Nice Airport Expansion: Preparing the French Riviera for the Future

 

The Nice Côte d’Azur Airport — gateway to the French Riviera and Monaco — is undergoing a major expansion and modernization that aims to transform the travel experience while balancing growth with environmental responsibility. As France’s third-busiest airport, Nice’s redevelopment comes at a pivotal time for both the region’s economy and its sustainability goals.

A Bigger, Smarter Airport

Originally designed to handle around 14 million passengers a year, Nice Airport has already surpassed that figure, welcoming nearly 15 million travelers in 2024. To meet increasing demand, the airport operator has launched an ambitious expansion of Terminal 2.

The project adds roughly 25,000 m² of new space, including six new boarding gates, larger check-in zones, redesigned baggage systems, and expanded lounges and waiting areas. Once complete, the terminal will be capable of accommodating up to 18 million passengers annually.

This expansion, slated for completion by 2025-26, is more than just a physical enlargement. It also incorporates significant sustainability upgrades: electrification of ground-handling vehicles, reduction of auxiliary power unit usage for aircraft, and integration of cleaner, more energy-efficient infrastructure.

Why Expand?

The reasons are both practical and strategic.

• Passenger growth & capacity constraints: The airport’s traffic has recovered and exceeded pre-pandemic levels, and the existing infrastructure was designed for a lower threshold.

• Regional & economic importance: The airport serves the French Riviera — a major global tourism and business destination. Improved capacity supports tourism, conferences, business travel and investment.

• Modernisation & sustainability: Rather than simply adding volume, the expansion focuses on more efficient, modern, environmentally-conscious facilities.

• Future-proofing: With evolving aircraft types, regulatory demands, and higher visitor expectations, the airport ensures the region remains competitive.

  
  
  Economic Impact

  Beyond infrastructure and passenger experience, the expansion has a significant economic dimension for the region.
  

• Already, in 2014, the European Investment Bank (EIB) provided a €100 million loan to finance the airport’s expansion and modernisation.

• The airport operator states that for the Terminal 2 project, “these major investments will have a direct economic impact of 80% for the Alpes-Maritimes and Monaco, involving around 20 different building trades from the local area’s construction companies. This will generate … some 100 people … increasing to more than 200 at the peak of the work.”

• On a broader scale, older figures (2012) indicate the airport and its operations generated around €7 billion in economic spin-offs and supported about 70,000 jobs in the region.

• The improved connectivity and infrastructure are expected to help the Côte d’Azur region strengthen its international business, tourism and investment appeal.
  

In summary: The construction phase will create hundreds of jobs locally; the longer-term expansion supports more visitors, increased business travel, and thus wider economic growth in the region.

A Vision for the Riviera

The Nice Airport expansion is, in many ways, a reflection of the region it serves — a place where luxury, innovation, and natural beauty coexist in delicate balance. By investing in smarter infrastructure rather than simply larger capacity, the project aims to secure the Riviera’s role as a world-class destination that is both accessible and sustainable.

As the new terminal nears completion, the challenge for Nice will be to welcome more visitors without compromising what makes the Côte d’Azur unique: its quality of life, its environment, and its timeless allure.

Nice Leads France in Workplace Fulfillment

Survey reveals high job satisfaction and strong professional stability on the Côte d’Azur.

Nice has once again distinguished itself — not just for its sunshine and Mediterranean charm, but for the happiness of its workforce. According to a 2025 national survey conducted by 3Gem for Adobe Express, 63% of employees in Nice report feeling fulfilled in their jobs, placing the city well above the national average and highlighting its rare ability to blend professional opportunity with exceptional quality of life.

Even more striking, only 40% of Nice’s active workers are considering a career move, compared to 59% nationwide. This low mobility suggests that most professionals in the area already find the conditions they need to thrive — both personally and professionally — without feeling the need to look elsewhere.

Innovation and Quality of Life: The Winning Formula

Nice Côte d’Azur’s thriving ecosystem is built around innovation, sustainability, and technology. The city has become a hub for industries such as digital tech, healthcare, and green innovation, providing fertile ground for forward-thinking companies and ambitious professionals alike. At the same time, the Mediterranean lifestyle encourages a healthy work-life balance — a key factor in job satisfaction for nearly one-third of French employees.

This unique combination of economic vitality and natural beauty helps explain Nice’s standout results. The city offers a setting where career growth and personal well-being reinforce each other, rather than compete.

A Stable and Attractive Market for Employers and Investors

For companies and investors, the numbers are telling. A high fulfillment rate (63%) coupled with low worker mobility (40%) signals a region rich in talent stability and loyalty — a rare asset in today’s volatile job market. Businesses benefit from motivated employees deeply rooted in their local environment, while professionals enjoy the confidence of sustainable career prospects.

This long-term anchoring contributes to the Côte d’Azur’s reputation as a place where innovation meets lifestyle — and where professional success naturally aligns with personal happiness.

Study conducted by 3Gem for Adobe Express between June 20 and July 2, 2025, among 2,000 French employees representing 24 professional sectors.

The Real Urban Myths of the French Riviera

 

There are plenty of urban myths, half-truths, and enduring legends about the French Riviera — a region where glamour, mystery, and scandal have long intertwined. From Monaco to Menton, from Cap d’Antibes to Saint-Tropez, the Riviera’s image has always lived somewhere between truth and illusion. Both of which help make the region so alluring.

Here are some of the most persistent — and revealing — myths that continue to define life on the Côte d’Azur.

1. Everyone Is Rich

Perhaps the biggest myth of all. While Monaco’s penthouses and Cannes’ yachts make headlines, most locals live ordinary lives — often working in hospitality, tourism, or services that keep the region running behind the scenes. The Riviera’s true character lies in its mix: retirees, artists, seasonal workers, expats, and families who have lived here for generations. One can have a wonderful life here without being rich.

