User:(WT-en) Maj/Sandbox/Nice

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Harbor of Nice, France

Nice is a large city in France on the French Riviera.

Get in

By plane

Nice Airport (IATA:NCE) is one of the busiest in France and has direct flights to most major cities in Europe as well New York, Atlanta and a number of destinations in North Africa and the Middle East. The airport is located at the western end of Nice on landfill. Arrival and departure in good weather often provides beautiful views of the French Riviera.

Most airlines use Terminal 1 (the older terminal) while Terminal 2 is used primarily by Air France (and partners) and Easyjet. There is a free shuttle bus between the terminals.

Various bus lines depart from the airport. To get to the downtown bus depot, take line 98 (departing at bus stop 1 every 30 minutes, on the hour). The fare to the terminus is 4 Euros per person. The airport website has a page with timetables.

Some hotels offer shuttle buses from the airport - inquire at your hotel before or upon arrival.

By train

Nice is connected to the rest of France via the SNCF train network. A direct TGV train from Paris to Nice takes about 6 hours, fare for an adult is about 100 Euros. The train arrives in Nice at the central station (called simply "Gare SNCF").

A new service called "IdTGV" is now available: it offers low-cost TGV ticket (from 19€ for a single trip between Paris and Nice). These tickets have to be bought online, they are not refundable. http://www.idtgv.com/

By bus

The best, cheapest and most reliable way to get from the Airport to central nice or the Nice Ville train station is the 98 and 23 buses. They run high frequency between 08:00 and 20:00. The first one is at about 05:30 and the last one around 19:40. The airport website gives an updated timetable in PDF format (see by plane above).

Get around

By car

Best access is by car from the A8 autoroute. The airport is well signed from the A8 and the A8 well signed from the airport. Just make sure that you know which direction you need to go when getting on the A8 and which terminal when leaving. Especially in the morning and evening rush hour do allow extra time to deal with accidents and traffic jams. The A8 has a ferocious bend just by the airport and accidents are frequent.

Driving a car on the Riviera is only for the brave, the region has one of the worst accident records in France (which is saying something) and every local has his or her favourite story about a mad driver. However all major car rental firms, as well as some less well known ones such as easycar and ADA, are present. Most are located by terminal 2 however easycar is located just off site near terminal 1. If you have a choice try to pick a car that is already well dinged so that no one notices the new dings and scratches you will add.

By taxi

If you can avoid the taxis, sadly in many cases you do not have a choice. Also often it is hard to find a taxi when you need one.

Nice taxi drivers are notorious for ripping off foreigners. Insist on the meter being on the whole time. Try and sit where you can see it so that you can immediately query the driver when/if it goes off "accidentally". Taxi fares within Nice should be less than €20, Antibes €50 and Monaco or Cannes should result in fares of approximately €70.

By bus

A number of public buses crisscross Nice. When taking the bus, you must be aware of the somewhat odd way the bus schedules are laid out.

They list the departure time at the first bus station - not the one you are currently at (unless the two coincide, naturally). At the right hand side of the bus schedule, you have a list of stations, and next to some you will find the time listed it will take the bus to get there (+20', for example). This means that you will have to do a lot of guessing. Best ask a native and leave some extra padding time (30 minutes or more depending on the complexity of your bus trip) if you plan to take a bus to any scheduled event that you really do not want to miss (airport, train, etc).

You can find local bus route maps and timetables at this link. Route maps are listed under 'Maps' and timetables as 'Timetables'. They are provided in PDF format. Also, a new service ('Stop timetables') purports to display the times at your stop. From previous experience with the bus company, those should stand somewhere between educated guesses and outright fiction. The interurban bus station (Gare Routière) in central Nice is on Avenue Félix Faure near the Rue du Lycée.

Take care to check for temporary changes to your bus stops near any roadworks for Nice's new tram system.

By foot

Nice isn't very big. Unless you want to reach the very outlying areas, you can probably get away with walking your entire stay.

By scooter/motorbike

Unless you are very experienced, don't.

