Nice, France – Why February is the best time to visit

It is no surprise that France is one of our favorite countries and Nice is one of our favorite cities. For years I had a business and blog called The French Elements. My boys loved France and much time was spent there when they were young. When hubby and I married, we visited France on a very regular basis. He fell in love with it and has talked about ‘retiring for a few months a year to the south’. The South of France was always a highlight for me especially in February when Carnaval occurs. I have never been disappointed while visiting in the cooler months. There are less tourists so it is easier to visit the sites you’d like to see. We are not fans of high heat, wall to wall bodies, and traffic which doesn’t move so it suits us to a T.

Carnaval in Nice is held every February and is ‘over the top’ fun. We have had the pleasure of attending several and have been amazed by the creativity and the amount of work that goes into putting together such an event. Of course there are parades. It wouldn’t be Carnaval without parades.

This is from the Carnaval King parade with the Le Meridian Hotel in the background. USA at its finest. The French have the best sense of humor, I think. This float is very tongue-in-cheek.

This was a rather large colorful character. No name needed.

Besides the daytime King Carnaval parades, there are well lit night parades. They also have flower parades which are a treat. The riders on these floats throw armloads of flowers into the crowd. The goal is to catch as many flowers as you can. The flowers actually come from the riviera. I like the fact  they keep it local.

Besides world class parades, there is music…lots of music. Bands accompany the floats but there are bands setup around the old town.

This is Mr Chasing the Next Chapter (Ray) taking some pics of one of the bands we listened to along the Promenade. One word-fantastic!

If you should plan a visit for February, make sure you spend time in Menton. It is minutes away by train and they have the World renowned Fete du Citron. I promise you have NEVER seen anything quite like this. Also in the town of Antibes, you’ll find the Pain, Amour, Chocolat festival which occurs during Carnaval as well. With so much going on in such a close proximity, I think you can agree that FEBRUARY is the best time to visit Nice.

For additional photos and to read more on carnaval, visit my article on MilesGeek.

Thank you for taking the time to visit! You are appreciated.