3 days in Nice: an itinerary built round the Tuesday closures, the Chagall lunch break and the Sunday-morning cathedral

💡 The Short Version: Day 1, Wednesday: Castle Hill (free), the Bellandarium (€5), the Cours Saleya markets, socca for lunch and the Palais Lascaris (€5). Day 2, Thursday: the Chagall museum (€12 while an exhibition runs, shut 13:00 to 14:30 in November and December), then bus 5 to Cimiez for the Matisse museum (€10) and the Roman site. Day 3, Friday: the Russian cathedral (€10), the Villa Masséna (€10) and the Promenade des Anglais. Tuesday shuts Matisse, Chagall and Masséna, and Monday shuts the Chéret, Photography and Natural History museums. The plan runs Wednesday to Friday, which keeps every sight open. Or book a tour: the Old Town and Castle Hill walking tourad is from €26 and the hop-on hop-off busad from €24 (GetYourGuide).

Before you go: what to book

Hours are the winter ones, from 1 November 2026 to the end of March 2027, from the operators.

The paid sights come to €57 a person before transport. The 4-day Museums Pass, €15 and valid for 96 hours, covers the Matisse, Masséna, Archaeology and Lascaris museums, which cost €30 separately, so it saves €15; it does not cover the Chagall museum, the cathedral or the Bellandarium. Is the French Riviera Pass worth it? runs the other sum.

Getting around

The old town and the seafront are walkable. A Lignes d’Azur single is €1.70 and a 1-day pass €7; buy before boarding and validate on every journey. Bus 5 serves both the Chagall and Matisse museums, and tram line 1 links Nice-Ville station and Place Masséna in about 15 minutes. Nice public transport has the fares, and Nice airport to the city has the way in.

Fitting the plan to your dates

The plan runs Wednesday to Friday, which keeps every sight open. If your days differ:

• Monday. The Chéret, Photography and Natural History museums, the fish market and the Bellandarium are shut. Take the Cours Saleya antiques market (7:00 to 18:00), the Palais Lascaris, the Masséna, Matisse and Chagall museums, Castle Hill and the City’s English walk at 10:00, which needs a booking at vah.nice.fr. Swap the Bellandarium for the old town.
• Tuesday. The Matisse, Chagall, Masséna, Lascaris and Archaeology museums are shut. Go to the Chéret museum (€10) and the Photography museum (€5), the markets, Castle Hill, the cathedral and the beach, and keep Cimiez for its olive grove and gardens.
• Saturday. The Russian cathedral is open from 10:00 to 18:00. The Franciscan museum at Cimiez is closed.
• Sunday. The Russian cathedral is closed to visitors until 12:00, and the Bellandarium is shut. The Chagall museum is free on the first Sunday of the month: 1 November and 6 December 2026, and 3 January and 7 February 2027.
• Winter. The Matisse museum and Castle Hill close at 17:00 and 18:00 from 1 November, and the sun sets at about 17:00. The Centre du Patrimoine, which sells Bellandarium tickets, is closed from 2 to 6 November 2026.
• February. The Carnival runs from 9 to 28 February 2027: see Nice Carnival 2027.
• Closed or changed. MAMAC has been closed for renovation since 7 January 2024, and the Terra Amata museum since 15 April 2026. Eleven months of work on the Mercantour bridge near the airport began on 2 October 2026.

Day 1: Castle Hill and the old town, Wednesday

• 8:30, Castle Hill, free, open to 18:00. Climb the Lesage stairs to the belvédère, 92 m above the bay, and walk to the waterfall: Castle Hill. The old town walk puts the day’s stops on one route.
• 10:00, the Bellandarium, €5, in the Tour Bellanda. Allow half an hour, and come down into the old town.
• 11:00, the Cours Saleya and Place Saint-François. The flower, fruit and vegetable stalls run on Tuesday to Sunday mornings, and the fish market closes at 13:00: the Cours Saleya market.
• 12:30, socca for lunch, at Chez Marie-Thé on the Cours Saleya, open to 13:30, at Chez Pipo, open from 11:30 to 14:30, or at Chez Thérésa on rue Droite, open to 15:00: best socca in Nice.
• 14:00, the Palais Lascaris, €5, 15 rue Droite, for an hour. Then Place Rossetti and the Sainte-Réparate cathedral, open from 14:00 to 18:00, and an ice cream at Fenocchio: the old town.
• 17:00, the Promenade at dusk, from Quai Rauba Capeu to the Centenaire monument, where the little train starts: the Promenade des Anglais.
• Evening. Dinner at La Merenda, booked, or at Acchiardo, open from 19:00 to 22:00 on weekdays: where to eat in Nice.

