TOP French Riviera Tours: Explore Southern France with a licensed Tour Guide
The Tour Guides of France have created for you a selection of five must-see cities of the French Riviera. After visiting them, you will have a better knowledge of this cosmopolitan and contrasting territory, its superficiality and culture, which lies between the sea and the mountains.
TOP 5 FRENCH RIVIERA TOURS
1.Antibes
The City of Antipolis was founded by the Greeks and until today, it has known various fortunes. It was fortified at the time of Henri IV, when it was known as Vauban. After 1860 with the arrival of the railway, it lost its primary function as a Military Centre and became a seaside resort.
To learn all about this city, which saw the arrival of the first jazzmen in Juan les Pins, and renowned artists like Pablo Picasso or Marc Chagall, you can walk in the company of our guide who will give you a full commentary on the City of Antibes. Book your tour of Antibes !
2. Cannes
Cannes is a city whose image is spontaneously associated with the Croisette, which, in the month of May, is crowded with people when the various Film, Fashion and News Festivals are held which attracts film stars, great couturiers and journalists from all over the world. Far from the glittering image created by this influx, there is another Cannes which is much more authentic, with its old centre, the Suquet, and its market in Forville, as well as all the riverside islands which shelter military remains and monastic communities. If you would like to know more about the city and its site? Follow your guide ! Book your tour of Cannes.
3. Nice
Nice is the fifth largest city in France by population. During its history, it has seen the settlement of various populations, the Celto-Ligurians, the Greeks, the Romans, and also the Piedmontese and the French. Having become French in 1860, Nice quickly established itself as a leading seaside resort in the Mediterranean that attracted many artists, seduced by its landscapes, such as Henri Matisse, Pablo Picasso or Marc Chagall. UNESCO was not mistaken in classifying the city as a World Heritage Site, which allows Nice to join the very closed club of large provincial cities with a remarkable heritage, such as Lyon, Bordeaux, Arles and Avignon.
4. Grasse
Grasse is a city whose horticultural production fuels the manufacture of perfumes. It is a must for all lovers of floral essences. In the Town Centre Visitors will find the International Museum of Perfumery and the whole town is situated on a remarkably hilly site with its alleys and market-place which have retained all their charm of yesteryear, just like their other buildings with their colourful facades which allow for rapid movement in between all parts of the town.
To find out more about Grasse, follow your guide-lecturer on a walk that includes a stop at the Fragonard Perfumery.
5. Saint Paul de Vence
Along with Gordes, the Castellet, Les Baux de Provence and Grimaud, Saint Paul de Vence is one of the most beautiful, perched villages in the Southern Region. Built on a rocky outcrop, Saint Paul has undergone various evolutions. The village was first fortified by Francis I, in the struggle between him and Charles V. Then, the village developed around the production of citrus fruits whose bark feeds the perfumeries of Grasse, and the production of white wine. Finally, the twentieth century was marked by the influx of many artists attracted by the beauty of the landscapes. Artists like Marc Chagall. The Maeght Foundation, which was France’s first Art Foundation, is a must for all lovers of contemporary art.
