The Ghost Clients of the French Riviera

 

There is a peculiar phenomenon in the French Riviera property world that almost every experienced agent eventually encounters. It can become quite frequent and particularly noticeable during the summer season, when the Côte d’Azur is filled with visitors, international buyers, holidaymakers and people dreaming about what life might look like in one of the world’s most desirable destinations.

Agents and agencies talk about it from time to time, usually with a mixture of amusement, frustration and resignation. It is not a crisis, nor is it something that defines the property business, but it is simply one of those things that comes with working in an international market.

They are the ghost clients.

These are people who inquire about a villa, apartment or house without necessarily having any genuine intention of renting or buying it. Sometimes they are simply curious. Sometimes they are exploring the possibility of a future move. Occasionally, they want to experience what it feels like to inquire about a €10 million villa or a spectacular waterfront property they have discovered on social media.

There is nothing inherently wrong with dreaming. Looking at beautiful properties can be entertaining, and many genuine clients begin their journey by simply looking. The difference comes when curiosity turns into repeated requests for information, photographs, prices, floor plans and viewings without any realistic intention of taking the next step.

For an agent, that distinction matters because every request requires time.

Dreaming Is Easy. Planning Is Different.

The French Riviera naturally encourages people to dream. A photograph of a villa overlooking the Mediterranean, a property on Saint-Jean-Cap-Ferrat offering privacy and an amazing garden, or a swimming pool surrounded by palm trees can make almost anyone imagine themselves living there.

That is part of the appeal of the Riviera, and agents understand it.

For someone looking to rent a villa, however, expectations can sometimes be very different from the reality of the market. A five-bedroom villa worth several million euros, close to the sea, with a private swimming pool and easy access to local amenities is not going to rent for €500 a night during the height of summer.

That does not mean there are no reasonably priced options. There are. In areas such as the countryside around Vence, Grasse and other inland communities, different types of properties can offer considerably more space and value than those immediately beside the Mediterranean, they just might not also be that grand but beautiful nonetheless and tend to be the properties that book up first.

The key is to start looking early and to be realistic about what the budget can provide.

I regularly write about the rental market for precisely this reason. A little preparation before contacting an agent can save an enormous amount of time for everyone involved and, more importantly, can help a client discover what is actually possible rather than chasing something that exists primarily in an Instagram feed.

The Covid Years Took It to Another Level

The phenomenon became particularly striking during the Covid-19 lockdowns.

People were stuck at home, unable to travel and, in many cases, uncertain about what the future would look like. Suddenly, the idea of living somewhere else became much more tangible. The French Riviera, with its outdoor lifestyle, Mediterranean climate and beautiful surroundings, naturally became part of those fantasies and future plans.

During that period, I received countless inquiries from people outside France asking about properties they could not physically visit.

Under the restrictions in place at the time, actually viewing a property was often impossible. Even when an agent could arrange a video call, there were obvious limitations. Travel restrictions remained in place, businesses were operating under extraordinary circumstances and nobody knew with certainty when international travel would return to anything resembling normality.

And then summer arrived.

Some inquiries went far beyond simply asking about a property. During the period of travel restrictions, I was repeatedly contacted by people looking for ways to circumvent the rules so they could come to the Riviera for a holiday, even when businesses were closed and beaches and other public spaces were subject to restrictions.

What was particularly disturbing was the extent to which some people became demanding when I explained that I could not help them. I received attempts to bribe me, aggressive demands, and even death threats, all because someone believed I might somehow be able to get them into France so they could take a vacation.

It was an extraordinary period, and the property industry saw a particularly unusual version of something that had existed long before Covid: people wanting the Riviera experience without necessarily being in a position to make it happen.

Buying a Property Requires More Than a Property Search

The situation is somewhat different when it comes to purchasing a property.

If you are at the very beginning of your search, there is absolutely nothing wrong with saying so. In fact, being honest about where you are in the process is one of the most useful things you can tell an agent.

