Nice: Promenade des Anglais, or Promenade des Anglais. Cote d'Azur: Promenade des Anglais in Nice Attractions on the Promenade des Anglais

The capital of the French Riviera is located on the shores of Bayeux Des Anges in the south of the country. It is a major center of entertainment, gastronomic, cultural and business tourism.
Street history
Nice began to gain popularity as a resort since the end of the 19th century. Wealthy Englishmen came here to restore their health and wait out the chilly English autumn. The winter of 1820 turned out to be especially cold, which provoked an increase in the number of beggars here. To reduce the number of poor people, special funds were created to create jobs for the unemployed. It was thanks to the workers in Nice that the most famous embankment arose, which in 1850 received the name “Promenade des Anglais”. Over the next few years, the embankment becomes a popular place in the city. There is active construction of luxury houses, shops, holiday homes, and restaurants. By 1965, the length of the embankment was already 6 kilometers.
The Promenade des Anglais is home to legendary buildings where famous writers, poets and artists stayed. The Megresco and Meridian hotels, the Mediterranean Palace and Casino, and every week, performances and festivals are held on the main promenade of France.
How to get there?
The Promenade des Anglais stretches straight to the Côte d'Azur airport, so just take the express shuttle bus No. 99, which will take you to the most popular accommodations located on the Promenade des Anglais. The cost of the trip is 6 euros.

Nice is famous among other seaside cities for its wide and long seven-kilometer promenade. In fact, you can walk along the seashore along the entire city - from the prestigious Mont-Boron area and the port to Nice airport.

The Promenade owes its appearance to the noble and wealthy Englishmen who chose Nice as a vacation spot and a refuge from the unpleasant British fogs around the beginning of the 19th century. One of them came up with the idea of ​​​​arranging a beautiful embankment, and the surge in unemployment and increase in the number of people in need that happened in the city in the winter of 1820-1821 (it is believed that this was due to the large fruit harvest that preceded this) contributed to the fact that locals took part in the construction of roads along the sea residents. Initially, the Promenade was short, only two meters wide, and was called Chemin des Anglais (“The Way of the English”) from 1820 to 1852. Information about when the Promenade des Anglais began to officially bear its current name varies - either in the 1840s or in the 1850s. Over time, the city authorities expanded and lengthened the Promenade more than once. Today its width is in some places up to 8-10 meters.

If you look at old photographs of Nice in the second half of the 19th century (1860-1880), you can see that at that time there were only low villas located at a distance from each other along the seashore. But already at the end of the 19th century, when Nice rapidly gained popularity as a resort for British and Russian monarchs, aristocrats and large industrialists following them, luxury hotels and palaces, gambling establishments and so on began to grow along the Promenade des Anglais. The West End Hotel appeared in 1842, the Beau Rivage Hotel in 1860. The Westminster Hotel began construction in 1878 (its owners received permission to use the name from the family of the Duke of Westminster). The construction of buildings on the first line in Nice flourished at the beginning of the 20th century. The construction of Nice's most famous hotel, the Negresco (1912), and the monumental Art Deco Mediterranean Palace (Palais de la Mediterranee) in 1929 date back to this period. The comfortable Le Meridien is already a “brainchild” of the 1970s (1974), although it cannot be said that it stands out strongly from the architectural range of more ancient buildings. Today, historical buildings house 5 and 4 star hotels of world famous hotel chains - Hyatt, Meridien, Radisson, etc.

These hotels have well-equipped beaches, with bars, cafes and restaurants. However, since beaches in France are not the private property of hotels, sections of paid beaches alternate in Nice with sections of free ones. Considering the enormous length of the coastline, there are many times more free zones. The beach in Nice is covered with large pebbles; going into the water is quite painful for many sensitive people, especially women. However, everywhere in Nice (for example, in shops in the Old Town near the sea, at hotels) you can buy special slippers for swimming. But thanks to the pebbles, the water, even near the shore, is not disturbed, clean and of that famous azure color, which gave the name to the entire French Riviera - the Côte d'Azur.

The Promenade des Anglais is never short of people walking, jogging, biking and rollerblading, even at night. Life here does not stop for a minute. The Nice Promenade performs the same function as it did a century and a half ago - “to show yourself and see others.” True, Nice today is a large and democratic resort; on summer evenings there is a lively flow of people along the Promenade, so those who really go to “walk diamonds” prefer more intimate places like Monaco, Cannes and Saint-Tropez.

Various events are constantly taking place on the Nice embankment; quite often its car part is blocked during sports or other competitions, performances by musicians and dancers, and the annual February carnival.

Archive photo of the Promenade des Anglais in Nice, period - late 19th century. The photo shows the unique building La Jetee - Promenade, built on stilts in the sea on the initiative of English aristocrats who wanted to have a place for entertainment on the Promenade. The beautiful pavilion, connected to the embankment by a pier, included several halls - a theater, a casino, a restaurant, a pier for boat trips, etc. It was a very interesting architectural project, the interiors of which were made in an oriental style.

Its history is amazing: La Jetee was partially opened in 1882, but the main grand opening was scheduled for April 1, 1883. Just a few days after the opening, a fire broke out, practically destroying the entire building in one hour. There were various rumors as to why it happened, but none of the versions were proven. As a result, investors had to look for money for construction again. The recreated building opened in 1888 and existed until January 1944, when the German military that occupied Nice dismantled the steel parts of its structure, and it was lost forever.

