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My wife and I had a rare and unexpected childfree weekened that coincided with our ten year wedding anniversary. Originally, we struggled to agree on where to go but ended up settling on Nice as we both love the Provence-Alpes-Côte d’Azur region, as well as French cuisine.
With flights starting from about £700 return for two people from bristol airport, it’s not the cheapest option for a long weekend, but neither is it outlandishly expensive and in my opinion offers great value for money.
Nice offers a perfect blend of natural beauty, cultural richness, culinary delights, and a welcoming atmosphere, making it an ideal destination for a memorable long weekend.
Our accommodation was sorted via Airbnb and we found this amazing apartment hosted by Julien that had everything we needed in a perfect location and incredible view.
Making the most of our long weekend, we headed to Monaco for our first full day using the incredible SNCF train network connecting Nice to the rest of the Provence-Alpes-Côte d’Azur. Our tickets cost about €10 and gave us the option of stopping off at the enchanting Èze.
Personally, I don’t have much to say about Monaco. I felt as though I was supposed to be impressed at the glaringly obvious display of wealth, but found it a bit gauche.
The juxtaposition of fishing deckhands and building workers compared to the massive super yachts did make me wonder if the facade was actually appreciated by everyone living in the principality.
Somehow my GoPro leaked in the sea at Èze so I spent basically the entire trip using my trusty Leica D-Lux 6. I’ve edited all of these images super quickly in Lightroom with Kevin Mullins amazing presets, all on my Microsoft Surface Go 2.
The following day (Saturday) had us exploring the historic winding streets at a leisurely pace. We sampled local specialties and soaked up the blend of French and Italian influences.
With endless supplies of incredible Boulangeries on hand, pastries and sweeet treats are easy to find. Once we worked out the brilliant Tram system, we felt like we could explore long into the evening knowing that our €7 tram and bus day pass got us to every corner of the city easily.
Not far past Nice port lies Coco Beach with some incredible swimming alongside shoals of small fish. Thankfully we only saw one very small jellyfish all weekend!
Sunday was a strikingly beautiful day, and although sunny, it never felt unbearably hot; topping out at a comfortable 31°C. We jumped on a train heading up to Breil-sur-Roya on the italian border, ducking in and out of tunnels before arriving at Touët-de-l’Escarène, about an hour away from Nice.
Our hiking route had us follow part of the brilliantly signposted GR network of trails up to Col de Cavalier, before picking up minor path looping back down to the waterfalls (Cascade de Redebraus). Unfortunately, the minor path didn’t existing/had been blocked by a fence so we headed back down into l’Escarène instead.
Here we headed to Cafe del’Union but weren’t able to get served (not entirely sure why but their demeanor changed drastically when I told them, in French, that we were English). Pan d’aqui, just a short walk up the road, did serve us however with a much friendlier welcome and an incredible selection of local pastries and baguettes.
Monday was a half day with our flights booked for the afternoon but, as someone who isn’t a fan of flying for short trips, I am glad that my wife persuaded me to go to Nice. I was just starting to feel comfortable speaking (limited) French again and had orientated myself around the smaller back alleys. Flying from Bristol only took a couple of hours and I can highly recommend the trip, especially if it is a special occasion.