Perhaps you have never lived in France. Maybe you have only visited the Riviera once or twice. You may not yet know whether you prefer Nice, Villefranche-sur-Mer, Beaulieu-sur-Mer, Èze, Antibes, Cannes, Mougins or somewhere further inland.

That is all perfectly normal.

What is less helpful is sending an email saying, “We don’t know where we want to live yet. Can you send us everything you have?” And this type of request happens more than people would assume.

An experienced agent will need considerably more information before being able to make useful suggestions.

What is your approximate budget? How many bedrooms do you need? Do you want a pool? Is a sea view essential? Do you need to be within walking distance of shops and restaurants? Will you have a car? Are there children and schools to consider? Is this going to be a permanent home, a second home or an investment? When would you realistically like to buy?

Even better, tell the agent something about yourselves.

Explain how you live now, what you enjoy doing, what you want your life on the Riviera to look like and what attracted you to the region in the first place. That information can be far more useful than simply sending a list of property specifications.

This is where the relationship between client and agent begins.

Visit Before You Buy

For anyone seriously considering purchasing property in the French Riviera, particularly someone unfamiliar with the region, I strongly recommend spending time here before beginning an intensive property search. Even to rent in the area you think you want to be in if possible before buying.

The Riviera is not one single market.

The atmosphere, landscape, accessibility, property styles and everyday lifestyle can change dramatically within a relatively short distance. Somewhere that looks perfect on a property website may feel completely different when you actually arrive.

You might discover that you prefer a village to the coast, or the coast to the hills. You might realise that being able to walk to a bakery and train station matters more to you than having a spectacular sea view. Alternatively, you may discover that privacy and a swimming pool are far more important than proximity to restaurants.

Those are things that photographs cannot tell you.

It is also worth experiencing the region at different times of year. The Riviera in August is not the same place as the Riviera in January, and neither necessarily reflects what everyday life will feel like in spring or autumn.

The more you understand the region, the more useful your property search becomes.

Why Some Inquiries Don’t Receive the Response Expected

For years, people have posted on online forums about contacting agents and not receiving a response. Sometimes this leads to sweeping conclusions about French business culture or claims that French agents simply do not answer emails.

The reality is considerably more complicated.

Agents have different working practices, different levels of service and different workloads. Summer on the Riviera can be exceptionally busy, particularly when holiday rentals, property sales, viewings and international clients all converge at the same time.

Some agencies are also structured very differently from what an overseas client may be accustomed to. In these cases, telling an agent you are a serious clients from the onset leads to a quicker response.

Personally, I have always taken a different approach. Whether an inquiry arrives by email, direct message or WhatsApp, I prefer to respond and establish what the person is actually looking for. From there, we can determine whether there is something I can genuinely help with.

That initial conversation can make all the difference.

Tell Your Agent What You Really Want

One of the simplest things a prospective client can do is be upfront about their intentions.

Are you just researching? Say so.

Are you planning to visit next year? Say so.

Are you ready to buy but need to understand the different areas first? Say so.

Are you looking for a rental for next summer but have not yet established your budget? Say so.

There is no shame in being at the beginning of the process. An agent can work with someone who is researching far more easily than with someone who presents themselves as a ready-to-go buyer or renter when they are actually nowhere near that stage.

There is a considerable difference between being curious and being ready to act, and both are legitimate stages of the journey.

The more transparent you are, the easier it is for the agent to understand how much information to provide and when to follow up.

And don’t be surprised if the agent asks questions in return. Those questions are generally there to establish how they can help you, not to make the process difficult.

The Importance of Verification

For purchases and rentals, verification of funds can become part of the process.

To someone unfamiliar with the international property market, this may initially seem intrusive. From an agent’s perspective, however, it can protect everyone’s time.

Agents can spend hours researching properties, contacting owners, arranging information, coordinating with other agencies and organising viewings, while also dealing with their other client requests. If the person making the request has no realistic ability or intention to proceed, that time has effectively disappeared.