See

The ruined castle overlooking the harbour is a nice vantage point overlooking the city. Not much is left besides crumbling walls. Still, climbing up the stairs to reach the platforms 90m above Nice is well worth the view. Be aware that the castle "park" closes at 8:00 in the evening. Expect to be escorted outside if you stay longer.

Nice is also known for several museums. Some of the most famous are in Cimiez, the older, upper part of the city, including:

• The Musee Chagall, which includes stain glass windows by the artist.
• Musee Matisse
• Musee et Site Archeologiques de Cimiez, the ruins of the Gallo-Roman settlement in Cimiez, plus a museum with nice documentation on Gallo-Roman life (but mostly not in English).

Do

Beaches

If you go to Nice for bathing or generally lounging on the beach, you may wish to think again. The beaches of Nice consist entirely of gravel and rocks - much nicer beaches exist in other cities around the Mediterranean (Villefranche-sur-Mer or Cannes are way more sandy, though). A few private beaches have added a layer of sand, but the free public beaches are a stony experience. Besides towels or mats you should definitely bring sandals (walking on the rocks can be painful) and cushions (if you want to sit). Showers are provided (for free) on all public beaches, as well.

Private beaches offer various services from restaurants / bars to the rental of lounge chairs and towels.

Beautiful Landscapes

Go to Eze. It is a small village on the way to Monaco. The village is situated on a small mountain and there is a beautiful garden with a spectacular view (a must see). There is also a perfume factory which you can visit for free.

Learn

There are many schools offering courses in French. Perhaps the most reputable is Alliance Française .

Buy

Most stores and restaurants in Nice will accept the major credit cards, as well as debit cards from major banks (anything carrying the EC or MAESTRO labels). If this fails you can always get money from any of the numerous ATM machines.

Postcards (as many other things) vary greatly in price. Do some comparison shopping as the price range is between 20 cents and 1 Euro per normal postcard.

Eat

A food called "Socca" is a local speciality, as is a tuna fish sandwich called "Pan Bagnat." Other specialties include Soupe de Poisson (Fish Soup, made with chili aioli, croutons, and grated cheese), Salade Nicoise (made with seafood), and Tourtes aux Blettes (sweet tartes made with Savoy cabbage, raisins, nuts, and powdered sugar).

Check out the daily market in the Vieux Nice for fresh, local produce.

Budget

Cheap & cheerful food in Nice is hard to come by. Even the menus offered at McDonalds are between 5.50€-7€ for a sandwich, pommes frites and a soda drink.

The best deals in the centre can be found in the port area. Old Nice and all along the sea front the prices cannot be described as budget.

Mid-range

• The Casa mia on rue Pontin, Old Nice does amazing Italian in a very homely environment. The menus around 20-25 euros offer excellent value for the service and quality.

• The Domaine de Lintillac at 37 Rue d'Angleterre (tel: +33-4-93885075) specializes on duck. Main dishes are an excellent value at a little under 10 euro.

• Le Delhi Belhi at 22 rue de la Barillerie, Vieux Nice (tel: +33-4-93925187) specializes in Indian cuisine. Open daily for dinner only.

• Le Shalimar at 11 Rue Biscarra (tel: +33-4-93139578) has tasty Indian food. The lunch menus are a good deal.

Drink

You can save a lot of money by buying drinks and such in a normal supermarket instead of the vendors geared towards tourists. With the hot Niçois summers, carrying a bottle of water is almost a must.

Some popular places to go out for a drink include:

• Wayne's - Almost every tourist under the age of 30 end up here at least once. Women get a free drink if they pose topless. Karaoke on Sundays.
• Thor Pub - Often has live music.
• Ma Nolan's - Has everything you would expect from an Irish pub.
• Blue Whales - Stays open until the wee hours of the morning.

Sleep

There are a number of hotels within walking distance of terminal 1 of the Airport and a special hotel shuttle bus serves other hotels within Nice itself.

Budget

It would seem that the simplest solution is to stay at a youth hostel. There are quite a number in Nice, three of which are:

• Mont-Boron, Route Forestière du Mont-Alban. Situated 4 kms from Nice in a forest.
• Les Camélias, 3, rue Spitalieri. Situated near the shopping center Nice Etoile, in the heart of the city center.
• Villa Saint Exupery, 22, Avenue Gravier. Situated a fair way to the north of the town centre in a former monastery.

