france :: french riviera :: general

[Landy]

Who's been? I'm flying to Nice this summer and will make my way around the South of France. Places to eat? Clubs to check out? Stores to shop at?

I'll be spending most of my time in Nice, so I welcome all recommendations there, but let me know what other destinations to check out.

[CityHunter]

Thread resurrection....I'm heading to Nice for a couple days. I don't think I'll make it to Paris (that shit is far) so Nice and the surrounding area is where I'll remain. Any recommendations? For anything.

[BukkakeKing]

Make sure to check out Monaco, Monte Carlo, always nice...I wouldn't advice a city like Marseille, but if you want a really beautiful city make sure to visit Aix en Provence. Visit the "Calanques" in Cassis (near Marseille, definitly worth it).

As for clubs and restaurants i can't really help you guys.

PS - Actually if you're in Aix en Provence, check the restaurant "Nine" you gotta love fish though, but it's delicious all the way.

[aso2004]

You probably picked the most wrong moment to go. French holidays are in full swing.That means crowded beaches so ask around for where the locals are heading.

Aix is really nice and worth a visit and Marseiile is a working city not really much to enjoy

2 pieces of advice

1. Get into the mountains , the french alps are beautiful this time of year..Loads of nice little vilages to discover. And great mountain food to enjoy

2.If it's yer thing go to Monaco and Monte Carlo. But I always found it a bit like Geneva, Boring and on a lakeside/seaside.And posh shops with attitude french store clerks....And rented beaches where you pay for your deck chair,umbrella and pay 6 euro for a bottle of water..

Look over the border for an overnighter, Milan for example, as it is a 3,5 hour drive or 4 hour train ride away..Genoa I have yet to visit but I don't hear anything bad or good about it.. But that's even closer...so for a good espresso...

[BukkakeKing]

I do agree with you on the last part, especially as everything on the french riviera is completly overpriced.

I disagree tho on the fact that it's gonna be very crowded. Okay it's the holidays for french people but after the 15th of august everybody's going home. Of course you'll still have a lot of people but that's normal there.

You can also check those cities, you won't regret it. Martigues, Sausset les Pins, Carry le Rouet. Quiet and lovely really.

[ruco]

Aix isn't called the jewel of the Provence for nothing - lovely city worth multiple visits.

For the coast this time of year I'd travel a bit west and hit up Saint-Marie-Del-la Mer. It's a bit more local with fewer Germans. While there visit the fortified city of Aigues-Mortes and the salt marshes. Might see some flamingo's too.

Hard to say if I could recommend St. Tropez, if you go make sure to watch 'Le Gendarme of St Tropez' beforehand. 'Petrus' is a nice reasonably priced restaurant. Stay away from places like Papagayo and the like, those overpriced medicore bayside terraces. When you're near the Town Hall visit Battaglia and ask for Marco. He owes me 50 euros.

I can't say enough about the suggestion above regarding the Alps - really that's the place you want to be this time of year. Lake Serre-Poncon, The Vercors, Die, La Grave, Megeve, Chamonix - I get weak just thinking about it.

Oh yes and the village of Lacoste in the Vaucluse, not far from Aix. This is where Pierre Cardin purchased the castle of Marquise De Sade which is worth a visit but the real draw is the village itself. I'd wait until Fall though, place is packed when the castle is open.

[Landy]

Thread resurrection....I'm heading to Nice for a couple days. I don't think I'll make it to Paris (that shit is far) so Nice and the surrounding area is where I'll remain. Any recommendations? For anything.

Unfortunately, not many sufu'ers here had some experience with the French Riviera, so I didn't get a response. But I can help you out since I had a great time last year.

I'm not sure if its going to be overcrowded, but I did hear that the month of August is when a lot of the French are off, so it might be. I went in the fall, so it was pretty quiet all around. I didn't find the place overpriced. It was more in-line with most other tourist places in Europe.