I have also seen agents being led along for months, sometimes even a year or more, by people who make repeated promises while requesting what seems like an endless number of viewings. This can happen even when other agents quietly warn the representative that the inquiry is unlikely to lead anywhere. In the end, after all the time, travel, appointments and effort, no property is ever bought or rented.

For some clients, the attraction is not necessarily the property itself but the feeling of having access to a world of luxury. They may want to be seen as important or influential and can make it known around the region that they are accustomed to being treated accordingly, expecting agents to open doors and offer them virtually everything. Yet, in some cases, the financial means simply are not there to support the lifestyle they are presenting. More seriously, there are people who will go as far as providing false or misleading financial documentation in an attempt to appear more financially qualified than they actually are.

This becomes important with luxury rentals as well.

There are people who genuinely want to rent a €20 million villa for a holiday, and there are others who would simply like to see inside one.

The latter may have nothing more in mind than photographs for social media pretending to live a specific lifestyle. This also happens more often than the general public might think.

So if agents may give off a vibe of being a bit guarded, these might be the reasons why. We encounter a lot of players.

A professional agent therefore has to establish whether an inquiry is genuine before investing substantial time into fulfilling it. Verification is not necessarily a judgment about the person making the inquiry; it is simply part of establishing that everyone is approaching the transaction on the same footing.

The Riviera Is a Relationship Business

There is also a cultural element to all of this.

The French Riviera does not operate like a 7-Eleven where you walk in, grab what you want and walk out again. The property market here is fundamentally relationship-driven.

That can take some adjustment for clients accustomed to a faster, more transactional approach.

In my experience, email can get the process started, but trust develops much more quickly when people actually speak to each other. Ideally, that means meeting in person. When travel makes that impossible, a virtual meeting or even a WhatsApp video call can go a surprisingly long way.

Once an agent understands you, your circumstances and what you are trying to achieve, the relationship becomes much more productive.

The agent can stop sending you properties that merely match a list of specifications and start identifying properties that actually fit your life.

That is a significant difference.

When Social Media Enters the Picture

Social media has made the ghost-client phenomenon even more noticeable.

A spectacular property can be photographed, filmed and distributed around the world within minutes. Someone sitting thousands of kilometres away can suddenly find themselves looking at a villa in Saint Tropez, Cannes or the hills above Nice and wondering what it would cost to spend a week there.

Sometimes that inquiry is genuine.

Sometimes it is simply curiosity after a glass of wine.

I have jokingly heard this referred to as “Wine O’Clock” — the moment when someone starts browsing properties online in the evening, sends an inquiry about one, perhaps sends another about a second property, receives a professional response and then disappears completely.

For an agent, it can become a familiar pattern. After some experience in this, you can almost read between the lines with those types of inquiries coming in.

Some agencies have even reached the point of informally keeping track of repeat offenders who regularly request information and then vanish. It may sound amusing, but after enough repetitions it becomes a practical way of recognising where time is unlikely to produce a result.

The Riviera is also a relatively interconnected community. During major events such as the Cannes Film Festival and Monaco Grand Prix, the volume of extraordinary requests can increase considerably, and agents quickly learn that a big claim about budget or connections does not necessarily translate into a genuine transaction.

It Works Both Ways

None of this means that every unusual inquiry is fake, or that people should be discouraged from asking questions.

Quite the opposite.

The property market can be confusing, particularly when you are dealing with another country, another language, different legal procedures and a completely unfamiliar region. Asking questions is part of the process.

The difference is between asking questions because you are genuinely trying to understand your options and repeatedly asking an agent to do substantial work when you have no realistic intention of moving forward.

The best relationships are transparent on both sides.

A good client should be able to say, “I’m only researching at this stage,” without feeling pressured. Equally, an agent should be able to explain what information they need before committing significant time and resources to a search.

That creates a much healthier relationship than pretending to be further along in the process than you actually are.

Your Agent Should Be Part of Your Team

Ultimately, finding the right property on the French Riviera should not feel like a game of chance, nor should it feel like a race to see who can send the most listings.

It is a collaborative process.

