145 Best Sights in The French Riviera, France

Named after the Allied landings in August 1944, this is a sand-on-top-of-red-stone beach with great views of the private Île d'Or. From town, head toward Agay until Dramont, where you'll see signs for the pebble beach. Amenities: lifeguards; parking (no fee); toilets. Best for: swimming.

Situated between the casino and Cannes la Bocca, this public sand beach is one of the most beautiful in Mandelieu. There are restaurants and a nautical center nearby, as well as lifeguards on duty. If the views of the Îles de Lérins grow old, head to the neighboring Robinson beach and play some volleyball. Amenities: food and drink; lifeguards; showers; toilets. Best for: swimming.

This is the city's main (and its largest) sandy beach, with access for people with disabilities and lifeguard stations during the summer season, when you can also rent a mattress. There are lots of cafés around, and from the Old Port you can take a shuttle to St-Tropez. Amenities: lifeguards; parking (fee); showers; toilets. Best for: sunset; swimming; walking.

Almost at the end of the promenade and in front of Old Town, this basic stony stretch is a popular spot, with a melange of tourists and locals of all ages all day. In summer it has sandy volleyball courts. Keep an eye out for jellyfish. Amenities: lifeguards (seasonal); toilets. Best for: snorkeling; sunrise; sunset; swimming.

Locals come early—with umbrellas, chairs, and coolers in tow—to these two sizable public beaches around the halfway point of the promenade. As both are stone beaches with occasional jellyfish, water shoes are best for getting in and out of the sea. Lenval is a no-smoking beach with pay-to-use underground hot showers, toilets, and lockers, as well as portable toilets in the summer; it has no lifeguards or first aid station. These are, however, provided at neighboring Magnan, which is wider and lower than street level. This area is less touristy, so expect to see topless torsos. Amenities: lifeguards (Magnan, seasonal); showers; toilets. Best for: sunrise; swimming. When the winds pick up, this area can be dangerous, so watch for the warning flags, and avoid swimming for 24 hours after a storm.

In 1750, the Duke of Savoy ordered a port to be dug to shelter the approach of the city's maritime traffic. It's still a safe harbor for freighters, fishing boats, and yachts, and its redevelopment has made it easier to take in the area's Genoese architecture or peruse the antiques at the Puces de Nice emporium and other shops along Rue Robilant, near the large Port Lympia parking lot.

From June to mid-October (daily 10–7), the free shuttle Lou Passagin ferries you across the port from the Quai Lunel to Quai d’Entrecasteaux. In June, keep an eye out for the Fête du Port—a gastronomical explosion (and one of the rare occasions when you'll witness the French walk and eat simultaneously) outmatched only by fire-eaters and fireworks. From the port, you can take Bus 33 to visit the 16th-century Fort du Mont-Alban, which has exceptional views of Bordighera and Saint-Jean-Cap-Ferrat all the way over to Baie des Anges (those curvy white buildings) and Antibes.

Whether you approach the waterfront from the train station or park along the Avenue de Verdun, you'll first encounter an awesome expanse of luxury yachts in Port Vauban. It has an underground parking lot and an attractive esplanade from which you can admire one of Europe's oldest and largest ports home to 1,642 berths—including 18 for superyachts of up to 525 feet. It's no wonder the antiques fair and sailing show chose this spot for their events every spring. With the tableau of snowy Alps looming in the background and the formidable medieval block towers of the Fort Carré (Square Fort) guarding entry to the port, it's difficult to find a more dramatic spot to anchor.

The superbly symmetrical island fortress was completed in 1565 and restored in 1967, but can only be admired from afar. Across the Quai Rambaud, which juts into the harbor, a tiny crescent of sand called La Gravette beach offers swimmers one of the last soft spots on the coast before the famous Riviera pebble beaches begin on strands farther east.

Running behind Old Town, this 30-acre park is known as the Coulée Verte (Green Belt). It serves as a playground for kids, a refuge for adults (who take advantage of the free Wi-Fi), and a venue for many of the city's annual and one-off events, like April Fool's Day (in French, Poisson d'Avril, or Fish Day). No matter when you visit, there's plenty to photograph here.