When I went, I opted to spend all my time in the Riviera. It just wasn't worth it to go to Paris which could be a whole another trip by itself. These are the cities I visited:

- Nice. Great small city. Pretty easy to get around. My friend and I used it as a base of operation and just took day trips all around. I didn't do much shopping since it had most of the stuff that I could get in the US or Asia. I only stopped by the Saint James store to pick up a nautical shirt since the area birthed the style. The busiest bar and shop areas are in Rue Massena. I didn't find a lot going on in terms of nightlife. Just mostly a bar and lounge scene. Some good tourist sites like the views from the hills and museums. I really enjoyed the medieval villages on the cliffs like Eze. After 3-4 days in Nice though, you probably feel like you've tapped the city out

- Monaco. Did a day trip here. Small fancy ass city. Just a bunch of rich ass people and exotic sports cars. Did the palace tour and visited the casinos to do a bit of gambling. Eat at the Cafe de Paris which is a famous spot to people watch, but definitely over priced. I actually did a Ferrari tour of the city where you get to drive the car on the famed Corniche Roads. It was a couple hundred bucks, but as an experience, it was pretty fun. Felt like I was in a Top Gear episode. lol

- Cannes. Did a day trip here too. Just walked around and ate at the cafes. People watched all the rich people on the main road and their model trophy wives. Lol. Nothing really great about this city and you can kill it in a day. There are clubs and nightlife here, but I didn't check much out

- Antibes. Nice beaches. It has one of the biggest yacht ports in France too. Nice Picasso museum. Only spent a couple hours here. There was a cool ass absinthe bar that's pretty famous too. But also probably a tourist trap. lol

- St Tropez. Only reason I went here was because I had to go to a wedding. It's actually a pain in the ass to get here because there's no public transport and if you rent a car, you'll have to sit in traffic because its a two lane road to get in and out of the city. My friend and I opted to rent a car and stayed at a hotel 15 minutes outside the city. Depends on what you're into, but there's not a whole lot in the city except rich people. It's really small and you can kill it in a day. There's a lot of rich people watching going on. I hit up a couple lounges and clubs like Les Caves du Roy. I didn't think it was all that great. A bottle of Perrier cost 16 euro there. Lolz. And a lot of old people with young models. Lol. Around St Tropez are some beach clubs like Nikki Beach. The time of the year when I went was completely dead, so I just hung out at the beach areas where it was free. It's nice, but St Tropez is more of a place to say you've been there

Overall I had a great time though and everyone was pretty nice to me. I didn't encounter any French snootyness (at least not that I noticed). I did a lot of tourist stuff like visit sites and museums. It sounds like the other respondents have more of the local knowledge. Pretty much my favorite thing to do was just to wake up in the morning and grabbing a croissant and cafe and just chilling on the street.

[bueno]

Cannes - Pretty shit town in terms of stuff to do during the day, but in the evening there are loads of bars and a few big clubs. Palais, Gotha, Baoli (clubs) have huge line ups of famous artists during the summer which can be pretty awesome. However drinks cost a ton inside - 13 euros for a beer in Gotha for example - so I would advise drinking before going in, unless you've got cash to blow (but be careful not to look drunk at all, they will happily reject you) - but if you do have money to blow you might as well just get a table, and then the price goes up again. 

 

Antibes - Nice town. Main pedestrianised road near the port is bustling in the summer. One pub I like is The Hopstore, young crowd, nice atmosphere. Apparently a bar called The Quays is better but I haven't been there so can't give any info. Also some nice little restaurants around. The absinthe bar is cool if you're into absinthe. Big selection, prices aren't too bad (around 7 euros for a serving) and it's got a cool atmosphere. Would recommend going to it once just for the experience I guess. Also, there are some very nice beaches in Antibes - go to 'Cap D'Antibes' if you want a nice coastal walk. The beaches are rocky so I'd advise taking some sandals (or any shoes that you can go in the water with), but the water is really nice.

 

 

If anyone needs some info just message me, i live here so might be able to give you some info/my perspective.

Edited June 5, 2013 by bueno

[Marw]

This thread is pretty much dead. I'm going to Antibes and Nice this summer. Would like any kinds of recommendations. The ones listed are already noted.