If you are serious about renting or buying here, give your agent enough information to understand what you are trying to achieve. Be realistic about your budget, your timing and your requirements, and don’t hesitate to explain if you are still learning about the region.

In return, you should expect your agent to listen, ask questions, explain the market honestly and help you understand what is realistic rather than simply sending you endless property listings.

That is how I prefer to work. I would rather have an honest conversation at the beginning, even if you are still figuring things out, than spend everyone’s time pursuing something that does not fit your circumstances.

Once we understand what you are looking for and where you are in the process, we can work together as a team, refining the search and navigating the practicalities until we find the property that genuinely makes sense for you.

Because on the French Riviera, the goal isn’t simply to find a property.

It is to find the right property for the life you want to create here.

Reach me at: Info@experiencethefrenchriviera.com

Why Now Is the Perfect Time to Book Your French Alps Winter Chalet

 

If you are already dreaming of crisp mountain mornings, snow-covered peaks, roaring fires and long lunches overlooking the French Alps, there is a very good reason to start planning your winter escape now.

The 2026/27 ski season is approaching quickly, and the best time to start looking for your chalet is before everyone else starts looking. Waiting until autumn is well underway — or, even worse, until the first snow has fallen — can dramatically reduce your choice of properties, particularly if you have specific requirements for location, size, amenities or dates.

Across the French Alps, the major resorts are already preparing for the new season. Some of France’s high-altitude resorts are scheduled to open as early as November 21, 2026, including Val Thorens and Tignes, with Val d’Isère, Chamonix and Les 2 Alpes following later in November. Many other popular resorts, including Courchevel, Méribel, Les Arcs, La Plagne, Alpe d’Huez and La Rosière, are scheduled to open during December.

For chalet renters, however, the important dates are not simply the opening dates of the ski lifts. It is the dates you want to stay that can make all the difference.

The Best Chalets Don’t Necessarily Wait Until Winter

Luxury chalet rentals can be very different from booking a conventional hotel room. There may be only one particular property that ticks every box for your group: the right number of bedrooms, an indoor swimming pool or spa, spectacular views, ski-in/ski-out access, a particular village location, staff, chef services or simply the right atmosphere.

Once that chalet is booked for your preferred week, it is booked.

This is particularly important around the Christmas and New Year period, February school holidays and other peak winter dates. These periods traditionally experience some of the strongest demand, and accommodation can become considerably more expensive when availability begins to tighten. France Montagnes specifically notes that Christmas and February are among the high-demand periods, while January and the periods between major holiday weeks can offer greater flexibility and potentially better value.

Booking early therefore isn’t simply about securing a roof over your head. It is about giving yourself the widest possible choice.

Location Can Make All The Difference

One of the biggest decisions is deciding what type of Alpine experience you actually want.

Do you want the glamour and extraordinary chalet selection of Courchevel? The vast interconnected ski areas around Méribel and Les Menuires? The high-altitude snow credentials of Val Thorens? The character of Chamonix with its dramatic Mont Blanc backdrop? Or perhaps somewhere quieter and more traditional where the pace is slower and the village atmosphere is just as important as the skiing?

There are also resorts that work particularly well for families, groups of friends and multigenerational holidays, where access to restaurants, ski schools, childcare and non-ski activities can be just as important as the pistes themselves.

A chalet that looks perfect online may not necessarily be perfect for your particular holiday. Understanding the layout of the resort, access to lifts, driving and transfer times, parking, restaurants and local services can make a surprisingly big difference to the experience.

Think Beyond The Skiing

A great Alpine holiday isn’t necessarily about spending every waking hour on the slopes.

Many luxury chalets are designed around the idea that the mountain experience continues once you come off the piste. Private spas, saunas, steam rooms, hot tubs, indoor pools, cinema rooms, games areas, fireplaces and terraces can turn the chalet itself into part of the holiday.

For larger groups, the configuration of the bedrooms can be equally important. You may want several ensuite bedrooms, separate accommodation for children, a master suite with a mountain view or enough communal space for everyone to eat and relax together without feeling crowded.

Then there are the extras.

