What to do in Nice?
 

I'll be in Nice for a science conference next week (Jan 25-31st) and I've never been there. I'll have early mornings free (8-10am) and some afternoons free to explore the city. I'm looking for some suggestions as to what I should see/do while in town. I'm pretty much interested in any and all suggestions. I enjoy museums and churches, and would be interested in exploring the surrounding area, too. I'll be with 2 other women so we'll definitely be interested in shopping. I won't have a car, but it looks like the public transport in Nice should be more than adequate to getting around the city. I'm also hoping for any restaurant suggestions people may have. I'm staying at a hotel on Rue Marechal Joffre, so I'm close to the tram and many bus routes. Any suggestions people have will be greatly appreciated!

Thanks!
Jubes

Based on your interests, three places at the top of my suggestion list would be the Chagall museum, the Matisse museum, and the Russian Orthodox cathedral. The Picasso museum in Antibes is a short train ride away.

Yes, it's easy to get around in Nice. The tram wasn't built when I was there, but taking buses worked well.

Nice has a number of fine museums: the Beaux Arts (which includes the Dufys moved from another location), the Matisse, the Chagall (one of my favorites), and the Modern Art. All are reachable by public transport.

Then there are the churches, including the extraordinary Russian Orthodox cathed of St. Nicholas, farther out of the center than the museums listed above. The Franciscan Monastery is next to the Matisse Museum, giving you a two-for-one visit.

In Vieux Nice is the Palais Lascaris, a mansion well maintained to give a sense of days gone by. Vieux Nice also contains a number of interesting churches; one of the best is the Chapelle de la Miséricorde. Vieux Nice is a wonderful area to explore on foot--fine old houses, restaurants, cafés, and shopping lanes. On the Cours Saléya itself is a large open-air market with all sorts of good things.

Be sure to take a walk along the Promenade des Anglais and go up to the top of the "château rock" for a fabulous view of the Baie des Anges on one side and the port of Nice on the other.

Some ideas for half-day excursions:

- bus to Eze: great views of the Mediterranean from high up

- bus to Cap Ferrat to the Villa Efrussi-Rothschild, a delicious Belle-Epoque villa. It has a beautiful garden wonderfully located with views to the sea on either side of the peninsula. Here's a link: www.villa-ephrussi.com/en/ephrussi/. However, I'm not sure what to see in the garden in January. You could also walk around Cap Ferrat (drooling with envy at the expensive villas) and visit St. Jean.

- bus to St Paul de Vence and the Fondation Maeght. The latter is just outside St. Paul de Vence and is a marvelous building with lots of modern sculpture.

- train to Monaco/MonteCarlo

We liked the Lou Balico restaurant; it has cuisine Nicoise.

Thank you so much! The museums sound great and I'm looking forward to seeing the small towns. These are exactly the type of ideas I was looking for - you guys are great.

Any idea how long it takes to get to Eze, etc? I looked on the Nice bus website, but I couldn't find timetables to see how long the bus rides are.

Also, I thought I read that Old Nice was pretty much closed down on Monday. Is this true? I know a lot of things close on Mondays in Italy, but I'm not sure if the same holds true for France/all of Europe.

Thanks again!

On Mondays there is an antique market that takes place in Vieux Nice. All the sidewalk cafes are open. I've never noticed if the shops are closed, but I'm always focused on the market. Some of the shops close for a lunch break, but re-open at 2:00-3:00(Louis Vuitton) All stores in downtown and on the Messena are open.

It only takes about 15-20 minutes to get to Eze Village. You will love the views from the bus looking down onto Nice and the blue water.

The market is a nice place to meander. I'd very highly recommend the Chagall Museum. I agree that a walk down Promenade des Anglais would be pleasant.

Bon Voyage,
BC

Bus 112 goes from Nice to Eze-le-Village. For timetables go here: http://tinyurl.com/83zeja.

bookmarking

Market in the old city each day from 7am to noon, exept monday. The flower market is open the day over. That could be done in the morning as it seems to me all other proposals inside/outside Nice in two hours would be stress.

Each transport inside the departement by public busses, one way, is 1 Euro. More expensive are the national/regional SNCF trains.

Now the question is in what you are interested: Paintings, history,what kind of culture, gastronomic, architecture, religion and so on - to give you better information.

Be aware that this thread is more than a year old. OP is already back from his/her journey.

thanks, I appreciate the further info though.... I am going this June. I'll be there on a Tuesday so the market in the old city should be open. :)

There will be a flower and veggie market. Also, lots of spices and olives.

Walk round the old town. Take an open top bus tour