Promenade des Anglais today at different times of the year

Paid beaches in Nice

Free beach

The most famous hotel in Nice - "Negresco"- opened in 1912 and was named after its first owner, Romanian entrepreneur Henri Negresco. "Negresco" was built in the neoclassical style. The inside of the hotel looks no less luxurious than the outside. Almost all world celebrities who came to Nice stayed at the hotel at different times.

One of the oldest hotels in Nice - "West End"

Palace of the Mediterranean, or Mediterranean Palace (Palais de la Mediterranee) opened in 1929 and created almost a sensation. To be fair, this was greatly facilitated by the funds of the owner, the American billionaire Gould, invested in advertising the Palace. The casino, luxurious monumental staircases, giant crystal chandeliers and seven-meter windows amazed the gathered guests. For several decades, the Palace was the most fashionable establishment in Nice, where all the movie stars, artists, artists, members of noble European families and simply millionaires visited. In the 1960-70s, its glory began to fade, and the facade began to rapidly deteriorate and fall into disrepair. The hotel was closed for more than 20 years, and only in the early 2000s, restored with money from large investors, it again opened its luxurious doors and rooms for guests.

At the Negresco Hotel there is one of the best gastronomic restaurants in Nice - Chanticleer (two Michelin stars)

Beach, Nice

He created funds for employing the unemployed and allocated money for the construction of a small road, the width of which at that time was no more than 2 meters.

In the middle of the 19th century, the embankment received its current name Promenade des Anglais - Promenade des Anglais. Over the next half century it was gradually expanded and extended. Namely, in 1854-1856, under the leadership of the architect Francois Aunet, it was extended all the way to the Magnan Canal, and its width was 8 meters. In 1862 it was extended even further - to Sant'Hélène, and in 1882 - to Carra Street. The more popular the resort became, the more new hotel buildings, cafes, restaurants and shops appeared in it. In addition, car traffic grew rapidly. It is therefore not surprising that at the beginning of the twentieth century these changes in the city caused many problems.

The mayor of Nice, Jean Mezzan, tried to solve these problems in the 30s, by whose decree a highway was built along the embankment all the way to Gambetta Boulevard. But the expansion of the Promenade des Anglais did not end there. During 1949-1953 it gradually became wider and longer. And only in 1965 it was possible to extend it all the way to the resort airport. Of course, along this famous embankment there are many hotels, restaurants, shops, and residential buildings built at different times. By the way, they are all located on the odd side of the street.

Attractions on the Promenade des Anglais

First of all, it is worth noting that there are many famous hotels along the embankment, most of which were built in the 19th-20th centuries. Namely, in house 1 there is the Hôtel Méridien hotel, in house 19 there is the Hôtel Westminster hotel, in house 223 there is the Radisson SAS hotel. One of the most famous hotels, Hôtel Negresco, is located at number 37. It was built in the classicist style and opened in 1912. Another famous building located on the Promenade des Anglais is the house at number 15. This house is called the Mediterranean Palace. It was built in 1929 by the Dalmas brothers. Unfortunately, due to financial difficulties, almost the entire interior of the palace had to be removed in the 70s and replaced with modern buildings. Today this house houses a hotel, a casino and a theater.

The Promenade des Anges (French Promenade des Anglais, Promenade des Anglais) is one of the most famous attractions not only of Nice, but throughout France. This is a favorite place for walks among many tourists and locals. The boulevard, which is almost six kilometers long, runs along the Bay of Angels from the city airport to Cape Nice.

Until the middle of the 18th century, the coast was deserted, since the local population lived on the island, but then a large number of Englishmen began to arrive here, who liked the mild climate of Nice. In 1821, to escape the extremely cold winter, many beggars came to the city, but there was no work for everyone. Then local pastor Lewis Wei and his wife created a charitable foundation to save people, involving them in the construction of a two-meter wide road along the sea, called Camin dai Ingles. In Nice, the number of British nobility who chose the bay for recreation was rapidly growing. In 1840, the municipality officially took the boulevard under its wing and carried out major renovations. In 1844 the road was extended to Baumettes and renamed Promenade des Anglais.

The Promenade des Anglais is becoming a popular place in the city, with luxury houses, hotels and shops being built here. Ten years later, the Promenade des Anges is expanded to eight meters and extended to the Magnan canal and Karra street. In 1930, the mayor of Nice, Jean Medzan, laid a full-fledged highway here, ending at Gambetta Boulevard, and decorated it with numerous squares and palm trees. The city is growing, and the embankment is growing along with it. It takes its final form in 1965, having reached the local airport.

The Promenade is also famous for its tragic event - it was here that the famous dancer Isadora Duncan, the wife of Sergei Yesenin, died in 1927, whose scarf wound around the wheel axle of her car and strangled the artist.

Today, the Promenade des Anglais is the main street of Nice, where various festivals, holidays, carnivals and flower shows are constantly held. The legendary hotel, Le Meridien Hotel, and other famous buildings are located on the boulevard.

How to get there: buses 52, 59, 70, 94 run along the Promenade des Anglais in Nice.