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Visiting Nice on foot, differently: crimes and scandals of the Riviera
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Nice is usually visited for its light. This route takes it from the other side: a suspicious fire at the Opera, poisoners in the Lascaris palace, spies on Castle Hill and a smugglers’ submarine in the harbour. Ten stops, 3.2 km, and a city you will never look at the same way again.
Where to start
The route starts in the Albert I garden, opened in 1852 between the Promenade des Anglais and Place Masséna. It is easy to reach on foot or by tram, and the Murmure audio tour begins there with a “briefing” before entering the old town.
The loop returns to the Promenade des Anglais: the finishing point is a few minutes from the start.
What you will see on the way
The Nice Opera, opened in 1885, is the second of its name: the first burned down in 1881 during a performance, leaving sixty-three dead and a law on emergency exits. Cours Saleya and its flower market, the Lascaris palace, a seventeenth-century baroque residence, and Place Rossetti form the heart of old Nice.
Castle Hill, ninety-two metres up, gives the panorama over the Baie des Anges; beneath your feet run tunnels that the Belle Époque lent to spies. The descent leads to Port Lympia, dug in the eighteenth century, then to Place Garibaldi, the finest Piedmontese square in the city, where the hero of Italian unification was born in 1807.
The way back west passes the Negresco, its pink dome and its Baccarat chandelier ordered by Tsar Nicholas II, before returning to the Promenade des Anglais for the verdict.
How much time to allow
The published route is 3.2 km long with ten stops. Old Nice is flat; Castle Hill is climbed on foot by the Lesage stairs or by the free public lift at the end of Quai des États-Unis, and descended towards the harbour. Allow an hour and a half to two hours.
The Castle Hill park is open from 8.30 am to 8 pm from April to September, and until 6 pm from October to March; the Albert I garden keeps the same hours. The Lascaris palace can be visited for 5 € (free under eighteen), every day except Tuesday, from 10 am to 6 pm; the route views it from outside, but the interior deserves half an hour. The Opera opens only for performances and for guided visits run by the city’s heritage centre; the Negresco remains reserved for its guests.
The Cours Saleya market runs in the morning from Tuesday to Sunday; on Mondays it gives way to antique and bric-a-brac dealers until late afternoon. Choose your day according to what you want to see.
Practical tips
Comfortable shoes for the climb to the Castle and the cobbles of old Nice. Water and a hat in summer: the hill is exposed.
The lanes around Cours Saleya and Place Rossetti get crowded late in the day: the morning is quieter for listening. The cobbles of old Nice are awkward for wheelchairs, but the Castle Hill lift is accessible and free, which avoids the stairs on the way up.
To listen on site, bring your headphones, enough battery and an internet connection: the loop takes nearly two hours.
Getting there and parking
The tram is the simplest option: line 1, Masséna stop, a short walk from the Albert I garden, or the Opéra – Vieille Ville stop; line 2 serves Port Lympia, handy for shortening the loop. Nice-Ville station is a quarter of an hour’s walk from Place Masséna along Avenue Jean-Médecin.
By car, park in a city-centre or harbour car park and leave the car for the day: old Nice is pedestrian and the Promenade des Anglais closely policed.
The ten stops of the route
- The Albert I garden
- The Nice Opera
- Cours Saleya
- The Lascaris palace
- Place Rossetti
- Castle Hill
- Port Lympia
- Place Garibaldi
- The Hôtel Negresco
- The Promenade des Anglais
Listen to “Crimes & Scandals of the Riviera”
The Murmure audio tour is led by Victor Lemaire, a former Nice police commissioner: ten stops over 3.2 km, from the Albert I garden to the Promenade des Anglais. Listen to a preview before you set off.
Plan your visit
Information checked in September 2026 with the city of Nice, the tourist office and Lignes d’Azur: Lascaris palace · Castle Hill, park opening hours · Cours Saleya markets · guided visits by the heritage centre · Lignes d’Azur trams and buses. Opening hours and prices may change: check them before you leave. The Murmure audio route is an independent offer.