A stroll by the sea along the Promenade des Anglais in Nice is one of the things they say you have to do. Not arguing with conventional wisdom, we hopped off our hop on/off tour bus at this point, found a bench and just sat for a while looking over the beach and watching the comings and goings.

It is a lovely place for a stroll, not busy at all when we were there so wandering along this wide pavement by the sea was extremely pleasant.

In 1822 the orange crop of Nice was terrible and a lean time apparently for the workers. The English residents employed them to build this wide boulevard, hence the name. It stretches for over 4 miles around the bay and has been the favoured stroll of fashionable folk ever since.

There are great views over the sea and the beach but I especially loved the ornate exterior of the Hotel Negresco on the other side of the street. All pastel shades and very fancy they say it looks like a wedding cake. 

No sand here, just pebbles and not particularly tiny ones either. Apparently a few private beaches have added a layer of sand but most looked to me to be a stony experience.

We walked all the way along the Promenade and around to the Vieux Port. Stunning views here too, lots of restaurants, lots of boats and ferries departing for Corsica.