Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
for short-term use (first 30 minutes free, European-style chip-and-PIN credit card or
American Express card required).
Car Rental:
Renting a car is easiest at Nice's airport, which has offices for all the major
companies. You'll also find most companies represented at Nice's train station and
near Albert 1er Park.
English Radio:
Tune in to Riviera-Radio at FM 106.5.
scribed later, under “Tours in Nice”).
Beach Gear:
Tomakelifetolerableontherocks,swimmersshouldbuyapairofthecheap
plastic beach shoes sold at many shops (flip-flops fall off in the water).
Go Sport
at
#13 on Place Masséna sells beach shoes, flip-flops, and cheap sunglasses (Mon-Sat
Updates to this topic:
For news about changes to this topic's coverage since it was pub-
lished, see
www.ricksteves.com/update
.
Getting Around Nice
Although you can walk to most attractions in Nice, smart travelers make good use of the
buses and tram. Both are covered by the same €1.50 single-ride ticket (€5 day pass, €10
for 10 tickets that can be shared, good for 74 minutes in one direction, including transfers
between bus and tram; can't be used for a round-trip or airport express bus). The
bus
is
particularlyhandyforreachingtheChagallandMatissemuseumsandtheRussianCathed-
ral. Pick up timetables at Nice's TIs (or view them online at
www.lignesdazur.com
)
and
buy tickets from the driver. Make sure to validate your ticket in the machine just behind
the driver—watch locals do it and imitate.
The €6 all-day pass is valid on city buses and trams, as well as buses to some nearby
destinations. The all-day ticket makes sense if you plan to take the bus to museums, use
the tramway several times, or are going to the airport (you must validate your ticket on
every trip). Express buses to and from the airport (#98 and #99) require the all-day pass,
so savvy riders pack in other bus and/or tram rides on the day of their flight.
Nice's
tramway
makes an “
L”
along Avenue Jean Médecin and Boulevard Jean
Jaurès, and connects the main train station (Gare Thiers stop), Place Masséna (Masséna
stop, near many regional bus stops and a few blocks' walk from the sea), Vieux Nice
(Opéra-VieilleVille,Cathédrale-VieilleVille),andtheModernandContemporaryArtMu-
seum and port (Place Garibaldi). It also comes within a few blocks of the Chemins de
Fer de Provence train station (Libération stop)—the departure point for the scenic narrow-
