Côte d'Azur: the best resorts for vacation and buying property

The Côte d’Azur is the Mediterranean coast from Marseille to the east through the Principality of Monaco to the border with Italy. It is one of the most prestigious holiday destinations in the world and the most expensive real estate market in France after Paris.

From 2004 to 2014, the prices of property on the Côte d’Azur increased up to 60–80%, but since the beginning of the crisis in 2014, there has been a tendency to decrease the value of property. According to the information NiceMatin.com in 2014, housing on the Côte d’Azur fell in price by 3–6%. The exception was the fashionable eastern part of the coast, which includes the territory from Villefranche-sur-Mer to Roquebrune-Cap-Martin, where prices increased by 1%.

​​​​In the period from 2014 to 2024, property prices on the French Riviera grew steadily. Over 10 years, the price increase averaged from 20 to 30%. At the same time, the main growth happened after 2021 — with the end of the epidemic of coronavirus infection.

According to Meilleurs Agents, among the resorts of the Côte d’Azur, the most expensive property is in Saint-Jean-Cap-Ferrat, Saint-Tropez, Èze, Beaulieu-sur-Mer, Villefranche and Cap d’Ail: the cost of apartments exceeds 8,000 euros per square metre.

The cost of housing (March 12, 2024)

Nice: the most popular city on the Côte d’Azur

From Nice you can get to Cannes, Monaco and Italy. Many events are held in the city, including carnivals, marathons, various festivals, and the famous Tour de France cycling race passes through the city. There are museums, a theatre, an opera, a concert hall and much more. Nice is famous for its beautiful architecture, similar in style to Italian. Crystal coastal waters and pebble beaches make the picture of an ideal holiday. The best places in the city to buy a home are the Promenade des Anglais, Place Masséna, Old Nice quarter, Garibaldi Square, the Port, the Musicians quarter and Fabron.

Property in Nice is in great demand. In the «Carré d’Or», located between Le boulevard Victor-Hugo, the pedestrian zone and Place Masséna, the price per square metre reaches 8,000 euros. In the prestigious Mont Boron area, popular among foreigners, housing is sold for 6–9 thousand euros per square metre. On the most famous streets of Nice — Av. de la Californie, Le boulevard Gambetta and the Promenade des Anglais — housing costs an average of 3–6 thousand euros per square metre.

The «Golden Triangle» of the French Riviera: Villefranche, Saint-Jean-Cap-Ferrat and Beaulieu-sur-Mer

Property in the eastern part of the Côte d’Azur is in the greatest demand among foreign buyers. The most fashionable resorts and the most expensive villas are located here.

One of the most expensive resorts on the Côte d’Azur is Saint-Jean-Cap-Ferrat. Apartments of the highest price category here cost an average of 14,473 euros per square metre, houses — 18,150 euros per square metre. Prices for luxury property reach 60 thousand euros per square metre. One of the most expensive offers on the market today is a 2,000 square metres villa with eight rooms, a swimming pool, a home cinema, a lift and sports fields. It can be purchased for 69 million euros.

Roquebrune-Cap-Martin is a prestigious resort located 25 km from Nice and 6 km from Monte Carlo. The historical view of the city is well-preserved. Queen Victoria of England, actress Greta Garbo, French Empress Eugenie, fashion designer Coco Chanel and British Prime Minister Winston Churchill vacationed in Roquebrune-Cap-Martin. The cost of houses in Roquebrune-Cap-Martin often exceeds 10,000 euros per square metre. For example, for 21 million euros, you can buy a villa with an area of 500 square metres with four rooms, a swimming pool and a garden.

Menton is another French city on the Côte d’Azur near the Italian border. Menton is called the «city of lemons»: in February there is an annual lemon festival. There are many gardens and parks in the city. For her luxurious appearance, Menton is often called the «Pearl of France». Houses of the highest price category in Menton are sold from 6,230 euros per square metre. For 4.255 million euros, you can purchase a villa with an area of 420 square metres with a panoramic pool and sea views.

Antibes and Juan-les-Pins: ideal resorts for family holidays

About 10 km from Cannes, the resorts of Antibes and Juan-les-Pins are located. This place is suitable for those who are looking for a relaxed summer atmosphere, quiet and prestigious neighbours.

Many foreigners prefer to relax in Juan-les-Pins. This small resort town is located on the shore of a beautiful, secluded bay. There are spacious beaches with white sand, and there is also a marina. The cheerful nightlife, many restaurants and clubs make the resort especially popular among young people. In addition, the international Jazz Festival is held annually in Juan-les-Pins. With children, you can go to the neighbouring town of Biot, where there is a butterfly park, the Marineland aquarium, the largest aquapark on the Côte d’Azur «Aqua Splash», «Le Petit Ferme Park» — a farm with pets, as well as many exciting attractions.