Would you like a private chef? Daily housekeeping? Breakfast service? In-chalet massages? A driver? Ski equipment delivered directly to the property? Restaurant reservations or assistance arranging ski lessons?

The earlier you begin, the more time there is to put those details together rather than trying to arrange everything at the last minute.

Early Booking Can Give You More Flexibility

There is a common misconception that booking early means automatically paying more.

Not necessarily.

Rates vary considerably according to resort, property, dates, availability and the services included. What early booking can give you is something arguably more valuable: choice.

You can compare properties rather than simply choosing what remains available. You can look at different resorts, different chalet sizes and different dates. You may also be able to move your holiday by a few days or select a week outside the busiest periods if that produces a better overall value.

For example, January can be an attractive time to visit after the Christmas and New Year rush, while March and April can bring longer days, sunshine and a very different atmosphere in the mountains. France Montagnes highlights the potential for good-value skiing during the periods outside the busiest holiday weeks.

And don’t overlook the later part of the season. Several high-altitude French resorts remain open well into April, with some — including Val d’Isère, Tignes and Val Thorens — scheduled to continue into early May for the 2026/27 season.

Start With Your Wish List

Before you begin scrolling through hundreds of properties, establish what actually matters to you.

A realistic budget range helps you avoid disappointment.

How many people are travelling? How many bedrooms do you need? Are ensuite bathrooms important? Do you need ski-in/ski-out access? Is an indoor swimming pool or hot tub essential? Would you prefer to be within walking distance of the village? Do you need a chef or housekeeping? Are children coming? Are there mobility considerations? Are you bringing a dog?

And, perhaps most importantly, what is your preferred week?

Once those questions have been answered, the search becomes much more focused.

This is particularly valuable for families or groups travelling together. Coordinating several people’s schedules, flights, transfers and school holidays is difficult enough without discovering that the chalet you had your heart set on has already been taken.

Don’t Leave Transfers And Extras Until The Last Minute

Another reason to plan early is that your chalet is only one part of the holiday.

Airport transfers, private drivers, ski lessons, equipment hire, restaurant bookings, childcare and other services can all become increasingly difficult to arrange during the busiest weeks.

The French Alps are remarkably accessible from several international airports, but transfer times can vary significantly depending on the resort and winter road conditions. A beautiful chalet several hours from the airport may be entirely appropriate for one group and completely impractical for another.

Good planning means looking at the entire journey rather than simply booking the property.

The French Alps Are Much More Than Skiing

For many visitors, the attraction of a winter chalet is skiing. But the mountains offer something much broader.

There are snowshoe walks, sledging, spa days, mountain restaurants, après-ski, village markets, scenic drives and simply the pleasure of waking up surrounded by snow-covered peaks.

And for those who don’t ski, a luxury chalet can provide the perfect base for enjoying the mountains at a much slower pace.

That is another reason to choose your property carefully. The right chalet and resort can allow everyone in a group to enjoy the holiday, whether they are skiing from first lift to last chair or would rather spend the morning beside the fire with a book.

So, Why Book Now?

Because once the season gets underway, the question may no longer be “Which chalet would you like?”

It could quickly become “Which chalet is still available?”

That is a very different position to be in.

If you already know that you want to spend part of the 2026/27 winter season in the French Alps, now is the time to start looking. The opening calendar is already published for many resorts, and the winter season will begin in some of France’s highest-altitude resorts in November, followed by a much broader selection of destinations in December.

Whether you are planning a romantic Alpine escape, a family Christmas, a New Year’s celebration with friends, a February half-term adventure or a luxurious March getaway, early planning gives you the opportunity to find the property that actually suits you rather than settling for what happens to be left.

The mountains will still be there.

The perfect chalet, however, may not be.

If a French Alps winter escape is on your calendar, start the conversation now.

Contact: Info@experiencethefrenchriviera.com

Even A Bad Day On The French Riviera Is A Good Day ™

 

This is something that dawned on me one day years ago while I was having a particularly bad day. Somehow, looking around at where I was, I realized that even on a difficult day, I was still incredibly fortunate to be living where I was.

