Savoyard for five centuries, French since 1860, and Niçois through and through.
Nice belonged to the House of Savoy from 1388 to 1860, and it shows: Italian-style ochre façades, arcaded squares and a language of its own, Nissart, which still appears on the street signs. Then came the English winter visitors, the Promenade des Anglais and the Belle Époque palaces, now a World Heritage Site. Three free self-guided walks, at your own pace, between the sea and Castle Hill.
Choose your free tour
All routes are free and can be combined. If it’s your first visit, start with the mixed route.
From the palace of the Dukes of Savoy to the harbour dug on the orders of a King of Sardinia: five centuries when Nice looked to Turin rather than Paris.
A saint carried ashore by angels, a washerwoman taking on the Janissaries, the author of The Phantom of the Opera and a castle blown up with gunpowder: the tales of Nice, from the cathedral to the hilltop.
The pink-domed hotel, the Promenade des Anglais, Place Masséna, the Paillon water mirror, the Cours Saleya market and the Castle Hill waterfall: Nice from end to end.
The map
The routes cross in the old town. Tap a point to see which story awaits you there.
Filled points already have a published article; the rest are in the works.
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Itineraries
We’ve planned it day by day for you: which routes to walk and in what order, what else to see and where to eat.
All three routes in one full day: the highlights, the history and the legends at dusk.
See the itinerary 2A gentler pace: the three routes over two days, plus extra sights and where to eat.
See the itinerary 3The city in depth: one route a day, extra museums and neighbourhoods, and a day for good food.
See the itineraryWhat to eat
The dishes you can’t leave without trying, and the classic spots that have been serving them for years.
A wafer-thin pancake of chickpea flour, water and olive oil, baked on huge copper trays in a wood-fired oven. It comes piping hot, cut into rough pieces and showered with black pepper, and you eat it with your fingers. At Chez René Socca and at Chez Pipo, near the port, it is an institution.
Where to try it
Beef braised for hours in red wine with herbs and a strip of orange peel. Its sauce dresses homemade ravioli, traditionally filled with the meat itself and Swiss chard. It is the Sunday dish of Niçois homes and the house speciality at Chez Acchiardo, on Rue Droite.
Where to try it
Pissaladière is a bread dough topped with onions cooked down until meltingly soft, plus anchovies and black olives. Pan bagnat is salade niçoise packed into a round loaf soaked in olive oil: tomato, tuna, egg, radishes and olives. Two classics to eat standing up in the Old Town.
Where to try it
Courgettes, tomatoes, onions, peppers and courgette flowers stuffed with meat, bread, cheese and herbs, then baked until golden. No dish tastes more of a Niçois grandmother's kitchen; at Le Safari, on the Cours Saleya, they are served in the evening too.
Where to try it
Nice's great surprise: a sweet Swiss chard tart with raisins, pine nuts and apple, dusted with sugar. It is eaten as a dessert or an afternoon snack, and is one of the most distinctive sweets of Niçois cooking.
Where to try it
Nice is one of the very few major French cities with its own appellation, recognised in 1941. Its vineyards, on the hills to the west, produce whites from Rolle and reds and rosés from old local grapes such as Braquet and Folle Noire. The Cave de la Tour, open since 1947, pours it by the glass as an aperitif.
Where to try it
Mandarins, bitter oranges, figs and melons candied in syrup, a centuries-old tradition on this coast. Maison Auer, opposite the Opera House, has been making them since 1820 in a shop of crystal chandeliers and old-fashioned display cases: the perfect souvenir to take home.
Where to try it