looking forward to a week in Villefranche-Sur-Mer in the fall. I would love to hear about your trip.

Please write a trip report. I'm sure many other would enjoy it, too.

Byrd

Man! I thought you were talking about bitches in French Riviera. As in female dogs.

The beach at Antibe is sandy, but not terribly large. The beach at Nice is large, but not sandy! Many people rent lounge chairs instead of laying on the rocky ground, but some use a type of mat. Doesn't look comfortable to me.

In Nice, the beaches have large rocks. They are beautiful, yes, but not sandy.
We enjoyed sandy beaches in Juan-les-Pins.
In both places, we went to private beaches where you can rent chairs and they have food service. It's worth the splurge, i believe. especially in Nice, where you would hate to lie on rocks...

Thanks for the encouragment to write a trip report, Byrd- I will get started on it! In the meantime, if you have any questions, let me help!

We enjoyed the beach at Juan-les-Pins. And it's where waterskiing was invented!

Thank you all for the suggestions. I will write a trip review when I come back. And something else. What is the price for entering a private beach and rent a chair - umbrella?