The old pharmacy on the ground floor of the Palais Lascaris. Photo: Miniwark, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 3.0.

Day 2: the Chagall and Matisse museums, Thursday

• 10:00, the Chagall museum, €12 while an exhibition runs. Arrive when it opens and be out by 13:00, because in November and December it shuts until 14:30. The audio guide comes with the ticket: the Chagall museum.
• 13:00, lunch at the Café Chagall in the garden, open without a museum ticket, or at the Kiosque des Arènes in the Cimiez olive grove, which serves Cuisine Niçoise.
• 14:30, the Matisse museum, €10, on bus 5 from the Chagall museum. Leave bags at the hotel, because suitcases and backpacks are not allowed. Allow about an hour: the Matisse museum.
• 15:30, the Archaeology museum and the Roman site, €5 for the museum, whose ticket office shuts at 16:30. The arena, built between AD 70 and 80, is one of the smallest in Gaul.
• 16:30, the olive grove, free and open to 18:00, then the monastery gardens and Matisse’s grave in the cemetery beside them: Cimiez. The Cimiez walk links the stops.
• Evening. Dinner at the Bistrot d’Antoine, closed Sunday and Monday and crowded, so book, or at Chez Davia, open for dinner every day but Monday: where to eat in Nice.

The ruined walls of the Roman baths at Cimiez. Photo: François de Dijon, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0.

Day 3: the cathedral and the seafront, Friday

• 10:00, the Russian Orthodox Cathedral, €10, open to 13:30. Dress appropriately: men may not enter shirtless. Allow about 35 minutes: the Russian cathedral.
• 11:30, the Villa Masséna, €10, which opens at 11:00. The Belle Époque villa on the Promenade shows the art and history of the Riviera, and its garden holds the memorial to the victims of the attack of 14 July 2016: best museums in Nice.
• 13:00, lunch at Chez Pipo, open from 11:30 to 14:30 on Wednesday to Sunday, or a pan bagnat to take to the beach.
• 14:30, the seafront. Walk the Promenade des Anglais past the Negresco, sit on the public stretch of pebbles, which is free, or ride the little train from the foot of the Centenaire monument, €12 for the 50-minute castle circuit: Nice beaches.
• 16:30, the Promenade du Paillon, the park with the reflecting pool and its 128 water jets, open from 7:00 to 21:00: free things to do in Nice.
• Evening. Dinner at Flaveur, open from Tuesday to Saturday, or at JAN, a 20-seat room open for dinner from Tuesday to Saturday. Michelin lists a booking number for both: where to eat in Nice.

The water jets and reflecting pool of the Promenade du Paillon, with the hills behind. Photo: SarahVstk, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 3.0.

Swap a day for a day trip. Monaco is about 22 to 26 minutes by train, Villefranche-sur-Mer about 7 and Èze about 30 on bus 82: day trips from Nice compares them. The Prince’s Palace in Monaco is closed until spring 2027.

With children

Nice with kids sorts the sights by age and price, with the Castle Hill playground, the little train and Parc Phoenix. City museums are free for under-18s with proof of age.

Food on the way

Nice food tours compares the guided tastings, from €69, and a tour fits a Wednesday or Friday morning when the markets are open.

Plan the rest

Where to stay in Nice compares the areas, and the best time to visit Nice has the weather by month. What to book before you go to Nice has the entry rules and the hours of every sight, and things to do in Nice lists each one with its price and its closed day. Nice at Christmas 2026, Nice Carnival 2027 and the Monaco Grand Prix 2027 cover the dates that change a visit.