Top choice in Côte d'Azur
Named for the gorgeous 500-year-old ash tree out the front, this arty guesthouse is a labour of love for avid art collectors Thierry and Guy. Yes, that Niki de Saint Phalle is an original. And yes, the César too. It’s an essential sleepover for true art-lovers, who will thoroughly appreciate the superb, sprawling rooms that boldly mix classic and contemporary styles.
The owners are a mine of information on the local art scene.
8.45 MILES
Getting lost among the dark, narrow, winding alleyways of Nice’s old town is a highlight. The layout has barely changed since the 1700s, and it’s now…
7.64 MILES
The most famous stretch of seafront in Nice – if not France – is this vast paved promenade, which gets its name from the English expat patrons who paid…
17.75 MILES
The only building French architect Le Corbusier (1887–1965) ever built for himself is this rather simple – but very clever – beach hut on Cap Martin…
15.87 MILES
Peeping inside Monte Carlo’s legendary marble-and-gold casino is a Monaco essential. The building, open to visitors every morning, including the exclusive…
Musée Océanographique de Monaco
15.68 MILES
Stuck dramatically to the edge of a cliff since 1910, the world-renowned Musée Océanographique de Monaco, founded by Prince Albert I (1848–1922), is a…
25.69 MILES
This stunning network of scarlet gorges looks for all the world like it's been collected from Arizona and plonked down in Haute-Provence. Carved out over…
0.3 MILES
An ailing Henri Matisse moved to Vence in 1943 to be cared for by his former nurse and model, Monique Bourgeois, who'd since become a Dominican nun. She…
8.67 MILES
For the best views over Nice’s red-tiled rooftops, climb the winding staircases up to this wooded outcrop on the eastern edge of the old town. It’s been…
0.02 MILES
With its wonderful 20th-century art exhibitions, this daring art museum inside the imposing Château de Villeneuve offers a nice contrast to Vence’s…
2. Cathédrale Notre-Dame de la Nativité
0.07 MILES
Vence's Romanesque cathedral was built in the 11th century on the site of an old Roman temple. It contains Chagall’s mosaic of Moses (1979), appropriately…
0.3 MILES
An ailing Henri Matisse moved to Vence in 1943 to be cared for by his former nurse and model, Monique Bourgeois, who'd since become a Dominican nun. She…
1.56 MILES
St-Paul's renowned art museum features works by a who's who of 20th-century artists – including many who found inspiration along the Côte d’Azur. From…
2.88 MILES
To find out more about Tourrettes' famous violet and see the fields where it is cultivated, head to the Bastide aux Violettes, 10 minutes' walk from the…
4.43 MILES
Immersed in greenery 6km southeast of St-Paul-de-Vence, Le Domaine des Collettes in Cagnes-sur-Mer was home and studio to an arthritis-crippled Renoir …
7. Musée Escoffier de l’Art Culinaire
4.52 MILES
Filling three floors of the childhood home of Auguste Escoffier (1846–1935), this charming museum celebrates the life of France's most legendary chef…
4.89 MILES
High in the hills above Tourrettes-sur-Loup, this organic goats-cheese producer welcomes visitors. To see its 70 goats being milked, arrive sharp at 8am…