Autumn in Nice: enjoy the city on the French Riviera in 48 hours

CC author Jörg Bertram shows how beautiful the city on the Côte d'Azur is in the golden fall

"When I realized that I would now see this light every day, I could hardly believe my happiness," Henri Matisse once wrote about his adopted home. Visitors to Nice in the fall can look forward not only to the light, but also to mild temperatures and the magic of a metropolis that has slowed down after the summer.

Day 1

08:30 Croissants and coffee at the Marché aux Fleurs are a must. Early in the morning, you can meet locals here all year round who start their day with a dip in the sea.

09:00 At the Tour Bellanda - not far from the flower market and the iconic #ILOVENICE sign - a public elevator leads up to the Colline du Château with a 360° dream view. On the east side of the château park, you can return to the old town via the Montée Eberlé.
the old town.

10:00 Once on Rue Catherine Ségurance with its pretty cafés, galleries and antique stores, the Village Ségurance, an old-fashioned shopping arcade with 36 antique stores offering everything from kitsch to art, is hidden at number 28.
everything from kitsch to art.

11:00 You should allow 40 minutes for the almost 20 km from the center to the Fondation Maeght in Saint-Paul-de-Vence. The traffic jam is worth it, as the private museum and sculpture garden is a magical place with around 10,000 works of art and unique architecture. www.fondation-maeght.com

13:30 The Maeght Museum restaurant Sous les Pins is run by Michelin-starred chef Samuel Victori (Les Agitateurs, Nice). Dining at the legendary Colombe d' Or is just as artistic. Artists such as Picasso, Miró and Chagall once paid for their meals here with paintings. www.lesagitateurs.com,www.la-colombe-dor.com

16:00 Back in the city, the thermal water-fed Roman baths at the Hôtel du Couvent are the perfect place to relax. Non-hotel guests must book a spa treatment in advance to visit and enjoy the antique-style fountain of youth and the pool in the garden. www.hotelducouvent.com

18:30 Nice without a visit to the Trésors Publics? "Inimaginable pour moi!" The concept store in the old town offers finely curated items from
traditional French businesses and manufacturers.
www.tresorspublics.com

20:00 Dinner above the rooftops of Nice - more precisely, on the rooftop of Anantara Plaza. With a view of the sea, you can enjoy crossover cuisine by gastro-zampano Olivier da Costa at Seen by Olivier. Don't miss: black miso cod and lamb chops à la Milanese!
www.anantara-hotels.com

22:00 Really practical: Olivier da Costa has an elegant lounge bar on the second part of the huge Anantara roof terrace - perfect for a nightcap under the stars.

Tag 2

10:00 Flowers, herbs and a pinch of sea: if you want to take the scent of the Côte d'Azur home with you - or have always dreamed of your own eau de toilette - take a perfume workshop at Molinard. More the active type? Cycling is a popular sport in France! If you want to try it out, hire a top bike at the Café du Cycliste near Port Lympia. Ambitious cyclists can venture over the Basse Corniche to Monaco equipped in this way. Less sporty cyclists can cycle along the Promenade des Anglais towards Cannes instead. www.molinard.com,www.cafeducycliste.com

13:00 The Gina restaurant on Place Masséna is a real feel-good restaurant with wonderfully uncomplicated cuisine and a good rosé. My favorites: Fritto Misto with wasabi mayonnaise and the delicious lobster spaghetti. www.restaurantgina.com

14:30 Instead of dessert in the restaurant, there are sweets at Maison Auer near the opera. The chocolates and jelly fruits from this traditional chocolaterie are small works of art, and the ambience is also synonymous with indulgence. www.maison-auer.com

15:30 A visit to the Villa Ephrussi de Rothschild in Saint-Jean-Cap-Ferrat takes you back to the heyday of winter tourism on the Côte d'Azur. The residence of the eccentric Beatrice Ephrussi de Rothschild, the water features and the nine themed gardens are breathtaking. If you want to toast to so much decadence, you can do so in the villa's elegant tea room. www.villa-ephrussi.com

20:00 The South of France meets South Africa at Restaurant Jan in the old town. The result: a delicious melange served by Michelin-starred chef Jan Hendrik van der Westhuizen in an opulent setting and accompanied by fine wines. www.janonline.com

22:30 There are as many small wine bars in Nice as there are pebbles on the beach. My favorite is called Le Béthel, located in the romantic courtyard of the Église Saint-Jacques-le-Majeur and run by the local parish. There are no fixed prices. Everyone pays what they want or can afford. That too is the Côte d'Azur! (be sure to check the opening
times in advance: www.bethel-riviera.co)

Hotel recommendations

1st Negresco
The delicate facelifts of the last few years suit the grande dame of luxury hotels on the Côte d'Azur well. The new 750 m2 spa and the refreshed Michelin-starred restaurant Le Chantecler are particularly impressive. The Le 1913 bar refers to the opening year of the white building with the pink dome and looks wonderfully out of time.
The newly renovated rooms and suites do not want to hide the glamor of times long past.
www.negresco.com





2nd Anantara Plaza Nice
The Anantara Plaza presents itself as a relaxed grand hotel of the new generation in the immediate vicinity of the city's luxury boutiques. Nice: the majority of the 151 rooms and suites have mini balconies with a view over the palm trees in the Jardin Albert 1er to the sea. The large roof terrace with its trendy restaurant and elegant lounge bar offers even better views. As in all Anantara hotels, the spa offer is characterized by its variety of treatments at the highest level.
www.anantara.com





3rd Hôtel du Couvent
Housed in a former 17th-century nunnery, the Hôtel du Couvent makes you feel close to heaven - which is certainly also due to its hilltop location above the old town. If you don't want to stroll through the 2.5-hectare garden or take a dip in the catacomb bath, you can also book bread baking courses or yoga classes. The elegant, purist ambience is just as fitting for this extraordinary retreat as the farm-to-table concept in the two restaurants, where guests sit at long communal tables or in the vegetable garden.
www.hotelducouvent.com





4th Maison Albar - Le Victoria
Opened last year, the Maison Albar is the second 5* hotel in the city's so-called "Golden Square" alongside the Anantara. The 132 rooms and suites are inspired by the Art Deco style. Glenn Viel, a three-star chef, is responsible for the culinary concept in the Taulissa roof terrace restaurant. Another treat: the ORIA spa with indoor pool. The best place to watch the sunset: the rooftop bar in Yves Klein blue. www.maison-albar-hotels.com