← Sanremo Marathon·3 nights

Nice After Sanremo: A Winter Week on the Riviera

Three nights in the biggest city on the French Riviera, with a flat seafront, a small old town and an airport that takes you home.

Duration3 nights
TransitRegional train from Sanremo to Ventimiglia, then on to Nice; check the timetable and the border arrangements
DepartsSanremo

After the Sanremo Marathon: Nice

The Route: Sanremo → Ventimiglia → Nice (3 nights) → airport or home Logistics: Trains run from Sanremo to Ventimiglia, and from there to Nice via Menton. Allow in the order of two hours in total, with a change at the border. Check the timetable and carry a passport. Winter daylight is short, so travel in the morning if you can. Marathon Month: December Duration: 3 nights

Sanremo ──(train, about 30 mins)──> Ventimiglia ──(train, about 1 hr)──> Nice
                                                                           │
                    Promenade des Anglais ── Vieux Nice ── Colline du Château
                                                                           │
                                                      3 nights, then the airport

Nice sits on a wide, curved bay with a pebble beach and a promenade that runs for several kilometres along it. The English visitors who wintered here in the nineteenth century paid for the first version of that promenade, and it is still called the Promenade des Anglais. It is flat and wide, with room for walkers and cyclists, and runs from the airport to the old harbour.

After a marathon, the promenade is a gift, and the old town, Vieux Nice, is only a few minutes away.

December in Nice: the days are short and mild, often sunny, with temperatures in the low teens. Christmas lights go up along the front and in the old town, and a market sets up in the centre. Rain falls in bursts. The sea can be too rough to approach.

Getting there

Take a regional train from Sanremo to Ventimiglia, and change for the French line to Nice via Menton and Monaco. The journey takes in the order of two hours. Buy tickets in advance for the Italian section and check whether the French section needs a separate ticket. Nice-Ville station is a short tram or taxi ride from the seafront.

Where to stay

Choose a hotel in the area between the old town and the Promenade des Anglais, or near the port. Both are flat and walkable. Check the rates for December, which are lower than in summer, and ask about lifts.

Day one: the promenade and the old town

Walk the Promenade des Anglais at an easy pace, and then turn inland to Vieux Nice. The Cours Saleya, a long square in the old town, holds a daily market in the morning, with flowers, vegetables and street food. Try socca, a thin chickpea pancake baked in a wood oven, from a stall.

Day two: the castle hill and the museums

The Colline du Château is a public park on a rock at the eastern end of the old town, with a view over the bay. A lift runs up from the seafront, and the fare is low. The Matisse Museum, in the hills of Cimiez, and the Marc Chagall museum are a short bus ride away. Check opening days, as museums often close on Mondays or Tuesdays.

Day three: easy outings

A train along the coast reaches Villefranche-sur-Mer, a small harbour town, in about ten minutes. A walk on the flat harbour front is enough. Monaco is a half-hour train ride away.

Eating

Niçoise cooking leans on olive oil, anchovies and vegetables. Look for salade niçoise, pissaladière, a bread topped with onions and anchovies, and ravioli. Book dinner on weekends.

Getting back

Nice airport is a short tram ride from the centre, with flights to the UK and elsewhere. Check your flight times and the tram schedule the evening before.