Landmarks in Nice

Hotel Negresco

1912 · Édouard Niermans

A large palace hotel occupying a stretch of seafront promenade at the edge of a wide bay, named after the man who had it built rather than after any place.

The Hotel Negresco is a luxury hotel on the Promenade des Anglais, overlooking the Baie des Anges. It was built for the hotelier Henri Negresco, who opened it in 1912 and gave it his name. The hotel houses the restaurant Le Chantecler and is protected as a classified historical monument. It was designed by the architect Édouard Niermans, who died in 1928.

Photo: Jordiferrer (CC BY-SA 4.0)

Nice Cathedral

1650–1685 · Jean-André Guiberto

Built in the Baroque style, unlike the plainer parish churches around it, and dedicated to the Assumption of the Virgin Mary and Saint Reparata.

Nice Cathedral is the seat of the Diocese of Nice, dedicated to the Assumption of the Virgin Mary and Saint Reparata. Construction of the main body began in 1650 under the architect Jean-André Guiberto and finished in 1685; the building was consecrated in 1699. It is built in the Baroque style and ranks as a minor basilica. It has been classified as a national historical monument since 1906.

• Decorative work and new structures continued to be added until 1949, almost three centuries after construction began in 1650.

Photo: Myrabella (CC BY-SA 3.0)

St. Nicholas Orthodox Cathedral

1912

Built in the Russian Revival style, it is the largest Eastern Orthodox cathedral in Western Europe, a scale that sets it apart from the smaller parish churches nearby.

The St Nicholas Orthodox Cathedral is an Eastern Orthodox cathedral built in the Russian Revival style, the largest of its kind in Western Europe. It opened in 1912 with the support of Russia's Tsar Nicholas II. From 1931 its parish belonged to a Paris-based exarchate under the Church of Constantinople, until a 2011 ruling by France's highest court placed the building's ownership with the Russian state and its congregation under the Moscow Patriarchate.

• The cathedral is legally the property of the Russian Federation despite standing in France, following a 2011 ruling by France's highest court.

Photo: Montgomery06 (CC BY-SA 3.0)

Basilica of Notre-Dame de Nice

1864–1868 · Charles Lenormand

Two square towers roughly sixty-five metres high frame the east front, above a large rose window depicting scenes from the Assumption of Mary; built in the Gothic Revival style and modelled on Angers Cathedral.

The Basilica of Notre-Dame de Nice is a Roman Catholic basilica on Avenue Jean Médecin, built between 1864 and 1868 to designs by the architect Charles Lenormand. It is the largest church in the city, though not its cathedral. Two square towers about sixty-five metres high rise above the east front, over a rose window depicting the Assumption of Mary. On 29 October 2020, three people were killed inside the church in a terrorist attack.

• The Gothic style was chosen partly to assert French architectural character after the county of Nice passed from the Kingdom of Sardinia to France.
• The design was modelled on Angers Cathedral, hundreds of kilometres away in western France.

Photo: Romain Sartorio (CC BY 3.0)

Nice Observatory

1887 · Charles Garnier

Sits on a hilltop above the city, its main dome designed by Gustave Eiffel; it once housed the Grand Lunette, the largest refracting telescope in the world when it debuted in 1886.

The Nice Observatory is an astronomical observatory on the summit of Mount Gros, founded in 1879 by the banker Raphaël Bischoffsheim. Charles Garnier was the architect, and Gustave Eiffel designed the main dome. In 1886 it installed the Grand Lunette, then the largest refracting telescope in the world. The site is listed as a classified historical monument and among France's protected twentieth-century heritage.

• The observatory's main dome was designed by Gustave Eiffel, though Charles Garnier was the architect for the rest of the building.
• In 1886 it installed the largest refracting telescope in the world, the Grand Lunette.

Photo: ClaireL28 (CC BY-SA 3.0)

Villa Ephrussi de Rothschild

A rose-tinted seaside villa on Cap Ferrat, built between 1907 and 1912 for Baroness Béatrice de Rothschild by architect Aaron Messiah. She filled it with Old Master paintings, antique furniture, and rare porcelain, and its gardens are classified among the Remarkable Gardens of France.

