Nice Times in Nice, France

Out of all the cities I stayed in, I spent the least amount of time in Nice. Why? Well there wasn’t too much to do that wasn’t sunbathing or shopping. I didn’t care much for either of those activities so I only spent a full day in Nice. I ended up taking half a day trip to Monaco in my spare time. Here’s the full account for Nice!

Day 1

I arrived at the main train station, Nice Ville and had a horrible time trying to find my bus stop. Google maps just wanted to screw with me but I ended up getting directions from a hotel concierge nearby and it was fine. My airbnb was located a bit further away from Old Town, but just a couple bus stops from the station. The flat was very lovely and had that chic vibe I kind of expected from a côte d’azure city like Nice. My hostess was so friendly and welcoming, so I’d definitely recommend Krystelle’s place 🙂

I dropped off my luggage and went straight for the Old Town, which is what Nice is known for. I ended up walking towards this Russian Orthodox Church which was located not too far from where I was and was on the way to the city center. This church, though seemingly random and kind of hidden, was a gem in my opinion. I’ve never been to Russia and witnessed its eclectic architecture but I’ve heard of its beauty and seen pictures. Inside the church was even more beautiful and there were rabbits roaming around the grass outside too.

After visiting the church, it ended up being a nice 2 mile downhill stroll through Avenue Jean Médecin. It’s a long road of tons of shops and cafes and a great route to take you down to the old part of Nice. You also pass by the town’s Basilique Notre-Dame de l’Assomption.

I hadn’t eaten lunch yet so I grabbed a quick bite from the Monoprix in the main square and sat outside to people watch.

Then I saw a bike share station and immediately went towards that! I was having tons of issues trying to figure out how to use it so a nice young gentleman who spoke very decent English helped me out. Instead of punching in a numeric code like other cities, the bike share system in Nice requires you to dial a toll free number every time. I personally think that’s inefficient and harder to use but whatever. I got it to work and then I was able to bike around the city and along the Mediterranean coast.

Since I can dock my bike at any of the many stations, I decided to take a break from biking and walk through the city’s old town. The buildings here are a lot more quaint than those on Avenue Jean Medecin.

Fast forward to when it was almost golden hour, I went to Ascenseur du Château, which had great views of the coast.

I saw more stairs that led up to nowhere so despite my strong dislike for steps, I climbed them anyway and at the very top was this amazing vantage point of the city. I was simply unable to capture a good photo of it. I tried, but I couldn’t do the view justice.

For dinner, I ended up picking a place that was just off Avenue Jean Medecin called L’Ovale, which serves French Southwest cuisine. Their fixed price 3-course dinner menu was a great deal and the food was delicious! I opted for a salad and beef stew, which the stew ended up having pasta noodles. Dessert was a