In this guide
💡 The Short Version: The French Riviera Pass is €30 for 24 hours, €45 for 48 and €65 for 72, and it includes no bus, tram or train. It pays on a day with about €30 of paid sights: Matisse, Chagall and the Russian cathedral are €32 against €30, and a day in Monaco and Èze with the Oceanographic Museum, the Exotic Garden and a Fragonard workshop is €63.50. It loses to the combined ticket at Cap Ferrat (€24) and to the €15 Museums Pass for museums alone. It includes the hop-on bus and the little train. A 24-hour pass started on a Tuesday wastes the Matisse, Chagall and Masséna museums, which are closed. Prices are in euros. Or book a tour: the Old Town and Castle Hill walkad is from €26 and the hop-on hop-off busad from €24 (GetYourGuide).
The pass and its prices
The pass is sold on frenchrivierapass.com by the Nice Côte d’Azur tourist office. It is digital: the e-ticket, a PDF, arrives within an hour of booking, and you show it with a valid ID at each site.
| Pass | Price | Pays back at |
|---|---|---|
| 24 hours | €30 | About €30 of paid sights, three at €10 |
| 48 hours | €45 | About €45 of paid sights |
| 72 hours | €65 | About €65 of paid sights |
The hours run consecutively from first use. The same price applies to adults and children, there is no discount for students or seniors, and groups booked by a company, an association or a university get 10% off. Each site is entered once. The pass is non-nominative, but a name goes on the e-ticket.
What it leaves out: buses, trams and trains. It includes the Nice Le Grand Tour bus for 24 hours and the little train (the hop-on page has both). A Lignes d’Azur ticket can be added when you buy: 1 day €7, 2 days €13 or 7 days €20. The Pass Sud Azur Explore, €35 for 3 days, covers trains, buses and trams across the Alpes-Maritimes and Monaco: Nice public transport has it.
What is on the list
The list prices below are the pass’s own, for an adult. The right-hand column is the operator’s price on the day, which is what the sums use.
| Sight | On the pass list | Operator’s price |
|---|---|---|
| Musée Matisse | €10 | €10 |
| Musée national Marc Chagall | €10 | €12 while an exhibition runs, including Chagall Couture to 18 January 2027 and from 6 February to 23 May 2027; €10 otherwise |
| Musée Masséna, Musée Chéret | €10 each | €10 each |
| Russian Orthodox Cathedral | €10 | €10, as the tourist office prints it |
| Palais Lascaris, Archaeology museum, Naïve Art museum, Photography museum | €5 each | €5 each |
| Bellandarium, Tour Saint-François | €5 each | €5 each |
| Nice Le Grand Tour | €24 | €24 |
| Little train | €12 | €12 |
| Oceanographic Museum, Monaco | €22.50 | €22.50 |
| Villa Ephrussi de Rothschild | €18 | €18 |
| Villa Kérylos, Beaulieu-sur-Mer | €15 | Combined with the Villa Ephrussi at €24 |
| Fondation Maeght | €18 | €18 |
| Exotic Garden, Èze | €8 | €10 |
| Fragonard workshop, Èze | €31 | From €31 on GetYourGuide |
| Cannes to Île Sainte-Marguerite ferry | €18.50 | €19.00 |
The list also has the Fernand Léger museum in Biot, the Renoir museum and the Grimaldi castle museum in Cagnes-sur-Mer, the Parc Phoenix, the Observatory’s guided tour, bike and scooter hire, the Île Saint-Honorat ferry and a slice of socca. The Terra Amata museum is on it but closed (the museums page has the closures).
The Villa Kérylos at Beaulieu-sur-Mer, seen from across the bay. Photo: Berthold Werner, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 3.0.
