Towns and Villages of France’s Cote D’Azur and the French Riveria
Synonymous with beaches, sun and the jet set lifestyle the French Riviara of the Cote D’Azur stretches from St Tropez to the Italian boarder.
St Tropez: the best beaches on the Riviera are in St Tropez the most famous being the Pampelonne Beaches. You should make reservations in order to secure mattresses, parasols and a place to eat at the restaurants situated on the beaches with tables with tablecloths and silver located right on the sand.
Musee de L’Annonciade has outstanding works by the painters Sigac, Derain, Rouault, Bonnard and others
Grasse: the center of the French perfume industry. You can visit the perfume houses of Fragonard, Molinard and Gallimard. There is also the 10th Century Cathedral with paintings by Rubens. In August there is the Jasmine Festival. Not to be missed is the Musee International de la Parfumerie, which has magnificent gardens with the various plants used in the manufacture of perfume.
Cannes: closely associated with the Cannes film festival, held annually in May since 1946, Cannes much more. The Promenade, Old Market and beaches are a must along with the Lerins Islands located just offshore famous for its prison which held The Man in The Iron Mask for 11 years.
Antibes: is best known for The Picasso Museum housed in the Chateau Grimaldi. Picasso stayed for the year of 1949 in the Chateau and in gratitude donated all of the 150 works he completed while staying there.
St Paul de Vence: a walled hilltop village located outside Nice, it was a popular destination in the 1920’s by many notable artist of the day, and still retains many galleries and artist studios. A must see is The Maeght Foundation. Founded in 1946 and set just outside the walls it is considered one of Europe’s finest modern art museums with works of art by Braque, Chagall, Miro and Matisse.
Nice: the largest of the cities of the Cote D’Azur it hold many annual festivals with Carnival and the Battle of Flowers (around Shrove Tuesday), and the Jazz Festival (July) being the largest ones. Not to be missed are the Musee Matisse, the Marc Chagall Museum and the daily Flower and Vegetable Markets in the Old Town. Or stroll along the boardwalk beside the Promenade des Anglais overlooking the pebbled stone beach and the blue waters of the Mediterranean.
Villefranche sur Mer: a beautiful deep anchorage that has preserved its17th century town consisting of rows of brightly painted houses interconnected with stepped and vaulted streets and the fortified citadelle. There are a variety of good restaurants on the waterfront.
Monte-Carlo: the Principality of Monaco is a separate state from that of France. It is ruled by Prince Rainier II and is a tax-free haven for thousands of residence. The source of income to allow a tax-free state is the Grand Casino. The Casino is not the only draw to Monaco. There is the World-famous Jacques Cousteau Oceanographic Museum, the Automobile Museum of Prince Rainier, the Le Jardin Exotique with over 6000 variety of semi-desert flora and is considered one of the finest in Europe, The National Museum of Dolls with some 400 dolls from various era, the Opera Monte Carlo, the Formula One Monaco Grand Prix (May) and the Monaco Rally (January)
Roquebrune and Cap Martin: a pretty coastline, which covers the whole of Cap Martin and stretches between Menton and Monte-Carlo. It is watched over by the medieval village of Roquebrune and its castle keep, a 10th century Carolingian castle. There is also one of the most interesting walks in the Riviera with a coastal footpath from Cap Martin to Monte-Carlo. The walk will take about 4hours (return). Park at ave Winston Churhill and follow the signs labeled “Promenade le Corbusier”
OTHER Sites of the Cote D’Azur
The Gorges of the River Loup: there is a magnificent panorama from the Saracen square in the village of Gourdon, perched 500m above the river below.
The glass and pottery works, museums and shops of Biot.
The breath-taking beauty of the Esterel Cliff Road, N98, from Cannes to St Tropez
Additional Hill-Top Villages of note are; Roubion, Mougins, Venanson, Belvedere, Cabris, Gordio and Eze
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