Nice

Nice was Italian until 1860 and the old town (Vieux Nice) still feels Genoese — ochre buildings, narrow lanes, the daily Cours Saleya flower market. The Promenade des Anglais runs the length of the pebble beach and is what everyone walks at sunset. The hilltop park where the medieval castle used to be (it's gone — Louis XIV had it demolished) gives you the view that's been painted ever since. Matisse lived here for 40 years and the Matisse Museum is in his Cimiez villa. Chagall is two blocks away. Day trips to Èze, Monaco, Antibes, Cannes all under an hour.