Many novelists have lived in Antibes, including Graham Greene, Nikos Kazantzakis and Francis Scott Fitzgerald.

Antibes is the second largest resort city (after Nice) on the Côte d’Azur and the largest yacht port in the region. This is an exclusive holiday destination: the villas of many of the richest people are located here, the tourism industry is well-developed, and there are 25 km of pebble and sandy beaches. To the northwest of Antibes is the Sophia-Antipolis Technology Park, which is considered the French Silicon Valley. Higher educational institutions, commercial enterprises and branches of international organisations are located here.

There are many foreign buyers in Antibes. The budget for their purchases is from 5 to 30 million euros. For comparison, the French themselves spend an average of 800 thousand to 1.5 million euros on local housing.

You can buy property in Antibes at a cost of 5,893 euros per square metre. The rental rate starts from 17.5 euros per square metre. The annual price growth in the Antibes region was 7.1%.

Cannes: the city of movie stars

60% of buyers of property in Cannes are foreigners, half of them are from Asia and the Middle East. The centre of Cannes is considered especially prestigious — Antibes Street and Croisette Embankment.

Every year, the film festival attracts thousands of tourists to the city, so it is profitable to buy housing for rent here. In June, apartments in the hotel next to the Palace of Festivals are rented for 1,000 euros per week.

For the owners of film companies, the one-time cost of renting housing for their employees is up to 100 thousand euros. Considering that the Cannes Film Festival is held every year, it is economically unprofitable to rent. Most companies buy apartments in Cannes worth more than 1 million euros near the Palais des Festivals. Сountryside villas are also popular.

You can buy property in Cannes at a cost of 6,036 euros per square metre. The rental rate starts from 17.8 euros per square metre. The annual price growth in the Cannes region was 3.4%. The villa has an area of 200–250 sq. metres with a swimming pool that can be bought for 1.2–1.7 million euros, a villa with an area of 300 sq. metres with a plot of 2,500 sq. metres and panoramic sea views — for at least 3 million euros. Many of these houses are rented in the summer for 50 thousand euros per month. There is almost no new housing in Cannes.

Monaco: the world’s most expensive real estate market

Monaco is the most expensive market in the world. The price per square metre of the rarest and most exclusive apartments in Monaco reaches 91 thousand euros. This is due to the fact that there is no free land in Monaco. The territory is extremely small: it makes up 6% of the area of Manhattan and 3% of the area of Hong Kong. Plots are being drained (due to this, the territory has already grown by 20%), and the height of buildings is increasing.

Due to the limited territory, 95% of the property in Monaco are apartments. Prices start from 1.5 million euros. The most prestigious place to buy property is Monte Carlo, the area next to the casino «Carre d’Or» («Golden Square») — a spacious square framed by luxury hotels and casinos. Modern apartments and villas on the Boulevard de Suisse are in demand. Part of the Formula 1 circuit runs through the La Condamine area. Apartments with terraces and direct views of the bay are in demand here.

Construction in Monaco is limited, and sales are carried out mainly in the secondary market. The average cost of new housing is 9.3 million euros.

Grasse and Mougins: Provence

Mougins is located north of Cannes, 6–9 km from the coast. Since the middle of the XX century, this town has become a centre for attracting tourists and artists. In different times, the fashion designer Christian Dior, the dramatist Jean Cocteau and the artist Pablo Picasso lived here.

Now there are many villas of billionaires and famous stars in this village: the villas of ex French President François Hollande, the Emir of Qatar, actors Mel Gibson and Sylvester Stallone are located here. There are about 40 restaurants and about 20 art galleries in Mougins. Mougins is called the «garden city» (ville-jardin) for the abundance of villas with gardens. About half of the territory of the commune is green areas.

You can purchase property in Mougins at a cost of 4,863 euros per square metre. The rental rate starts from 17.5 euros per square metre. The annual price growth in the Mougins region was 2.9%.

Grasse, located 12 km north of Cannes, is known for its perfume industry and the fact that the action of the novel «The Perfumer» by Patrick Süskind takes place here. In the city centre, ancient buildings of the XVII–XVIII centuries are next to villas and mansions of the XIX century, the periphery is built up with modern houses. There are many olive groves and flowers in the surrounding area. Part of the territory of the commune has been declared as a nature reserve.

You can purchase property in Grasse at a cost of 2,237 euros per square metre. The rental rate is from 12.5 euros per square metre.

Saint-Tropez and surroundings

Ramatuelle is a small town of 3,000 inhabitants called the «antichambre de Saint-Tropez». It is located west of Saint-Tropez and attracts those who are in love with relaxing vacations away from noisy city life. Ramatuelle has vineyards, narrow streets, the Church Notre-Dame of the XIV century, a fortress wall and picturesque beaches next to ivy-covered rocks.