Stroll the length of Menton's famous beachfront along the Promenade du Soleil: broad, white, and studded with palm trees, from Plage du Fossan in front of the covered market Marché des Halles westward to Plage de la Piscine, next to the indoor municipal swimming pool Les Bains du Cap (€7.50 entry). A little farther along the seaside walkway, Le Paradis de la Glace ice cream parlor is a reward any time of year.

Today Beaulieu is usually spoken of in the past tense and has taken on a rather stuffy character. Its small beach, however, attracts families with children, and on the Promenade Maurice-Rouvier, a paved pedestrian path that begins not far from the Villa Kerylos, you can stroll the waterfront, past grand villas and their tropical gardens, all the way to St-Jean-Cap-Ferrat. The 30-minute walk winds along the Baie des Fourmis (Bay of Ants)—whose name alludes to the black rocks that appear to be "crawling" up from the sea—and has great views of the sparkling Mediterranean and surrounding mountains.

To get a feel for the territory, start your exploration at the far east end of the Vieille Ville and walk out to the end of the Quai Napoléon III, which juts far out into the water. Above the masts of pleasure boats, all of Menton spreads over the hills, and the mountains of Italy loom behind. This is the place to be at sunrise.

Walk along Quai Suffern where the statue of the Bailli de Suffren, an 18th-century customs official, stands guard. Continue past the quayside streets lined with famous cafés to the Môle Jean Réveille, the harbor wall, where, if the wind isn't too strong, you can walk out for a good view of Ste-Maxime across the sparkling bay, the hills of Estérel, and, on a clear day, the distant Alps. Retrace your steps along the digue to the 15th-century Tour du Portalet, and head onward to the old fishermen's quarter, the Quartier de la Ponche, just east of Quai Jean Jaurès. Here you can find the Port des Pécheurs (Fishermen's Port), on whose beach Bardot did a star turn in And God Created Woman. Complete with gulf-side harbor, St-Tropez's Old Town is a maze of twisting, narrow streets—designed to break the impact of the mistral—that open to tiny squares with fountains. Trellised jasmine and wrought-iron birdcages hang from the shuttered windows, and many of the tiny streets dead-end at the sea. The main drag here, Rue de la Ponche, leads into Place l'Hôtel de Ville, landmarked by a mairie (town hall) marked out in typical Tropezienne hues of pink and green. Head up Rue Commandant Guichard to the Baroque Église de St-Tropez to pay your respects to the bust and barque of St-Torpes, every day but May 17, when they are carried aloft in the Bravade parade honoring the town's namesake saint.

Despite its civilized airs, Moustiers is another gateway to the Gorges du Verdon, providing the best access to the southern bank and the famous drive along D71 called the Route de la Corniche Sublime. (There's also the scenic 23-km [14-mile] route along the northern ridge, Route des Crêtes along the D23, which starts at Castellane and has no fewer than 14 viewpoints that cut through the ridges of the canyon.)

Breathtaking views over withering drop-offs punctuate this vertiginous road just wide enough for two cars if you all hold your breath. The best of the vistas is called the Balcons de la Mescla, with viewpoints built into the cliff face overlooking the torrential whirlpool where the Verdon and Artuby combine.

Two blocks behind La Croisette lies this attractive high-end shopping street. At its western end is Rue Meynadier, packed with trendy clothing boutiques and fine-food shops. Not far away is the covered Marché Forville, the scene of the animated morning food market. Rue Houche, behind Rue d'Antibes and down from Galleries Lafayette, has lots of boutiques and cafés.

It's hard to imagine 16th-century horse-drawn carriages being pulled down this main street of Cannes that's now home to inexpensive and trendy clothes boutiques, rare food stores, cheese and wine shops, and some of the best butchers in town. At one end of Rue Meynadier is Rue d'Antibes, Cannes's primary high-end shopping street.

Running parallel to the waterfront, the extraordinary 14th-century Rue Obscure (Dark Street) is entirely covered by vaulted arcades; it sheltered the people of Villefranche when the Germans fired their parting shots—an artillery bombardment—near the end of World War II. If playing tourist is building up your appetite, Focacceria Mei on Rue du Poilu (the next street up) has the best takeaway in town. 