Mid-range

Being a heavily touristed city, it's easy to find a number of small hotels which are perfectly acceptable, and usually at a decent rate.

Hotels 2* located in the centre of Nice

• La Résidence
• Carlyna

Hotels 3* located in the centre of Nice

• Le Vendôme

Splurge

Holiday palaces are numerous in Nice: there are 14 four-star hotels of which these are a sampling:

• Negresco
• Radisson
• Four Points Elysée Palace
• Sofitel
• Ruhl

Stay safe

Nice is not really more dangerous than other cities in western countries. You can easily stay safe following a few pieces of advice:

• The vol à la portière, that consisted in opening on of door of the car when stopping at a traffic light and stealing the passengers' goods has decreased over the last years, but a few are still reported every year. To avoid that, keep the doors of your car locked and make sure that purses, cameras or other expensive things cannot be seen from the outside. Note that cars registered outside the Alpes-Marimes (with a number plate ending with something else than '06') are more likely to be targeted.
• Avoid the areas called les Moulins and l'Ariane : crime is higher in these districts. Anyway these places have no interest.

Cope

Religious services

• Holy mass in catholic churches in vicinity to the Convention center Acropolis (Palais des Congrès et des Expositions):

Notre-Dame Auxiliatrice, 36, Place Don Bosco. Sat: 18:30; Sun: 8:30, 10:00; Mon-Fri: 16:15, 18:30

St. Joseph, 21, Rue Smolett. Sat: 18:30; Sun 9:00; Thu: 18:00

Saint Jean-Baptiste, Place du Voeu/Rue Alfrede Mortier. Sat: 18:00; Sun: 11:00, Mon-Wed: 18:45; Thu-Fri: 8:30

St. Martin-St. Augustin, Place Saint-Augustin. Sat: 16:00, 17:30; Sun: 9:30, 11:00; Tue-Fri: 16:00

Some other catholic churches in downtown Nice:

Cathédrale Sainte-Réparate, Place Rossetti. Sat: 18:30; Sun: 10:00, 12:00; Mon-Fri: 10:00

Notre Dame du Port, 8, Place Ile de Beaute. Sun: 10:00; Mon-Fri: 18:00

Basilique Notre Dame, 2, Rue d’Italie. Sat: 11:00, 17:30; Sun: 8:30, 10:00, 11:15; 18:00; Mon-Fri: 11:00, 18:00

• Protestant churches

Reformed temple, 21, boulevard Victor Hugo. Sun: 10:15

Lutheran church, 4, Rue Melchior de Vogüé. Sun: 10:30

Baptist church, 32 rue de l'hôtel des postes. Sun: 10:30

Evangelical church, 51bis, avenue de Pessicart. Sun: 10:00

Anglican church Holy Trinity, 11, rue de la Buffa. Sun: 11:00; Mon&Thu: 12:15; Tue: 18:15; Wed&Fri: 10:30; Sat: 09:00

• Orthodox churches

Greek orthodox church Saint Spyridon, 2, Avenue Desambrois. Sun: 10:30; Mon-Sat: 10:15

Russian orthodox cathedral Saint Nicolas, Avenue Nicolas II. Sun-Sat: 10:00

Apostolic Armenian church, 281 Boulevard de la Madeleine. Sun: 10:00

Get out

By train

If you're getting out of Nice towards Paris, consider taking the TGV. Cruising at 300 km/h is quite fun (but the train only reaches high speed beyond Marseille) and the train has a nice route with plenty of views of the coast. Be sure to ask for a seat on the left-hand side of the train when going west from Nice.

Some nice places just to the west of Nice include Antibes and Cannes.

East of Nice the trains stops at Villefranche, Monaco and Menton. San Remo in Italy is also just a little over one hour away.

By bus

There are coaches from Nice Airport to most places between Marseilles and Genoa.

Eze can be reached using line 82 or 112 from the Gare Routiere (bus terminal) in Nice.

Helicopter

There are a number of helicopter services available with regular flights to St Tropez, Cannes and Monaco. The price is quite competitive with a taxi fare and the views are stunning.