How to spend 7 days in the French Riviera

Day 1: Flight & Arrival in Nice

Flights from the UK to Nice are surprisingly affordable with routes from London, Manchester, and Newcastle available for under £40 one-way (prices on Skyscanner for May).

After flying for just over 2 hours we arrived in Nice and checked into our hotel.

Top tip: Stay close to the train station. You’ll likely be taking multiple day trips along the coast, and being within walking distance makes everything much easier.

Day 2: Exploring Nice

We spent our first full day exploring Nice.

Top 3 Things to do in Nice:

1. Visit Colline du Château for incredible views over Nice
2. Wander through the Old Town markets
3. Rent a Lime or Pony electric bike and cycle along the seafront (this was honestly one of my favourite things to do on this trip)

Day 3: Monaco & Menton

We took a day trip to Monaco and Menton. Both are very easy to get to by train and you can just buy your tickets at a machine in the station.

Top Recommendations:

1. Try a lemon tart from Mitron Bakery
2. Walk up Les Rampes Saint-Michel for stunning views
3. Grab fresh pasta from Maison des Pâtes (around €8—great budget option)

Bonus tip: Coffee (like everything else in Monaco can be £££, but I found what is maybe the cheapest coffee in Monaco? A cappuccino for about €3.80 at Casa del Caffè).

Day 4: Èze, Beaulieu-sur-Mer & Saint-Jean-Cap-Ferrat

We visited the stunning hilltop village of Èze.

To get there, we took the train from Nice to Èze, then a bus up to the village.

Important tip: Bring cash—the bus didn’t accept cards when we visited. The main bus stop gets extremely busy—walk 5 minutes down the road to an earlier stop for an empty bus!

While in Èze, we visited the Jardin Exotique d’Èze. Entry costs around €10 but I’d say this is something worth paying for.

We then took an Uber to Saint-Jean-Cap-Ferrat. As it was early in the season, not everything was open, but we still enjoyed lunch and rented electric bikes.

We cycled to Beaulieu-sur-Mer, explored the town, relaxed on the beach, and returned to Nice by train.

Day 5: Travel to Cannes

We checked out of Nice and headed to Cannes, where we stayed for the next three nights.

Our first day was relaxed—we wandered the streets and ended up at a skate park where we watched some very impressive locals skating.

Cannes is beautiful, with great cafés, restaurants, and sunsets.

Tip: Skip hotel breakfast. There are so many amazing brunch spots in Cannes—you’ll be missing out if you don’t try them (also, we found it was cheaper to eat out than to pay for breakfast at the hotel…)

Day 6: Beach Day in Cannes

With warmer weather, we dedicated a full day to the beach.

After averaging 20,000 steps a day, this break from walking was needed. We spent the day reading, playing cards, and enjoying the sun.

Cannes Recommendations:

1. La Charrette à Crêpes – incredible crêpes (and open late, which most places weren’t)
2. Grab takeaway (we had sushi one night and pita the next) and eat it on the seaside blue chairs at sunset
3. Walk up to Chateau De La Castre for panoramic sunset views

Day 7: Day Trip to Antibes

We took a train to Antibes, which ended up being our favourite day trip.

Antibes is home to one of the largest marinas in Europe; we walked along the coast to watch the yachts and then wandered through the small streets and markets.

The town has lots of shops, cafes and restaurants. They have some very cute jewellery shops, I spent some time looking around LuckyTeam.

Day 8: Travel Home

Time to head home and we flew back from Nice Airport.

PSA: There’s a Joe & The Juice in the airport…

Final Tips for the French Riviera

1. Base yourself near a train station for easy travel
2. Use trains for most journeys- they’re fast, affordable, and scenic
3. April has much fewer crowds than the summer months