Nice Sights

  1. Anatole Jakovsky International Naive Art Museum

    Over 1000 works of naive art are gathered at the Anatole Jakovsky International Naive Art Museum, inside 19th-century Château Ste-Hélène, 2km west of the centre. Romanian art critic Anatole Jakovsky (1909-83), who moved to southern France in 1932, kick-started the museum by donating his vast collection. Pieces date from the 18th century to the present day. Take bus 8, 10, 11 or 12 from the bus station to the Fabron stop, from where it's a 500m walk, or take bus 34 to the Musée Art Naïf stop.

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  2. Bibliothèque Louis Nucéra

    The offices of public library Bibliothèque Louis Nucéra are inside La Tête Carrée de Sosno. The massive 30m-tall sculpture designed by Sacha Sosno

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  3. Blue Beach

    Nice works for kids. Its boats and beaches provide hours of fun and a couple of private beaches, including Blue Beach, sport a playground and/or slide-clad paddling pool for younger tots.

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  4. Cascade Donjon

    Parc du Château is fabulous for picnics. Attractions include Cascade Donjon, an 18th-century artificial waterfall crowned with a viewing platform; and open-air concerts in summer.

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  5. Cathédrale Orthodoxe Russe St-Nicolas

    Step inside the Cathédrale Orthodoxe Russe St-Nicolas and let the icons and frescoes transport you to 17th-century Moscow. Consecrated in 1912 and crowned by multicoloured onion domes, it is the biggest Russian Orthodox Church outside Russia. Shorts, miniskirts and sleeveless shirts are forbidden.

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  7. Cathédrale Ste-Réparate

    Sweet-chiming baroque churches in Vieux Nice include Cathédrale Ste-Réparate.

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  8. Centre National d'Art Contemporain

    Sensational temporary photographic and contemporary art exhibitions are displayed at the Centre National d'Art Contemporain, inside 18th-century Villa Arson, 1km north of the town centre. Take bus 36 to the Villa Arson stop, or bus 4, 7 or 26 to the Fanny stop on blvd de Cessole.

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  9. Chapelle de la Miséricorde

    Chapelle de la Miséricorde was built between 1740 and 1780.

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  10. Château de l'Anglais

    From Nice's port, glance up at Mont Boron, home to celebrities such as Elton John. The pink confection you see is Château de l'Anglais, built in 1859 for an English engineer called Robert Smith, renowned at the time as being the only foreigner to live in Nice year-round. Locals quickly dubbed his castle 'Smith's folly'. The historical monument has since been split into private apartments.

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  11. Chateau Lift

    To get to Parc du Château, ride the Chateau Lift from beneath Tour Bellanda or hike up the staircases on montée Lesage or the eastern end of rue Rossetti.

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  13. Cours Saleya

    Cours Saleya is buzzing with restaurants and markets.

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  14. Église Notre Dame

    Adjoining the Monastère Notre Dame de Cimiez, Église Notre Dame boasts precious medieval art by Louis Bréa, and a monumental 17th-century baroque altar.

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  15. Église St-Jacques Le Majeur

    Blue-grey and yellow Église St-Jacques Le Majeur can be found in in Vieux Nice.

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  16. Espace Masséna

    Espace Masséna, a public square, straddles the eastern side of place Masséna.

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  17. Galerie de la Marine

    Galerie de la Marine. At the quai des États-Unis' eastern end, a war memorial hewn from the rock commemorates the 4000 Niçois who died in both world wars.

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  19. Galerie des Ponchettes

    Galerie des Ponchettes, a 19th-century vaulted building which was used as a public lavoir (wash house) in the 1840s, then as a fish market until Matisse persuaded the council to revamp it in 1950.

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  20. Garibaldi's Grave

    The cemetery containing Garibaldi's grave covers the northwestern section of Parc du Château.

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  22. Hôtel Negresco

    Palm-lined promenade des Anglais, paid for by Nice's English colony in 1822, is a fine stage for a stroll. It's particularly atmospheric in the evening, with whizzing rollerbladers and epic sunsets over the sea. Don't miss the magnificent façade of Hôtel Negresco, built in 1912 for Romanian innkeeper Henri Negresco.

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  23. Jardin Albert 1er

    The western end av Jean Médecin is dominated by the 19th-century Jardin Albert 1er. The giant arc languishing on the lawn was designed by sculptor Bernard Venet to commemorate the centenary of the appellation 'Côte d'Azur', dreamt up by French poet Stéphane Liégeard (1830-1925).

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  25. Jardin du Monastère

    Surrounding the Monastère Notre Dame de Cimiez is Jardin du Monastère, filled with cypress trees and an abundance of sweet-smelling roses, and offering a sweeping panorama of the Baie des Anges.

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  26. Jardin Maréchal Juin

    Outside the Museum of Modern & Contemporary Art, the red concrete Jardin Maréchal Juin hugs MAMAC's eastern side and - more spectacularly - frames the giant square head of La Tête Carrée de Sosno (2002).

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  27. La Tête Carrée de Sosno

    Outside the Museum of Modern & Contemporary Art, the red concrete Jardin Maréchal Juin hugs MAMAC's eastern side and, more spectacularly, frames the giant square head of La Tête Carrée de Sosno.The massive 30m-tall sculpture designed by Sacha Sosno - a 14m-square concrete head sitting on a pair of shoulders - is, in fact, a building.

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  28. Matisse's House

    Nearby cours Saleya is Matisse's house where he lived in the 1920s; there's no plaque: look out for the lions.

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  29. Monastère Notre Dame de Cimiez

    Matisse is buried in the cemetery of the Monastère Notre Dame de Cimiez. His grave is signposted ' sépulture Henri Matisse ' from the cemetery's main entrance (next to the monastery church on av Bellanda). Raoul Dufy (1877-1953) is also buried here.

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