Ever since then, it has become a little personal slogan that I live by when needed: Even a bad day on the French Riviera is a good day.

It is also something I occasionally say to clients who are new to the region and are wondering what it is really like to live here year-round. Sometimes people arrive with the impression that life on the Côte d’Azur must somehow be too beautiful, too easy or too good to be true.

Of course, no place in the world offers endless happiness. People sometimes tell me, based largely on what they see on social media, that life here must be all roses. They see the sea, the sunshine, the villages, the restaurants, the beautiful homes and the spectacular views and assume that everyone living here must somehow have figured out the secret to a problem-free existence.

That simply isn’t reality. People living on the French Riviera have problems just like everyone else. We have difficult days, disappointments, financial worries, relationship problems, health concerns, frustrations and all of the other things that come with being human. And honestly, I wouldn’t want it any other way. A life where every day was exactly the same emotionally would probably become rather boring.

Even the weather doesn’t always cooperate with the postcard image. Yes, there is an extraordinary amount of sunshine here, but as I write this, we’ve had a couple of cloudy days with rain coming and going. And that’s perfectly fine. A little change in the weather can actually be good.

There are countless photographs and videos online showing the most spectacular side of the French Riviera. I am certainly guilty of producing plenty of them myself, but I do it because I genuinely love this region. The beautiful places aren’t an invention. They are part of everyday life here.

What you don’t always see in a photograph is everything that happens around them: people going to work, doing the shopping, dealing with paperwork, paying bills, having an argument, getting stuck in traffic, feeling tired or simply having a day when you don’t particularly feel like doing anything.

In other words, life. And perhaps that is one of the things I love most about living here. The Riviera can be spectacular, but it can also simply be home.

Day-to-day life can be as routine as anywhere else if that’s the life you choose. Or you can make a point of getting out, exploring somewhere new, having lunch in another town, taking a walk along the coast or simply sitting outside with a coffee and watching the world go by. So much of life here ultimately comes down to the choices you make and the kind of life you want to create. Like anywhere.

For me personally, moving here all those years ago remains one of the smartest decisions I’ve ever made, not only because of the surroundings, but because of what living here has done for me physically, mentally and emotionally as well.

When I am having what might be considered a bad day, one of the simplest things I can do is go outside. Sometimes I don’t need to do anything more than walk for a few minutes. The surroundings alone can change my mood. The sea, the mountains, the architecture, the light, the people, the sounds and even the changing seasons have a way of reminding me to step back from whatever is bothering me. It gives me the opportunity to reset, recharge and refocus.

And perhaps that is what my little slogan has really come to mean. It doesn’t mean that nothing bad happens here. It means that even when something bad happens, I am still grateful for where I am.

The Assumption That Everything Must Be Perfect

There is another side to this that I’ve noticed repeatedly over the years. When someone knows you live on the French Riviera, it can sometimes be difficult for them to understand that you might be going through a genuinely difficult period. From the outside, it can seem almost impossible. You’re having a hard time, but you live there. Surely you can just go to the beach.

I understand where that comes from. The Riviera has an extraordinary image around the world, and when people visit, they naturally experience the beautiful side of it. But beautiful surroundings don’t make anyone immune to life.

What I have discovered, however, is that living here can give you something that is perhaps even more valuable than beautiful surroundings: community.

I don’t have family here, but I do have an incredibly close circle of friends from many different backgrounds. We look out for one another, celebrate each other’s successes, help each other through difficult moments and understand that sometimes you simply need someone to be there. No problem is too big or too small, and I feel incredibly fortunate to have that.

Finding Your People

Just over a week ago, I met a friend from Canada who, despite living elsewhere, has remained a regular visitor to the French Riviera for many years. She is well known both here and in North America for the books she has written about this part of France and has been an inspiration to many people, including me. Over the years, she has also become something of a mentor.