Palais Lascaris

A seventeenth-century aristocratic building in the old town of Nice, now a musical instrument museum. Its collection of more than 500 instruments is France's second largest, after the Musée de la Musique de la Philharmonie in Paris.

Villa Kerylos

A house in Ancient Greek Revival style, built in the early 1900s at Beaulieu-sur-Mer by architect Emmanuel Pontremoli. Listed as a monument historique since 1966, it takes its name from the Greek word for kingfisher, a bird of good omen.

Palais de la Méditerranée

A nine-floor luxury casino hotel on the Promenade des Anglais, built in 1929 by architects Charles and Marcel Dalmas. Two of its facades were classified as historical monuments shortly before the building was rebuilt and modernized in 1990.

Monument to the Dead of Rauba-Capeu

A monument located at the quay of Rauba-Capeù along Nice's seaside road. The quay's name, meaning "steal a cap" in the local Niçois dialect, refers to winds there once said to be strong enough to blow off hats.

Opéra de Nice

The principal opera venue in Nice, home to the Ballet Nice Méditerranée and the Nice Philharmonic Orchestra. It stages three types of performances: operas, ballets, and classical music concerts.

Sainte Jeanne d'Arc Church

A Roman Catholic parish church in Nice dedicated to Joan of Arc, known for its original and locally divisive architecture. Its white color has earned it the nickname "the Meringue."

Abbey of Saint-Pons de Nice

One of the oldest monasteries on the French Riviera, originally built between 774 and 800 for the Benedictines and destroyed by Saracens in 890. The church was rebuilt in Baroque style in 1724 and classified a historical monument of national importance in 1913.

Allianz Riviera

A multi-use stadium in Nice with a capacity of 36,178, built between 2011 and 2013. Home ground of OGC Nice, it replaced the Stade Municipal du Ray and was revived as part of France's bid to host UEFA Euro 2016.

Asian Art Museum

A museum dedicated to Asian arts and cultures, designed by Japanese architect Kenzo Tange and inaugurated on 16 October 1998. Sited above an artificial lake next to Parc Phœnix, the marble-clad building appears to float on the water.

Nice Synagogue

An Orthodox synagogue on rue Gustave Deloye, designed by Paul Martin and built in 1885, then dedicated the following year. It was listed as a monument historique in 2004, and its congregation worships in the Ashkenazi rite.

Grand-Hôtel du Cap-Ferrat

A five-star luxury resort hotel at the tip of the Cap-Ferrat peninsula, now operated as a Four Seasons property. It received France's Palace distinction in 2011 and the Michelin Guide's 3 Key rating in 2024.

Chevre d'or

A Relais & Châteaux hotel in the medieval village of Èze, housed in a castle rebuilt in the 1920s. Its restaurant holds two Michelin stars.

Church of Gesù

A Baroque Roman Catholic church on Rue Droite in the old town of Nice, also known as Saint-Jacques-le-Majeur. It became a parish in 1802 under the patronage of Jacques le Majeur.

La Voile d'Or

A seasonal hotel in Saint-Jean-Cap-Ferrat, open from May to October, overlooking the nearby port. It has become known over the years for its many celebrity guests.

Musée Marc Chagall

A French national museum dedicated to the work of painter Marc Chagall, focused especially on his religiously inspired works. Also known as the Chagall Biblical Message museum, it is located in Nice.

Jardin botanique de Nice

A 3.5-hectare municipal botanical garden on the avenue de la Corniche Fleurie in Nice. It is open to the public every day, free of charge.

Musée Matisse

A municipal museum devoted to painter Henri Matisse, opened in 1963 in the Villa des Arènes, a seventeenth-century building in the Cimiez neighbourhood. It holds one of the world's largest collections of his work, spanning his full career.

Musée d'art moderne et d'art contemporain

A museum dedicated to modern and contemporary art, known as MAMAC. It opened in Nice on 21 June 1990.

Musée des Beaux-Arts de Nice

A fine arts museum housed in a private mansion built in 1878 for Russian Princess Elizaveta Vasilievna Kochubey. It opened as the Palais des Arts Jules Chéret on 7 January 1928, named for the artist who spent his final years in Nice.