Nice: Top Things to Do
Nice packs a genuine old town, two major art museums, and a 7km seafront into a city small enough to cover on foot, with everything else reachable by tram. Here’s what actually earns a spot on a first visit.
Promenade des Anglais. The 7km palm-lined seafront tracing the Baie des Anges is free, always open, and the connective spine between Vieux Nice, the beaches, and the airport tram. Note the beaches along it are pebble, not sand, so pack water shoes. July 14, 2026 marks the 10th anniversary of the 2016 Bastille Day attack here; the promenade today is a safe, sunny, heavily used stretch of city, and the date is worth a respectful mention rather than treating it as routine holiday content.
Vieux Nice. The old town below Castle Hill, running from Place Garibaldi down to Quai des États-Unis, is the most authentically Niçoise part of the city, markets, socca stands, and baroque chapels still lived in rather than curated purely for visitors. Give it half a day minimum, and go early morning for the market at its quietest.
Colline du Château (Castle Hill). A hilltop park on the site of a medieval citadel Louis XIV had razed in 1706 so it could never threaten France again; today it’s gardens, a waterfall, and the best panoramic viewpoint over Vieux Nice and the bay. The park and its free public lift run roughly 8:30am-8pm April-October and 8:30am-6pm November-March, though the lift has a reputation for closing without notice, so check the sign on arrival.
Cours Saleya market. Nice’s flower and food market runs Tuesday-Sunday mornings roughly 6am-1:30pm; on Mondays the whole square flips to a brocante antiques market instead. Come by 9am for the best produce, before the tour groups arrive.
Place Masséna. The city’s grand central square, built 1832-1850 with Italianate arcades, paved in a black-and-white checkerboard, and anchored by the Fontaine du Soleil. After dark, Jaume Plensa’s seven illuminated seated figures (“Conversation in Nice”) light up the square.
Musée Matisse and Musée National Marc Chagall. These are two separate museums in two separate locations, not one combined art stop. The Matisse Museum sits in Cimiez, near the Roman ruins, and costs EUR12 (verify at booking, older EUR10 figures still circulate). The Chagall Museum, nearer the centre, holds his 17-painting “Biblical Message” cycle for EUR8, free on the first Sunday of every month, though expect queues that day.
Cimiez. The hillside Roman district north of the centre combines the Matisse Museum, a Franciscan monastery and rose garden, and the 2nd-century Roman arena and baths from Cemenelum, the Roman town that predates Nice itself. Budget two to three hours for the full cluster.
Russian Orthodox Cathedral. The largest Russian Orthodox cathedral outside Russia, completed 1912 for Nice’s Belle Époque Russian winter colony, costs roughly EUR10 to enter and expects modest dress since it remains an active church.
Port Lympia and Mont Boron. The historic harbor built under Savoy rule in 1750-1752 is a quieter, more local counterpoint to the Promenade; climb to the Monument aux Morts at Rauba-Capeu for a free harbor view most visitors miss. Mont Boron, a forested hilltop park with a 16th-century fort at its summit, gives a bigger, quieter panorama than Castle Hill for those willing to hike 1.5-2.5 hours round trip.
One correction worth knowing before you plan a museum day: MAMAC, Nice’s contemporary art museum, closed for renovation in January 2024 and isn’t expected back until 2028, so skip it from any 2026 itinerary regardless of what an older guide recommends. For where to eat between these stops, see our Nice food guide .