Cimiez, Nice: the Matisse museum, the Roman arena and baths, the monastery gardens and Matisse's grave on one hill

💡 The Short Version: Cimiez is one hill with five stops: the Matisse museum (€10), the Archaeology museum (€5) beside the Roman baths and amphitheatre, the free olive grove, the monastery and its rose garden, and the cemetery where Matisse is buried. Matisse and Archaeology are closed on Tuesday; the grove is open every day from 8:30, to 18:00 in winter and 20:00 in summer. Bus 5, 16, 18, 33 or 40 stops at Arènes / Musée Matisse. The 4-day Museums Pass (€15) covers both museums; the Chagall museum is separate. Allow half a day. Prices are in euros. 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).

What costs what

Prices are the operators’ own. The grove and the monastery gardens are free; the two museums are the paid parts.

The Archaeology museum is closed on 1 January, Easter Sunday, 1 May and 25 December. Under-18s and students go free at both museums with proof. The Chagall museum is not on the hill’s grid: it is on bus 5, with its own ticket and a lunch closure from 13:00 to 14:30 in November and December 2026.

Old olive trees in the Jardin des Arènes. Photo: mwanasimba, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 2.0.

What to see

Cimiez was the Roman city of Cemenelum, the capital of the province of Alpes Maritimae. The winter visitors of the Belle Époque built villas and palace hotels on the hill, among them the Regina, now converted into residences. The hill is inside the World Heritage property inscribed in 2021.

1. The Matisse museum. A Genoese-style villa of 1695 in the olive grove, with the studio objects, the cut-outs and the Matisse and Alex Katz exhibition to 18 January 2027. The Matisse page has the rules, including the ban on backpacks. Alexander Calder’s Stabile-mobile stands on the forecourt.
2. The Archaeology museum and the Roman site. The museum, opened in 1989, shows finds from the baths, the houses and the amphitheatre. The site beside it has three complete bath complexes, streets, a sewer system, a house and shops, mostly of the 3rd century. The northern baths keep a cold room, the frigidarium, that stands over 10 metres high.
3. The amphitheatre. Built between AD 70 and 80 and measuring 68 by 57 metres, it is one of the smallest in Gaul. In 258 Pontius, later Saint Pons, was martyred there.
4. The olive grove. The Jardin des Arènes has hundreds of century-old olive trees, lawns that anyone can use, playgrounds, petanque courts, toilets and a refreshment stand. Picnics are allowed. The Kiosque des Arènes serves Cuisine Niçoise.
5. The monastery, the rose garden and the cemetery. The Franciscan monastery was redesigned in the 19th century with Gothic Revival façades. Inside the church are three works by the Nice painter Louis Bréa, including a carved altarpiece of 1512 showing the Crucifixion. The Italian garden of 9,550 square metres has a central well and pergolas covered in climbing roses, with citrus trees, and a terrace with a view over the Paillon valley to the sea. Matisse, Raoul Dufy and Roger Martin du Gard are buried in the cemetery beside it.

The Roman amphitheatre at Cimiez. Photo: Édouard Hue, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 3.0.

The order that works: start at the Matisse museum at 10:00, walk through the grove to the Archaeology museum and the Roman site, then finish in the monastery gardens. Allow half a day with both museums. What to skip: the Franciscan museum unless you arrive before noon on a weekday. On a Tuesday, come for the grove, the gardens and the cemetery only.

The garden of the Franciscan monastery at Cimiez. Photo: Édouard Hue, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 3.0.

Getting there and practical information

• By bus: lines 5, 16, 18, 33 and 40 stop at Arènes / Musée Matisse, and lines 5, 18 and 33 serve the Archaeology museum. The Chagall museum is on bus 5. Lime and Pony bikes can be rented. Nice public transport has the fares.
• By car: parking is on avenue du Monastère and place du Monastère.
• Where to enter: the museum garden has four pedestrian entrances: avenue des Arènes de Cimiez, boulevard de Cimiez, avenue du Monastère and place du Monastère.
• Eating: the Kiosque des Arènes in the grove, and the refreshment stand in the park.
• Access: the museum and part of the Roman site are accessible to people with disabilities. The Franciscan museum is not.
• The one thing that ruins a visit: coming on a Tuesday for the museums, or carrying a suitcase or backpack to the Matisse museum.

The Cimiez walk puts the Chagall museum, the monastery, the Matisse museum and the Roman baths in walking order, with the days each is open. What to book in Nice has the hours of every sight. Best museums in Nice puts the Matisse and Archaeology museums beside the others, and the Museums Pass runs the sums. Things to do in Nice lists the rest, and free things to do in Nice includes the grove and the gardens. Nice with kids covers the playgrounds. For a bed, see where to stay in Nice, and 3 days in Nice puts Cimiez on a Wednesday to Friday.