Nice, France

Description: As the capital of the Côte d’Azur (AKA French Riviera), Nice spreads across the coastline of southern France hugging the shores of the Mediterranean Sea at the foot of the Alps. It is the 5th largest city in France and has captured the hearts of sunbathers and skiers for hundreds of years. It was considered a healing destination for many northerners. The Carnival of Nice started drawing in vacationers in 1873 and many other festivals and Christmas markets followed.

Originally founded by a colony of Greek mariners around 350 BC, the area known as Nice was conquered by the Romans from the 1st to 10th centuries. Then the counts of Provence controlled the area from the 10th to the 14th century. From the 14th century to the 19th century the counts of Savoy held it until Nice was finally ceded to the France by treaty of Turin in 1860.

Currently, there is a high-speed train (TGV) connecting Nice to Paris as well as ferry services connecting Nice to the island of Corsica. The Nice-Côte d’Azur airport (is conveniently located about 6 miles from old town and can be easily reached by car or tram. We found the public transportation system easy to navigate even though some of the ticket machines were more complicated than need be. We used the human teller to circumvent those.

Nice is famously known for its Promenade des Anglais, a 7km walkway that was initially erected in 1822 by the English colony. Initially attracting British aristocratic and upper-class families, over the century the cultural and social diversity of the winter residents shaped the town planning and urban architecture into a cosmopolitan winter resort. This beautiful promenade overlooks the rocky shore next to the brilliant blue water and has space for bikers, roller-skaters, walkers, artists, and friends. There are no worries if you have a disability because the terrain of the promenade is evenly paved with many crosswalks and chairs. In 2021 UNESCO designated Nice, Winter Town of the Rivera a World Heritage Site.

A mile north of the city you will find Roman ruins and a 17th century villa in the ancient episcopal town of Cimiez. Additionally, visitors like to visit the tiny historic hillside town of Eze. If glam is more your style, try visiting Cannes or the tiny country of Monaco nearby.

Number of Days we visited: 29 days (November-December 2025)

Analyzed Costs: How much did we spend? While in southern France, we ate and shopped like locals. With a bakery on every other street corner, eating fresh bread and pastries was an almost daily event and then we had to walk it off. So, you can categorize it as food or as entertainment. Our transportation cost included the one-way flight from Faro, Portugal to Nice, France ($428 for 2 people) as well as several trams, trains, and busses. Since we visited Nice from mid-November to mid-December, we had entertainment costs for several visits to the Christmas markets, concerts, museums and the Segway tour ($165). We also had miscellaneous costs to send Christmas cards to family. Our haircuts in this town cost over $70 which was more expensive personal costs than other cities.