The 15-20 minute journey from the airport by taxi should cost £18 to £25. Airport buses are just as speedy and pick up from directly outside the airport terminals running along the promenade des Anglais, costing £2.45 each way.

WAYS TO STAY

Best bargain in town
The Windsor is in a great central location with quirky rooms designed by French contemporary artists, a tropical swimming pool and relaxation room perfect for de-stressing.
Singles from £66 (11 rue Dalpozzo, www.hotelwindsornice.com)

Make it special
Conduct a romantic rendez-vous at the Château des Ollières, a stunning pink chateau built by a Russian Prince. Take tea in Prince Alexei Lobanov-Rostowsky's antique-filled smoking room or dine among Napoleonic furnishings, before retiring to one of just eight rooms.
Singles reduced from £103 to £88 all year (39, avenue des Baumettes, www.chateaudesollieres.com).

Live it up
Indulge in Art Deco living with a modern edge at Nice's latest arrival, the Palais de la Méditerranée. Slap bang on the prom, many bedrooms have sea-view balconies. All are stylishly decorated, with flat screen TVs, sound systems and internet access. A heated indoor-outdoor pool, gym, four-star service and a rather special al fresco dining terrace, complete the luxury hotel experience and it's casino which attracted the rich and famous in the roaring 20's, re-opens in July.
Singles from £210 (15, promenade des Anglais, www.lepalaisdelamediterranee.com).

THE BEST DINERS IN TOWN

Cutting edge eating
Terracotta washed walls, sparkling glasses, solid darkwood tables and sculptural lights, complement the radically simple, elegant Mediterranean cuisine served at Jouni, one of Nice's most talked about restaurants. Dishes change frequently depending on what's freshest at market that day. Try the exquisite pea soup if it's available, but everything on the menu is divinely flavoursome.
Mains from £14 (10 rue Lascaris, 97 08 14 80).

A local classic
Don't miss Clément Bruno's truffles-with-everything menu at Terres de Truffes (try the delicious Gnocchi aux Truffes), served in smart oak-panelled surroundings with any one of his impeccable choice of wines from the chateaux-vineyards of Lorgues.
Mains from £9 (11, rue Saint-François de Paule, 93 62 07 68).

Nice and easy
Head to the seafront for seaside dining at Blue Beach. A traditional salade Niçoise, grilled rougets (red snapper) or just plain old steak frites, washed down with a carafe of local rosé, on pristine white cloths at the edge of the pebbled beach is hard to beat.
Mains from £7.50 (promenade des Anglais, 93 87 10 36).

DON’T MISS...

The cours Saleya, in the heart of old Nice. A pedestrianised thoroughfare of pretty coloured facades, Belle Epoque architecture and a daily flower and produce market - except on Mondays when it switches to antiques. Al fresco people watching is unbeatable from the numerous bars and restaurants along the cours and Matisse once lived on the top floor of the big yellow building at the eastern end.

WHAT TO SEE

Starry, starry black and whites
If you can't find glamour on the prom, the Théâtre de la Photographie et de l'Image, (27, bd Dubouchage, closed Mondays) exhibits Bob Willoughby, American photographer of Hollywood icons for Harpers Bazaar and the New York Times. It's a beautifully nostalgic collection of 105 black and white portraits of legendary stars like Marilyn Munroe, James Dean, Alfred Hitchcock and Audrey Hepburn, running until June 13.

IF YOU ONLY SEE ONE CHURCH

... make sure it's the Russian church, (St Nicholas Cathedral, off boulevard Tzarewich) a stunning onion-domed, golden-filigreed, jewel of a building built (1903-1912) by the Russian aristocracy and jam-packed with some of the loveliest carvings, frescoes and icons you're likely to see outside Moscow.

NEED TO KNOW

The Nice Convention and Visitors Bureau (93 92 82 98, www.nice-coteazur.org) is the head office for information on Nice. Visit the main Office de Tourisme at 5, promenade des Anglais, for leaflets, maps, bookings and helpful English speaking advisors.

Tania Cagnoni, a photojournalist, divides her time between London and the Côte d'Azur

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