10 ESSENTIAL TIPS FOR TRAVELING TO THE FRENCH RIVIERA

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With this list of tips for traveling to the Côte d'Azur We want to help you organize and plan your trip to this area of France located in the southeast area, also known as the French Riviera and famous for hosting such special places as Monte Carlo, St. Tropez or Cannes, famous for its film festival and the Principality of Monaco.
Although the Côte d'Azur is a place that is often discarded by the topic of excessively expensive place and chic, we have to say that although it is not especially economical, it is possible to find places for a tighter budget and, above all, cities behind that most famous face, hide really charming places.

Based on our trip to the Côte d'Azur we leave you what we believe are the 10 essential tips for traveling to the French Riviera. We start!

1. What is the best time?

Although logically you can make a trip to the Côte d'Azur at any time of the year, unlike other places, if you want to enjoy this area of France to the fullest, we recommend you to make the trip during the middle or high season, moments in which the cities are shown in full splendor and the weather is usually much more pleasant .

High season (July and August): these are the most demanded months by travelers from all over the world who come to the Côte d'Azur to enjoy cities like St. Tropez or Cannes and some of its most famous beaches.
Mid season (from April to June and September and October): these months maintain good temperatures and good weather but are much less crowded and also, the prices of accommodation is much lower than in high season.
Low season (from November to March): Although it is not a bad time to travel to the Côte d'Azur, especially for the low prices, these months usually have a more unstable time, so they would be the least recommended months to make a trip to the Côte d'Azur in addition to many establishments close.

Remember that if you are traveling in high season it is highly recommended to book well in advance both flights and accommodation and car rental, to avoid the high prices of this time of year.

2. Entry requirements

If you are a Spanish citizen or of the European Union (EU) you can enter the Côte d'Azur (France) only with your ID or passport, without the need for any procedure. If you have another nationality, it is advisable to review the regulations and requirements for entry into the Embassy.
In addition to these documents it is highly recommended to travel to the Côte d'Azur, to have the European Health Card, with which you can receive medical attention if necessary. As an extra and if you want to receive care in the best medical centers and also have a repatriation included, for example, we advise you to take out the best travel insurance for Europe.

We always travel insured with Mondo, with whom we carry a totally adequate insurance to the needs that we will have on the trip. Hiring your insurance here with Mondo, just for being a Street Travelers reader, you have a 5% discount.

Entry requirements to Monaco

Although it is not from the Côte d'Azur, we know that most travelers when they travel to the Côte d'Azur, make a visit to Monaco. Keep in mind that despite not being a member of the European Union, if you are a Spanish or EU citizen, you can enter the Principality of Monaco only with your ID or passport although it is very important to know that in this case, the European Health Card does not It is valid, so if you need medical assistance, you will have to pay for it or, as recommended, take out the best travel insurance.

3. Security

Traveling to the Côte d'Azur is totally safe. Despite this and as in any destination, it is highly recommended to take certain precautions that fall within common sense such as not leaving valuables in sight in the car, avoiding places you do not know at night or leaving unattended belongings in places Touristic and very crowded.
In large cities, if you are going out at night and do not know the area, a good option is to ask the hotel if it is convenient to avoid some areas.

In addition to this, another recommendation is to always make a copy of your important documentation such as ID, passport or insurance policy, in the cloud so that in case of loss or theft, it is much easier to perform any type of procedure.

Monaco, one of the essentials when traveling to the Côte d'Azur

4. How to start the trip to the Côte d'Azur?

The first and most important thing when traveling to the Cote d'Azur is to decide if you want to get there by flight or by car, directly from Spain. If you opt for the first option you can fly to Nice or Marseille, for example, with direct flight depending on the origin. You can see all the options, with prices and even make the reservation from this flight search engine.
If you opt for this, it is best to rent a car on the Côte d'Azur to travel all the most important points with total freedom of timetables and movements.

Once you have these points solved and especially if you are traveling in high season, it is highly recommended to book the accommodation in advance, to have more options and find more adjusted prices. For this we recommend using this hotel search on the Cote d'Azur.

And last but not least, if you want to make an excursion on the Côte d'Azur, it is also important to review them and reserve them in time, so as not to risk running out of seats. You can find all the tours and excursions on the Côte d'Azur here.

