Nice is a wonderful city on the French Riviera along the Mediterranean Sea. With a population of over 350,000 people, it’s the fifth biggest city in France and the second largest French city on the Mediterranean. Despite its size, it’s got a beautiful little old town which feels more intimate with it’s small streets. There’s also lots of coastline to enjoy, great food and some fun day trip destinations nearby. Spending three days in Nice is the perfect amount of time to see the city and head on a day trip or two!
In this post:
Day One – Explore Nice
Depending on where you’re staying, we recommend starting just outside the old town near Nice-Ville station. There’s a wonderful bakery near here called “La Boulangerie Par Michel Fiori” which you could get breakfast at. As it is popular, there will likely be a queue, however we only waited about 15 minutes on a weekday morning around 10am. The pastries are amazing and their butter croissants are award winning!
From there head to Avenue Jean Médecin, which is a major shopping street. At the end is Place Masséna, a 19th century square with a large bronze sculpture and fountain in it. This fountain is also just outside the boundary of the old town, which you should then go and explore!
Old Town
The old town of Nice is a wonderful place full of small winding streets and pastel coloured buildings. There’s lots of cafes, restaurants and shops to explore and looking around will take a few hours. One of the main parts of the old town is Place Rossetti, a town square with restaurants all around it. In the square is also a fountain and opposite it is the Cathédrale Sainte-Réparate de Nice.
Another great thing to find in the old town is Marché aux Fleurs Cours Saleya. This is an outdoor market that’s open all year round every day except Monday. The market mostly sells flowers but you can also find fruits, vegetables and local products. There are so many small streets and beautiful stores to keep you entertained for a couple of hours.
Castle Hill
This is a must do when visiting Nice! Castle Hill is a park with a wonderful view of Nice, located right next to the old town. It’s also called Colline du Château or the Castle of Nice because this is where the citadel used to stand. Overlooking the city, the citadel was a military base from the 11th century to the 18th century, eventually being destroyed in 1706. All that remains now are some ruins of the castle which you can still see when you visit the park.
There are multiple ways to enter the park, one from the old town, one from the port side and one from the south end. There is also apparently an elevator near the south side but we didn’t use it so can’t confirm this. In the park, there are lots of paths winding up the hill into the park, large grassy areas to picnic on, and two cafes to grab some snacks and drinks at. There is also a playground, some water taps and a bathroom but it does cost to use.
One of the best parts of the park is the waterfall which can be found at “Cascade du Château” on Google Maps. You can see it from the top or the bottom and it’s great to stand under, especially on a hot day! However the best part of the park is definitely the view over Nice. There are heaps of viewpoints in the park of both the old town and the port on the other side, and we spent ages up there just enjoying the amazing view. Nice airport is also super close, so you can watch the planes coming in or taking off which is fun too!
Plage du Carras Beach
Of course while you’re by the Mediterranean Sea you’ll have to visit a beach. Luckily, running along most of Nice is the long Plage du Carras Beach. This is a pebble beach where you’ll find dog only sections, sections with water sports, sections with chairs to hire and lots of free space too. It is also close to the airport so you can see planes taking off and landing while you’re swimming which is pretty cool. The water itself is clear, clean and was a beautiful temperature when we visited in July. However because it is a pebble beach, walking on them with wet feet is tricky so we recommend taking water proof shoes if you have any.
Day Two – Day Trip to Èze
One of the best things to do during your three days in Nice is to visit Èze village, a GORGEOUS little ancient village. Èze consists of both Èze-sur-Mer which is down by the water, and Èze village which is the medieval village up on a hill above the water.
The train from Nice only goes to Èze-sur-Mer, where you’ll need to do a steep hike or take a bus up to the village. Instead, we recommend getting the direct 82 bus from Nice all the way to the village. It takes about 30-45 minutes and costs €1.70 each way. It was very busy when we went in late July, so we recommend getting to the stop at least 20 minutes before the bus comes. You could also get the 602 bus which goes from Nice to Monaco but this costs more as it enters another country, even if you’re only catching it to Èze.