Houses located near the beaches are in great demand in Ramatuelle. The mansions here are similar to those found in Saint-Tropez: they have large panoramic windows overlooking the terraces. However, prices are much lower: for example, similar villas in Saint-Tropez and Ramatuelle cost 10 million and 6 million euros, respectively. You can purchase property in Ramatuelle at a cost of 12,925 euros per square metre. The rental rate is from 15.4 euros per square metre.

One of the most expensive property resorts on the French Riviera is Saint-Tropez. Apartments of the highest price range are sold on average from 11,780 euros per square metre, houses — from 21,309 euros per square metre. In this city, property is bought mainly for leisure; there are few facilities that are used for permanent residence. The French predominate among the buyers. For example, for 15 million euros you can buy a house with an area of 200–400 square metres with a sea view.

7 km from Saint-Tropez is the village of Port Grimaud. Port Grimaud is called the «Venice of Provence» (Venise provençale): there are canals and little islands connected by bridges. The village itself is surrounded by canals and walls, you can get to it either by sea on a yacht or on foot. There are almost no cars here, only those people who left their cars in special parking lots at the entrance to Port Grimaud are allowed to pass. Local houses are unusual in that they have two entrances — from the street and from the sea, and each house has its own pier. Port Grimaud is characterised by stylistic unity: the settlement, designed by architect François Spoerry, has been under construction since the 1960s for more than 30 years.

There are 2,400 houses and apartments, more than 2,000 yacht spots, 7 km of canals, 15 bridges and 12 islands on an area of 75 hectares. Prices for apartments start from 600 thousand euros, for houses — from 900 thousand euros. Villas built according to unique projects cost from 1.5 to 15 million euros.

14 km from Saint-Tropez, on the opposite side of the bay, is Saint Maxime, a quiet town with a low crime rate. This is a more casual variant of Saint-Tropez, not so bright and fashionable. The town has a very clean coast. Further east of Saint Maxime is Fréjus, a large resort with sandy beaches and parking lots for luxury yachts. Saint-Raphaël is almost close.

Toulon: property at the sea

One of the most affordable cities on the Côte d’Azur is Toulon. A square metre for apartments of the lowest price category costs an average of 3,372 euros here. The more expensive apartments are sold from about 4,000 euros per square metre. House prices start from 350 thousand euros.

To the east of the port, in the Saint-Jean-du-Var area, apartments with an area of 50 sq. metres are sold at a price of 200 thousand euros. Housing in the popular Pont du Las quarter costs from 2,800 euros per square metre. Property in the vicinity of Boulevard de Strasbourg is sold from 3,000 euros per square metre, apartments in the Murillon quarter in the east of Toulon are slightly more expensive — from 3,700 euros per square metre.

Cheap apartments are in demand by local residents, and foreigners prefer higher-quality and expensive housing. In Toulon, prices for housing of equal size in the same building may vary depending on the floor and the availability of sea views.

Hyères and Le Lavandou: quiet resorts near Toulon

20 km from Toulon is Hyères, the oldest resort on the Côte d’Azur, a pretty and quiet town with beautiful beaches. Directly opposite the city lie Îles d’Hyères — Le Levant, Porquerolles and Port-Cros. Writers Lev Nikolaevich Tolstoy and Robert Louis Stevenson, as well as Queen Victoria, stayed at Îles d’Hyères several times.

You can purchase property in Hyères at a cost of 4,449 euros per square metre. The rental rate is from 14.4 euros per square metre. The annual price growth in the Hyères region was 9.1%.

20 km east of Hyères is the town of Le Lavandou, which is known for its high-quality sandy beaches. Among the advantages of Le Lavandou are beautiful landscapes, a wonderful seaside, many wonderful beaches and a pleasant climate.

Marseille: the largest French port in the Mediterranean

In Marseille itself, foreigners rarely buy property. It is a big and noisy city. It is better to buy holiday accommodation in small seaside towns located further east along the coast.

In Marseille, housing in the area between Rue Paradis and the coast is popular, especially the La Corniche quarter. In the buildings near Le Parc Talabot overlooking the bay, prices per square metre reach 11,000 euros. In the Saint-Barnabé quarter in the 12th arrondissement, housing is sold for 3–5 thousand euros per square metre. The advantage of this quarter is the presence of a metro, which can reach the centre in a few minutes. The Old Port area is also in demand, where real estate costs from 5,000 euros per square metre.

Cassis is a city located about 20 km east of Marseille, where you can regularly go by car for shopping and entertainment. Cassis is famous for its coastal cliffs, small coves, and wines produced in the vicinity of the city.

You can purchase property in Cassis at a cost of 7,928 euros per square metre. The rental rate is from 16.1 euros per square metre.

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Author: Polina Fedotova