Nice

5. Route along the Côte d'Azur

Although logically a route along the Côte d'Azur can include dozens of places, after the experience, we recommend you have at least 5-7 days to get to know its most famous cities and also, in case of going by car, make some escape by the surroundings.
Our proposal is to start the trip in Marseille, in case of flying to Nice it would be to make this route backwards, to dedicate a day to get to know the city, where you can do this interesting Free tour around Marseille Free! or take the Marseille Tourist Bus and so, do not worry about transfers.

After this stop, we recommend you go to Saint-Tropez, one of the most glamorous locations on the Côte d'Azur, which is also included in the best routes by car through France.
Although you can visit it in a morning or an afternoon, if you have time, we recommend you to spend a full day to enjoy long walks along its coast and streets full of shops in which if you want, you could leave your salary for a year.

The next stop will be Cannes, another of the places to see in France and another of the essential cities if you are going to travel to the Côte d'Azur, to which you can also dedicate a day, to visit Le Suquet, the old quarter of the city where you can not miss the Museo de la Castre, tour the Old Port and the Forville Market and then walk through La Croisette, one of the most famous places in the city, where luxury is felt in each corner and then enter Meynadier Street, the main artery of the city, where you can take advantage of shopping or eating.
If you do not want to go by car or prefer to know the city at the hands of a guide in Spanish, it is highly recommended to book this Excursion to Cannes, Antibes and Saint-Paul-de-Vence

The next day will take you to Nice, one of our favorite cities in this area of France, where we recommend you follow this list of places to see in Nice and if you want to know the city much better, at the hands of a guide in Spanish, book this Free tour of Nice Free! or take the Nice tourist bus so you don't have to worry about transportation.

The last stop of this trip to the Côte d'Azur will be the Principality of Monaco, where you can spend a full day visiting the Prince's Palace, to hopefully see the changing of the guard and from where you will have fantastic views of the city, the Cathedral of Monaco where is the Pantheon of the princes of Monaco and where is the tomb of the famous Grace Kelly.
Other places we recommend you visit is the Palace of Justice of Monaco and the Monte Carlo Casino, where we are safe, you will continue to feel the glamor of the Côte d'Azur.

If your route when traveling to the Côte d'Azur is part of a larger trip through the country, we recommend you read the post about the 10 tips for traveling to France.

Provence

If your trip is by car from Spain or you have more days and you want to make a circular route, you can make some visits to some localities of Provence, which can be perfect as stops before arriving at the Côte d'Azur or as visits on the way back to Spain.
Among the most prominent places are Avignon, Bonnieux, Gordies, Les Baux de Provence and Aix en Provence, one of our favorites, which will allow you to enjoy a unique route, especially if your trip coincides with the time of flowering of the colorful and spectacular lavender fields.
If you do not want to worry about transport and want to know all these incredible places with a guide in Spanish, it is highly recommended to book this Excursion through the villages of Provence.

Provence

6. Nice

Located a few kilometers from Monaco and Italy, Nice is one of the most demanded cities by travelers from all over the world who come here looking for its beaches, its Mediterranean climate as well as its charming historic center and its glamorous atmosphere, which make it, a unique place
Our recommendation is that you dedicate a full day to know its most tourist places and also spend the night to enjoy the city at sunset and a dinner by the sea, when we are sure, you will not forget.
The day can start by visiting the Vielle Ville or Old Town, where you can get lost in a network of narrow streets in which the historical and local buildings of a lifetime seem to compete with the terraces full of travelers. Here you can not miss the Lascaris Palace and Matisse Museum, two of the most spectacular places in Nice and the Marché aux Fleurs, located in the heart of the neighborhood, which is one of the most charming places in the city. In addition to these, it is highly recommended to make a stop in the Cathedral of Santa Reparata and in the Church of St-Jacques, an example of baroque architecture, which is a real wonder and the Palace Square, Rossetti, Massena and Garibaldi, All of them symbols of the city.

Flower market

The next stop will be Promenade des Anglais, the main avenue of the city, 7 kilometers, that borders the beach of the Bay of Angels and where if your visit is in summer, you can take the opportunity to take a bath and relax in one of the sun loungers and then approach you to the Lympia Port, built in the 18th century, which is one of the oldest on the Côte d'Azur.
Following the Paseo de los Ingleses, you will reach the Castle Hill, the best viewpoint of the city, from where you can enjoy unique views, where you can

After this last stop and moving away a little from the most central area, we recommend you go to the Cathedral of St. Nicholas, another of the 10 essential places to see in Nice, which is the largest Russian Orthodox cathedral outside of Russia, and another of the places you can not miss in the city, which will be the icing and last stop of this route through the city.