What To Do
Once in Èze, the best thing to do is head straight into the village to explore the old winding streets. Because of the age of this village, it really feels like walking through a fairy-tale and the whole place is so magical. The current village began taking shape around the 12th century, with the oldest remaining building dating back to 1306. This building is Chapelle de la Sainte Croix and you can visit the outside while in Èze.
Apart from the chapel, most of the village is made up of hotels, restaurants, and stores, so there’s lots to look at. There is also the Jardin Exotique d’Èze which is a beautiful garden located on the site of a medieval fortress. Here you’ll find various succulent plants, caves and waterfalls, all with an amazing view over the coastline. It’s open varied hours depending on the season and costs 7€ from April to October. You can either buy tickets at the gate or from a machine that’s at the base of the stairs leading up to the garden.
When visiting, keep in mind that this is an extremely popular place to visit and during high season will be quite busy. With the little streets this does mean the village gets quite cramped and walking around might be a bit slow. It also means food options are sometimes limited and quite pricey, so we recommend grabbing food from the little supermarket near the bus stop before heading into the village.
Day Three – Day Trip to Monaco
A great thing to do during your three days in Nice is to head to a whole new country, Monaco! The second smallest country in the world, Monaco is also one of the wealthiest and most expensive. While there are lots of ways to spend money, there are also more than enough ways to stay entertained on a budget. We’ll run through some of these here but we also have a full blog post all about the best budget Nice to Monaco day trip that you can read as well!
Firstly, it’s also super easy to get to Monaco from Nice. You can do it by getting the 602 bus which costs €2.50 and takes about an hour each way. However, for a day trip we recommend taking the train which only takes 20 minutes each way. Tickets are €5.90 each way and the trains are double decker so you’ll definitely get on even in peak season.
What To Do
Once in Monaco, there’s some great things you can do to fill your day. You should definitely visit the famous Monte-Carlo Casino, and its carpark full of expensive luxury vehicles. If you’d like to go inside, you can enter the beautiful entry hall, the shop and one of the restaurants all day for free.
Another fun thing you can do in Monaco is walk the length of the country. It’s only 4km from east to west, so only takes around an hour to walk across. At each border is just a Monaco flag to signify you’ve reached the edge of the country. It’s a great way to see Monaco and is something cool to say you’ve done!
On your walk you will likely walk past Larvotto beach. If you want to spend some time at a beach, this one is 400m long, has swimming net and is absolutely lovely. There are both private and public sections as well as a promenade with restaurants running along the beach.
Our favourite part of Monaco was Monaco City, a traditional section of the country located up on a hill. You can get there on the number 2 bus, or walk up the winding staircase, which isn’t too hard a walk. This beautiful area has small winding streets with lots of restaurants, cafes and souvenir stores. Up on the hill is also the Prince’s Palace of Monaco, a cathedral and the Oceanographic Museum. It is a gorgeous area of Monaco and is absolutely worth a visit.
Lastly, for Formula One fans, you can walk the 3km track along the streets used for the Monaco Grand Prix every year. There’s also a guided walking tour you can do to learn even more while you walk!
Final Thoughts
As you can see there really is so much to do during your three days in Nice. The actual town of Nice has an amazing old town with a great outdoor market, a little town square and cute winding streets. There’s also Castle Hill which is a must visit with a great waterfall, green spaces and an incredible view over Nice. Then of course there’s the beach, a must do when visiting the French Riviera.
On your other days, we recommend getting out of the city for some day trips. We loved both the little medieval village of Èze and the micro country of Monaco. They’re so different from each other and are both so worth visiting if you’ve got the time. However you choose to spend your time in Nice, you are going to have an amazing time!
To see what we got up to, check out our vlog from our trip to Nice: