One Day in the Cap d’Antibes

Antibes port

Despite the rainy start, our morning in Antibes followed by an afternoon walk around the cape ended up being my favourite day in France’s Cote d’Azur. Like many of the towns along this coast, Antibes is a fishing village but unlike its better known neighbours like Cannes and St Tropez, it’s largely devoid of the glitzy commercialisation. And after our afternoon walk around the scenic cape (Cap d’Antibes), we celebrated with champagne at the majestic Hotel du Cap-Eden-Roc.

Antibes
Looking in the direction of the historical town centre
Antibes
Fountain in the old part of town
Antibes
Entrance to the town cathedral
Antibes
I liked the shadow cast on this cross near the town cathedral

When I was planning out our road trip in the south of France, one of the reasons I wanted to visit Antibes was for its Picasso museum. Although there may be better known works elsewhere in the world, I was attracted to the lighter theme of the paintings and ceramic works Picasso undertook while he was based here in the medieval Grimaldi Castle, which has now become the museum. In other words, “happier” Picasso works. Also, the museum has an outdoor terrace with a nice view of the sea.

Picasso Museum
Sculpture and view from the Picasso Museum’s garden terrace

The big plus as well is that Antibes is charming, with quaint doors on homes and beautifully drawn wall murals. I had fun just walking around the town.

Antibes
Artistically rendered wall and balcony in Antibes
Antibes
A mural on a wall in the town centre – really looks like you’re looking into the pantry

We also found a simple cafe serving really good crepes, sandwiches and salads. Le Quatre (4) Cafe is located near the Picasso Museum and opposite Antibes’ market on Cours Massena. The proprietor, Anna, speaks english and is friendly. There are a number of other places to eat in Antibes including the Michelin one-starred Figuier de St-Esprit. Aah…so easy to be happy here!

Incidentally, parking in Antibes is straightforward although it can be busy during peak summer days. There are parking lots before the entrance to the historical town centre around the port areas.

We were lucky that it stopped raining and the sun came out giving us a really enjoyable walk after lunch in the Cap d’Antibes. We drove to the start point of our walk, the Sentier Littoral path, near Garoupe Beach – there are parking spots there although it can get crowded. There are signs pointing to the path near the restaurants by the beach. The walk should take around one hour but I’d allocate a bit more time to this excursion as it’s nice just to enjoy the view and also as it could take time to find parking (alas).

Sentier Littoral
The path is well maintained although the terrain itself is rugged
Sentier Littoral
A view out to sea and the surrounding coast
Sentier Littoral
Another portion of the walk
Sentier Littoral
The plants growing on the rocks
Hotel du Cap
Main section of the hotel

To cap off our day, we ended with an early evening glass of champagne at the Hotel du Cap-Eden-Roc. (After walking back to the car, you can drive to the hotel). This is one of the “grand dame” hotels in the Cote d’Azur. It’s well worth a visit here – to see where folks like Elizabeth Taylor (marriage #1) and the Duke and Duchess of Windsor honeymooned. The hotel and its majestic grounds are still very glamorous. Unfortunately, since offseason rates start at a mere EUR850 per night, I didn’t stay here.

In case you’re wondering about dinner – we opted to drive back to the Vence area, near where we were staying, to have dinner in Mougins. That’ll be in another post.

Some useful links:

Picasso museum: http://www.antibes-juanlespins.com/les-musees/picasso

Le Quatre (4) Cafe tripadvisor review: http://www.tripadvisor.com.sg/Restaurant_Review-g187217-d4206945-Reviews-Le_quatre_cafe-Antibes_French_Riviera_Cote_d_Azur_Provence.html

Hotel du Cap-Eden-Roc: http://www.hotel-du-cap-eden-roc.com/eng/hotel/