The sums
Single tickets at the operators’ adult prices, on one day.
| Plan | Single tickets | Pass | Result |
|---|---|---|---|
| Matisse, Chagall at €12 and the Russian cathedral | €32 | 24 hours, €30 | Saves €2; break-even once Chagall is €10 |
| The same plus the Archaeology museum | €37 | 24 hours, €30 | Saves €7 |
| The bus and the little train | €36 | 24 hours, €30 | Saves €6 |
| The bus, the little train and Matisse | €46 | 24 hours, €30 | Saves €16 |
| Oceanographic Museum and the Èze garden | €32.50 | 24 hours, €30 | Saves €2.50, before the train and bus |
| Those two plus the Fragonard workshop | €63.50 | 24 hours, €30 | Saves €33.50, before the train and bus |
| Villa Ephrussi and Villa Kérylos | €33, or €24 with the combined ticket | 24 hours, €30 | Costs €6 more than the combined ticket |
| The €37 museum day, then Masséna, Lascaris, the Bellandarium and the little train (€32) | €69 | 48 hours, €45 | Saves €24 |
| Five City museums: Matisse, Masséna, Chéret, Lascaris, Archaeology | €40 | 48 hours, €45; or Museums Pass, €15 | The Museums Pass saves €25 |
The rule: about €30 of paid sights in 24 hours, €45 in 48, €65 in 72. The sums do not include the train, the bus or the tram to reach the sights: add €7 for a Lignes d’Azur day pass in Nice, and the train and bus fares on a day trip.
The Museums Pass instead
The City’s Museums Pass is €15 for 4 days (96 hours) and covers the City museums: Matisse, Masséna, Chéret, Lascaris, Archaeology, Photography, Naïve Art and Natural History. It does not include the national Chagall museum or the Russian cathedral. For Matisse plus Masséna it saves €5, and for five City museums €25. The museums page has the rules.
When it is the wrong day
The Matisse, Chagall, Masséna, Lascaris, Archaeology and Naïve Art museums are shut on Tuesdays; the Chéret, Photography and Natural History museums are shut on Mondays. A 24-hour pass first used on a Tuesday wastes the three biggest museums, so start the clock on a Wednesday for a museum day. The Chagall museum is free to everyone on the first Sunday of the month: 1 November and 6 December 2026, 3 January and 7 February 2027. The hub has every closed day.
Who should buy it
- A museum day with the cathedral and Chagall: the 24-hour pass, a few euros ahead.
- Monaco and Èze with a perfume workshop: the 24-hour pass, well ahead, though it covers none of the travel.
- Cap Ferrat: the €24 combined ticket at the villa, not the pass.
- Museums only, over a few days: the €15 Museums Pass.
- A relaxed day on the Promenade and Castle Hill: no pass: they are free.
Day trips from Nice has the train and pass sums for the coast, the Monaco page and the Èze page the prices behind the day above, and Villefranche and Cap Ferrat the villa. The Matisse museum and the Chagall museum have the closed days. Where to stay in Nice compares the areas.
Common questions
Is the French Riviera Pass worth it?
On a day with about €30 of paid sights, yes. The Matisse museum, the Chagall museum and the Russian cathedral cost €32 at the current prices, so the 24-hour pass saves €2; adding the Archaeology museum saves €7. For museums alone, the €15 Museums Pass is the better buy.
How much is the French Riviera Pass?
€30 for 24 hours, €45 for 48 hours and €65 for 72 hours, at one price for adults and children. It starts at first use and runs for consecutive hours: a 24-hour pass first used at 14:00 on Saturday lasts to 14:00 on Sunday.
Does the French Riviera Pass include public transport?
No: buses, trams and trains are not included. It includes the Nice Le Grand Tour hop-on bus for 24 hours and the little train. You can add a Lignes d'Azur ticket when you buy it, or buy the Pass Sud Azur Explore at €35 for 3 days for the whole of the Alpes-Maritimes and Monaco.
Can I visit a sight twice with the French Riviera Pass?
No. Each site on the list can be entered once. You show the e-ticket and a valid ID at each one.
Is the French Riviera Pass worth it for Monaco and Èze?
Yes, if you take the Oceanographic Museum (€22.50), the Exotic Garden at Èze (€10) and Fragonard's workshop in Èze (€31): €63.50 against €30, before the train and bus fares.
Is the French Riviera Pass worth it for Cap Ferrat?
No. The Villa Ephrussi (€18) and Villa Kérylos (€15) are €33 separately, but the villas sell a combined ticket for €24 on site.
