A Local’s Guide to the French Riviera

Six ways to see the Riviera, from hilltop hikes to harbor views.

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I moved to Nice on accident. It started as a three-month plan in 2023 when I was a digital nomad, a quiet season and an opportunity to practice French somewhere coastal. I wasn’t drawn to Paris. I wanted the sea, the sun, and a slower rhythm. Nice had all of that, and something about it felt immediately right.

What I didn’t expect was how quickly it would feel like home. I met a boy, returned, visited again, and eventually stayed. Now, the rhythms of this city shape my days: morning walks to the market, coffee on Rue Bonaparte, weekend trains to small towns that smell like sea salt and stone.

Nice is a city that moves slowly in the best ways. It has everything you need, but it never feels rushed. The city center is walkable, the tram is reliable, and the sea is always just a few blocks away. What makes it special has less to do with what you’ll find and more with how life unfolds once you arrive.

I’ve been wanting to put together a guide to the city rooted in this rhythm of ease. So instead of must-sees, I decided on six mood-based itineraries that offer a more personal way to experience the French Riviera.

Whether you’re here for a week or just passing through, each route invites you to follow feeling over itinerary, and see what unfolds.

If You Want to Feel Rooted in History

Spend your morning in Cimiez, a mellow hillside neighborhood that once housed Cemenelum, the Roman capital of Alpes Maritimae. The ruins span thermal baths, an amphitheater built in the 2nd-3rd century, and a small basilica. You can walk among timeworn stones and imagine spectators cheering centuries ago.

Behind the Roman city walls stands the Cimiez Monastery, founded by Benedictines in the 9th century and later run by Franciscans. Pause in its Italian-style gardens, where orange and lemon trees shade rose-arbor walkways and fragrant fountains overlook the city and sea.

Next, stop by the Musée Matisse, framed by centennial olive trees. The museum feels gently resonant — quiet rooms hold paintings and sketches that reflect the landscape you’ve just walked through.

Around midday, wander down to Place Garibaldi for lunch, Nice’s oldest large square, built in the 1770s under Sardinian rule. It’s surrounded by ochre Baroque arcades and features a bronze statue of Giuseppe Garibaldi, a native son, atop a fountain.

Left: La famille du peintre, Henri Matisse. Right: Colorful apartments overlooking Place Garibaldi.

In the afternoon, take a short drive or bus to La Turbie, a hilltop village crowned by the Trophy of Augustus, a 2000-year-old Roman monument standing 35 meters tall. Built around 7-6 BC to mark Emperor Augustus’s conquest of Alpine tribes and the Via Julia Augusta trade route, it was later partially dismantled by Louis XIV, then restored in the 19th century. Today it towers above Monaco like a quiet memory of empire, and still offers breathtaking views stretching from the Esterel hills to the Italian coast.

The Trophy of Augustus in La Turbie.

If You’re Craving a Day Alone

Begin before the crowds arrive at Cours Saleya, Nice’s oldest open-air market tucked into the heart of Old Town. Before mid-morning, vendors gently unpack bright tulips, baskets of cherries, fragrant thyme, and sun-warmed tomatoes. You can almost taste the energy in the air. I like to grab a warm croissant and coffee from a vendor, then carry them down to the Promenade des Anglais, where the sea stretches wide and the sound of waves prompts you to slow.