The beautiful Musée Masséna, housed in a marvellous Italianate neoclassical villa (1898), retraces Nice and the Riviera's history from the late 18th century to WWII. It’s a fascinating journey, with a roll call of monarchs, a succession of nationalities (British, Russians, Americans), the advent of tourism, the prominence of the carnival and much more.

History is told through an excellent mix of furniture, objects, art deco posters, early photographs, paintings and the lovely setting (note however that captions are in French only). The city of Nice still uses the ground-floor rooms for official occasions so it can sometimes close at short notice.