Serving as the main commercial artery of the Vieille Ville, Rue St-Michel is lined with shops, cafés, and orange trees.

With a temperate microclimate created by its southeastern and sunny exposure, Menton attracted a great share of wealthy horticultural hobbyists, including Major Lawrence Johnston, a gentleman gardener best known for his Cotswolds wonderland, Hidcote Manor. He wound up buying a choice estate in Gorbio—one of the loveliest of all perched seaside villages, 10 km (6 miles) west of Menton—and spent the 1920s and '30s making the Serre de la Madone a masterpiece.

Johnston brought back exotica from his many trips to South Africa, Mexico, and China, and planted them in a series of terraces, accented by little pools, vistas, and stone steps. Although most of his creeping plumbago, pink belladonna, and night-flowering cacti are now gone, his garden has been reopened by the municipality. If you don't have a car, you can reach it from Menton via Zest Bus 7 (€2.10).

Northeast of Old Town and near the Porte de Rome is the Roman theater (circa 1st century). Its remaining rows of arches are mostly intact, and much of its stage, including the orchestra and substructures, are still visible at its center. Today, the site is known as the Théâtre Philippe Léotard (he was born in Fréjus), and it hosts Les Nuits Auréliennes every July.

This garden is particularly delightful in the fall, when the hibiscus and brugmansias are in bloom. Planted by Maybud Campbell in the 1910s and cherished by connoisseurs, it bursts with rare ornamentals and subtropical plants and is adorned with water-lily pools and fountains. The tourist office can also give you directions to other gorgeous gardens around Menton, including the Fontana Rosa, the Villa Maria Serena, and the Villa Les Colombières.

Parisian restaurant group Yeeels is the mastermind behind what is one of Ramutuelle’s best new beach clubs. Boho loungers (€50 plus another €10 for an umbrella) on Farniente Beach are available starting at 11 am; there's also a selection of magazines to read while you relax. Headed by Ducasse-trained, Michelin-starred chef Thibault Sombardier, the on-site restaurant offers Mediterranean-style oven-roasted, grilled, and marinated dishes at their most tempting (and pricey—an entire watermelon will set you back €70). The St-Trop party gets started here after 4 pm, when DJs crank up the music. Amenities: food and drink; toilets; showers. Best for: partiers; sunsets; swimming.

Go down the steps to Rue Mirabeau and lose yourself in the dense labyrinth of the Vieille Ville, where steep, narrow streets, austere facades, discreet gardens, and random flights of stairs are thrown into shadow by shuttered houses five and six stories tall.

Bordered by Quai de l'Épi, Quai Bouchard, Quai Peri, Quai Suffren, and Quai Jean Jaurès, Vieux Port is a place for strolling and looking over the shoulders of artists painting their versions of the view on easels set up along the water's edge. Meanwhile, folding director's chairs at the famous portside cafés, Café de Paris and Sénéquier, are well placed for observing the cast of St-Tropez's living theater play out their colorful roles. While here, be sure to take the time to enjoy a scoop of ice cream at Glacier Barvarac on Rue Général Allard.

At the foot of Le Suquet, this narrow, well-protected port harbors luxury yachts and slick little bateaux de plaisance (pleasure boats) that creak and bob beside weathered-blue fishing barques. From the east corner, off La Pantiéro at Quai Laubeuf (where a renovated sea wall has a panoramic promenade and heliport), you can catch a 20-minute ferry to the Îles de Lérins. The port and Quai St-Pierre, which runs alongside and has a plethora of restaurants, have emerged from their tattered and tired midlife crisis to become smartly dressed, more energized versions of their former selves.

This museum headlines the work of Grasse's own Jean-Honoré Fragonard (1732–1806), who was one of the great French "chocolate-box" artists—so called because they were known for their maudlin artwork of a type that was found on boxes of chocolate at the time. The lovely villa contains a collection of Fragonard's drawings, engravings, and paintings; also on display are works by his son, Alexandre-Evariste, and his grandson, Théophile.