Best Things to Do in Nice

The Promenade des Anglais is Nice's signature: a sweeping seafront boulevard curving along the Baie des Anges, lined with palm trees, the famous blue chairs and belle-époque grand hotels like the Negresco. It is the place to walk, cycle or simply watch the sea.

At one end, the pebble beach and the port; at the other, the airport. A chauffeur can drop you at the quieter western stretch and collect you in the old town, so you enjoy the walk without doubling back.

Old Nice is a warren of narrow lanes, ochre façades and baroque churches, alive with cafés and shops. At its heart, the Cours Saleya hosts a famous flower and produce market by day and restaurant tables by night.

This is the place to taste local specialities — socca, salade niçoise, pissaladière — and to lose an afternoon wandering. It is pedestrian, so a chauffeur drops you at the edge and meets you afterwards.

The Colline du Château, or Castle Hill, rises between the old town and the port. There is no castle left, but there are gardens, a waterfall and the best panorama in Nice — the whole Baie des Anges on one side and the port on the other.

You can walk up, take the lift, or have a chauffeur drive you to the top of Mont Boron nearby for an even wider view over the city and coast.

Nice has a remarkable concentration of art. The Matisse Museum sits among the Roman ruins of Cimiez, and the Marc Chagall National Museum holds the artist's biblical cycle in a purpose-built setting. Both are a short drive from the centre.

These hillside museums are exactly where a chauffeur earns its place, linking sights that are awkward to reach on foot or by public transport in a single, easy loop.