And as any local knows, the truly wealthy don’t flaunt it. Those dripping in designer logos — real or fake — are often the nouveau riche, or the ones pretending to have money. Old money on the Riviera blends in quietly.

2. The Riviera Was Built by Spies and Scandal

Not entirely a myth. In the early 20th century and during both World Wars, the Riviera teemed with exiled aristocrats, agents, and fortune seekers. The hills of Èze, Beaulieu, and Cap d’Ail are dotted with villas that changed hands through mysterious shell companies and offshore trusts. Whispers of hidden wartime treasures and Cold War intrigue persist to this day — and sometimes, they’re not far from the truth.

3. Saint-Tropez Is Always Wild

Since the 1960s, Saint-Tropez has been mythologized as a nonstop playground for artists, models, and millionaires. In reality, outside the summer season, the village falls back into quiet rhythms — fishermen mending nets, locals chatting in cafés, and the scent of the sea replacing champagne spray. The Brigitte Bardot effect may have branded the town forever, but real life there is far calmer than people imagine.

4. The Rich Hide Their Treasures in Riviera Villas

There’s long been gossip that the ultra-luxurious villas along Cap Ferrat or Cap d’Antibes hide secret art collections, jewels, or offshore wealth. While it’s true the Riviera has a murky history of opaque ownership and discreet financial dealings, the “hidden treasure” stories are mostly romantic exaggerations — inspired by real scandals involving smuggled art or safes unearthed during renovations.

5. The Riviera’s Secret Aristocratic Underworld

Few places in the world attract as many self-styled nobles as the French Riviera. From “princes” and “counts” who materialize at charity galas to titled figures whose stories fall apart under scrutiny, the social scene is full of borrowed grandeur. Locals often joke that some of the most polished “aristocrats” in Monaco and Cannes are really just skilled storytellers who reinvented themselves after scandals elsewhere. And these individuals offer a blend of irritation and intrigue to many.

6. The Curse of the Riviera Villas

Some grand estates — particularly in Saint-Jean-Cap-Ferrat and Roquebrune — have earned reputations for being cursed. Owners have faced bankruptcy, tragedy, or mysterious accidents. Some villas have changed hands repeatedly amid strange coincidences. Whether cursed or not, their histories add to the Riviera’s air of whispered misfortune and mystique.

7. The Great Riviera Writers’ Circle

The idea that Hemingway, Fitzgerald, Picasso, and others partied together in one long, sun-soaked creative blur is a myth born of nostalgia. They did all pass through the Riviera, but mostly at different times and places — Fitzgerald in Juan-les-Pins, Picasso in Antibes, Hemingway mostly in Paris.

Though the stories of when Picasso and Jean Cocteau would get together are legendary. Still, the fantasy endures, woven into the region’s mythology of eternal inspiration and excess.

8. Everyone speaks English

In tourist zones, yes — but in local life, bureaucracy, and smaller villages, French (and Niçois dialect) rule the day.

9. There’s no real community, only transient wealth

Yet the opposite is true in much of the Cote d’Azur — long-standing families, artisans, and small-town networks thrive under the surface of the glitz. The region is one of those places where neighbours tend to help one another and bring character to various communities.

10. The region is purely French

Historically and culturally, the Riviera has strong Italian, Monegasque, and Ligurian roots, which still influence the food, and language.With a large degree of English speaking expats.

11. The Everyday Riviera

Beneath the glossy myths lies the real Côte d’Azur: small towns where neighbors still greet each other by name, outdoor markets that open before dawn, and winters when the wind howls off the Alps and shutters rattle. It’s a region of striking contrasts — where luxury meets authenticity, illusion meets history, and every myth hides a grain of truth.

These are just a small number of the urban myths of the region. Either as a visitor or a local, you’ll soon discover this is all part of the allure of the region.

Woman Jailed for Luxury Thefts and Unpaid Bills

 Society & Scandal

A 51-year-old Russian-Armenian woman living in Beausoleil has been sentenced to six months in prison and banned from entering Monaco for five years after a series of thefts and unpaid bills that together amounted to more than €6,000.

Unemployed and under guardianship, Ms. G. appeared in court escorted by police, accused in two separate cases. The first involved two thefts committed at the end of 2024 — a pink Pagani mink coat worth €5,000 stolen on December 24, and a €1,100 Dolce & Gabbana handbag taken a week later.

CCTV footage and store records led police to identify and arrest her in April 2025 in Monaco. During questioning, she admitted to the thefts, claiming, “The French state is stealing from us,” and “I was forced to get dressed.”

The second case involved smaller acts of fraud. On July 23, 2025, she ordered a €500 round-trip taxi ride and never paid. A few weeks later, on September 17, she ate a €37 meal with wine at Maya Mia restaurant and left without paying. The restaurant manager recognized her, saying, “It’s not the first time she’s done this.” Police quickly located her nearby.

In court, her defiance was constant. She interrupted the judge repeatedly, refused to stand when ordered, and declared, “France is stealing my money,” to justify her actions. The court reminded her she was there to answer for her own crimes. 

Previously convicted in 2023 for theft and already known to police for similar incidents in local shops, Ms. G. was described by the prosecutor as “someone who will never stop.”

Despite her lawyer’s plea for a psychological evaluation and a non-custodial sentence — citing her financial struggles and mental health — the court was unconvinced. “She doesn’t respect the work of others,” said the prosecutor, requesting immediate imprisonment.

The court found her guilty on all counts, sentencing her to six months in prison, issuing an arrest warrant on the spot, and upholding the taxi driver’s claim for €1,000 in damages. Ms. G. was escorted from the courtroom by police to begin serving her sentence.