We were sitting having coffee in Nice at a café, talking about life in general, when we started discussing something we had both experienced. Whenever she prepares to come to the Riviera, people sometimes tell her how lucky she is and how wonderful life must be when she is here.

And of course, it is wonderful to come here. But what people don’t necessarily see is everything that happened behind the scenes to get to that point. She has experienced difficult periods in her life, raised a family, was determined to build a career with her writing and eventually found a way to make many of her dreams happen. Her story reminded me that we often see only the destination and not the journey that brought someone there.

I have experienced much the same thing. Because I live here full time, people sometimes assume that everything must be wonderful all the time. But having lived here for so many years, I’ve learned to look at difficult situations differently.

Something might initially shock me, upset me or make me angry. Those feelings are completely normal. But I’ve also learned not to let them consume me. Instead, I quickly take a step back on the situation and ask myself what happened, what I can learn from it, what I can control and what I should do next. Rationally and methodically. And I then tell myself that I have been given a new life lesson.

Living in another country teaches you that. When you move away from the country you grew up in, you don’t always have the same support systems around you that you once took for granted. You have to learn, adapt and evolve. Life will inevitably change.

Over the years, I’ve come to believe that some of the most difficult experiences here can ultimately lead somewhere you never expected to go. That doesn’t mean difficult things are somehow good or that we should pretend they don’t hurt. It simply means that experiences have value. They teach you something, build resilience and make you understand yourself better. Sometimes they even open doors you would never have considered before.

I’ve found that some of the situations that once seemed like major setbacks eventually led me somewhere far more positive than I could have imagined. That has happened enough times in my life that I now tend to trust the process a little more than I used to.

It’s Not All Roses — And That’s Ok

So no, life on the French Riviera isn’t all roses. It never has been and never will be. Moving to another country can be difficult. Starting over can be difficult. Learning how things work, building friendships, finding your place and creating a new routine all take time.

But if you are genuinely happy with the decision you’ve made to be here, something interesting can happen. You begin to build a life that is uniquely yours.

And even if you initially feel completely alone, that doesn’t necessarily mean you will stay that way. People here are generally sociable. Start conversations. Talk to someone at a café. Chat with someone on the train. Join a group. Attend an event. Say hello to someone you keep seeing in your neighbourhood. You might be surprised by how many people are interested in meeting someone from somewhere else.

Eventually, you find your people, and once you do, the Riviera becomes something more than a beautiful destination. It becomes home.

That, for me, is the real difference. I don’t live here because every day is perfect. I live here because even on the days that aren’t perfect, I can still step outside, look around and remind myself that this is where I chose to build my life. Somehow, that changes everything.

Even a bad day on the French Riviera is a good day.

Belvédère d’Èze: Remembering the Riviera’s Lost Balcony

 

Long before the French Riviera became synonymous with luxury hotels, superyachts and packed coastal roads, the Belvédère d’Èze offered travelers something much simpler: a place to stop, breathe in the Mediterranean air and take in one of the most extraordinary views on the Côte d’Azur.

Perched around 505 metres above sea level along the Grande Corniche, the Belvédère became a popular stopping point as automobile tourism grew during the 1920s and 1930s. For visitors travelling between Nice and Monaco, reaching the viewpoint was part of the experience. The winding mountain road eventually opened onto a sweeping panorama of the coast, stretching from Cap-Roux towards Cap-Estel and, on exceptionally clear days, even as far as Corsica.

The attraction itself was remarkably modest. A small white building stood beside the terrace, accompanied by tables and chairs beneath a handful of trees. Visitors could stop for a glass of wine, beer or lemonade, perhaps have a light snack, and browse postcards and souvenirs before continuing their journey. Its proud sign announced what visitors had come to discover:

The coastline below them has changed remarkably little. The roads, cars and fashions belong to another era, but the view remains wonderfully familiar.

Standing at the Belvédère today, it is easy to imagine those earlier visitors doing exactly what generations of travelers have done before and since: pausing for a moment, looking out over the great blue expanse, and realizing that some Riviera views simply never go out of style.

Photos courtesy of Roland Ciccoli