Remember that if you want to get to know the city better, at the hands of a guide in Spanish, it is highly recommended to book this Free tour of Nice Free !.

7. Monaco

Another of the places you cannot miss when traveling to the Côte d'Azur is the visit to Monaco, a sovereign country, considered the second smallest in the world behind the Vatican, which is organized in ten districts and is located in the area from the French Riviera and is famous, among many other things, for the famous Formula 1 Grand Prix.
Like Nice and the rest of the cities, whenever you can we recommend you dedicate a full day to get to know it, although if you don't have that time, with half a day you could know its most important and tourist places.
Our recommendation is that you start the visit to the 19th-century Monaco Cathedral and free access, where you can see in addition to its interior, the pantheon of the princes of Monaco, among which is the tomb of the famous Grace Kelly, actress who After marrying Prince Rainier of Monaco, he became the first plebeian princess.
The next stop will be the Palace of Justice of Monaco, located next to the Cathedral, from 1924 that was built with marine tufa, in which if you look, you can see innumerable shells of mollusks, as happens in the walls of the city, made with the same tufa.
The next point of the route will be the Prince's Palace, where at 11: 55h each day you can see the famous changing of the guard and from where you have incredible views of the city.
From here and after lunch, we recommend you approach the famous Oceanographic, if only to see it from outside, since it is a visit that although we did at the time, due to our current position supporting Responsible Tourism, we believe it is not appropriate .

Oceanographic Museum

Already in the afternoon, our proposal is to go to the famous Monte Carlo Casino, another of the best known places in the city, both for what it means and for its beautiful building, where if you do not want to enter, you can sit in one of the terraces of the surroundings to see how customers arrive in their luxury cars and enter the casino in search of fortune.
In addition to being in the area for a while, walking and enjoying luxury, do not forget that this is where the famous Formula 1 prize in Monaco passes and if you come by car, you can always go through some of its sections.
If you want to know more about the city, with a guide in Spanish, it is highly recommended to book this Excursion to Monaco and Eze or this Excursion along the Côte d'Azur.

8. Excursions on the French Riviera for cruises

There are few travelers arriving in this area of France as a cruise stop. It is for them that we wanted to dedicate this section in the post about tips for traveling to the Côte d'Azur, since we know that in many occasions the excursions offered by the cruises are excessively expensive and many look for more adjusted price options.
We leave you what we believe, are the best options of excursions on the French Riviera for cruises:

Monaco Cathedral

9. Gastronomy in the French Riviera

Although we know that it is impossible to summarize all the French Riviera cuisine in just a few lines, we want to leave you a selection of dishes that we believe, you must try so that your experience at travel to the Côte d'Azur Be as complete as possible.

Bouillabaisse: fish soup to which potatoes and spices are added and usually served with croutons and rouille.
Soupe au pistou: pasta soup, vegetables, garlic, basil and olive oil.
Salade niçoise: typical Nice salad, which is the traditional salad to which anchovies are added.
Ratatouille: typical dish in which pepper, zucchini, eggplant and other vegetables are cooked and can be served hot or cold.
Anchoïade: species of anchovy pate with capers and garlic. Delicious!
Tapenade: another typical pate in which olives are mixed with oil and a little garlic and served with toast.
Tropézienne cake: brioche of pastry cream typical of Saint Tropez.

tapenade

10. More tips for traveling to the French Riviera

Other of the best tips for traveling to the Cote d'Azur They are:

In France the official language is French, but in all the tourist sites of the Côte d'Azur, they speak English perfectly.
If you are going to make your route by car, it is interesting to carry an application like Maps.me on your mobile, which serves as an offline or online GPS.
Although the euro is used in France, remember that in order not to pay commissions and always have the current exchange we recommend using the N26 card to pay and the Bnext and Revolut cards to get money at the ATMs. They are the ones we use, They are free and will save you a lot. You can find more information in this article about the best cards to travel without commissions.
In the French Riviera the voltage is 230V, the frequency 50Hz and the plugs are of type E.

Do you want to organize this trip to the Côte d'Azur for free?
Get it here:
The best offers of Flights to France here
The best hotels at the best prices on the Cote d'Azur here
Get € 35 for your reservation with AirBnb here
Book the best tours and excursions in the French Riviera in Spanish here
10 must-see places in Nice
10 essential tips for traveling to France
Rent your car in France at the best price here
Book your travel insurance with a 5% discount here