Nice is the seventh most populated city in France and it stretches both along the coastline and into the hills. It is dominated by the sea and its 7km-long seafront boulevard, the Promenade des Anglais. Nice also has one of the most scenic airports, with its runways on a promontory making landings an event.
The half-million denizens of Nice are known as Niçois – which is a shame, as ‘niceties’ might have been more fun. Somehow the city feels larger than it is, being host to what seems like an insane amount of people.
This density of population is partly due to Nice being the hub of the Alpes-Maritimes, with the city’s airport and train station depositing people from all over the world onto its streets. There are a few issues to assault the first-time traveller; the main one being getting to and from the airport.
If you’re hiring a car then you’re plunged straight into the Riviera’s traffic, either on the coast road (watch out for scooters), or the A8 motorway with its tolls and jams, or the comically named voie rapide (fast lane). Or you might drive straight through Nice, where cars seemingly park anywhere. We once sat in the first of three lanes of traffic wondering why it wasn’t moving, only to find that the cars had all doubled-parked in it.
From the airport’s Terminal 2 you can get a bus to Monaco cheaply and easily; but the bus from Terminal 1 to the centre of Nice is three times the cost. You might take the new tram – if you can find it and it’s running. The train station is walkable, and will be more so when they finish all the buildings around the airport and put some signs up. Or you could get an eye-wateringly expensive taxi.
Once you’ve escaped the airport, Nice is expansive. The shopping zone and the old town nestle up to each other at the furthest point from the airport with a long, thin green area splitting the two. The old town takes in the Colline du Château (Castle Hill) which sits high above the city and offers the best views of Nice. From here it’s possible to see both the port side and on to Cap Ferrat as well as the promenade side with the beach and airport.
The port is where Nice ends and the buses that run all the way to Menton via Monaco start. At €1.50 a trip it’s great value, if a little busy at peak times and with stomach-churning lurches around the Basse Corniche coastal road with its constant stop-start and speed bumps.
Nice also stretches inland and into the hills, with sprawling urbanisation taking up every viable space and a few less viable ones too. On the far side of the airport, Nice is butted up to the communes of Saint-Laurent-du-Var and Cagnes-sur-Mer – much like one of those many hyphens. And before you know it you’re in Antibes, as it all blurs together.
The airport is also where the Var river meets the sea, and on either side of the river there are stadiums, shopping centres and more heading inland. All in all, Nice makes for a great city break, and escaping it is a challenge worth taking.