This resort city, which has seen practically all the stars of world cinema, is considered a worthy adornment of the French Riviera. It is mainly known for hosting the international film festival. However, it’s not just cultural events that attract visitors to this city – they are drawn to the perfect beaches, luxurious hotels, interesting museums, and diverse attractions of Cannes.
Even if you are in Cannes for a short time, don’t despair – you will have time to see the most important sights. To help you, we have created a mini-route through the most interesting attractions of this festive French city. So, what to see in Cannes in one day?
Tip! If you have very little time or simply do not want to walk, you can take a sightseeing tour of Cannes on the Little Train – the route covers all the main attractions of the city. Each passenger on the train has an audio guide, and the ride costs only €12. The train departs every hour from 10:00 to 20:00, with a stop opposite the Palais des Festivals.
Palais des Festivals et des Congrès
Every year, celebrities from the world of cinema walk along the luxurious three-kilometer Croisette Alley. The Palais des Festivals et des Congrès is located on the Croisette promenade, near the Old Port. This is the venue for the International Film Festival, where viewers can watch the best auteur films.
The building used to house a casino and holds no architectural value – it somewhat resembles the late Soviet style. Nevertheless, no one plans to build a new palace for the world-renowned film festival.
The film festival takes place in May, and the rest of the time, the building hosts more modest events. The palace regularly offers tours for tourists.
Address: Palais des Festivals et des Congrès, 1 Boulevard de la Croisette, 06400 Cannes, France.
Official website: www.cannes-destination.com
The full ticket costs €6, and children under 16 enter for free. The tour lasts 1 hour and 30 minutes.
The palace is open for tours daily: from November to February from 10:00 to 18:00, and from July to August from 9:00 to 20:00.
Tip! Visit the Walk of Stars, located near the Palais des Festivals. This attraction features a path with metal plates bearing the handprints of celebrities embedded among the regular paving stones. In total, you can see the handprints of over 400 people: actors, directors, screenwriters, and other cinema workers.
Notre-Dame de l’Espérance
What should tourists who prefer architectural attractions see in Cannes? Of course, the oldest and most beautiful church in the city – Notre-Dame de l’Espérance. Built in the 17th century, its architecture is entirely in the Provençal Gothic style. Inside, the church features beautiful carved wood decor with rich gilding. The greatest value is the unique 19th-century frescoes covering the interior walls.
Address: 1 Rue de la Castre, 06400 Cannes, France.
Website: paroissedecannes.fr
Admission is free. Sunday mass starts at 11:30.
Notre-Dame de Bon Voyage
In the city center, literally across from the Palais des Festivals but not on the Croisette promenade, stands another religious landmark of Cannes – the active church of Notre-Dame de Bon Voyage, built in 1879 on the site of a bell tower of the same name. Despite the bell tower and two small towers remaining unfinished, the neo-Romanesque style building is grand and beautiful. The most impressive feature inside the church is the stained glass in the transept on religious themes. Five modern stained glass windows replace those destroyed on August 15, 1944, during the Allied landing on the Côte d’Azur.
Interesting fact! On March 1, 1815, Napoleon, having escaped from exile on Elba, stopped near the old chapel of Notre-Dame de Bon Voyage.
Address: 1 Rue Notre Dame, 06400 Cannes, France.
Services start: on Sundays at 10:30 and 17:00, on Tuesday and Thursday at 9:00, and on all other days at 18:00.
Admission is free.
Musée de la Castre
The powerful square tower of the Castre Castle is clearly visible from the Cannes waterfronts. The fortress was built in the 11th century and has been destroyed many times since. It still stands in a semi-ruined state because local authorities have decided to leave the landmark in its natural condition.
In 1919, the Castre Castle became home to a museum with a rather unconventional collection.
In the exhibition halls of the tower, you can see:
- Artifacts from the East, Oceania, Africa, and America (including masks from India and Tibet, household items of Canadian aborigines, stone carvings from Colombia);
- Sumerian cuneiform tablets, Sidonian gold burial masks;
- Paintings by the “lesser masters” of 19th-century Provence (Ernest Buttur, Joseph Contini).
In the former chapel of Saint Anne, attached to the tower, you can see a luxurious collection of musical instruments from around the world. There are even unique items such as bamboo flutes and singing shells.
Visitors to the Castre Castle are allowed to climb the tower. The ascent is challenging, with 119 steep steps leading to the observation deck. However, the tower offers stunningly picturesque views: Cannes, the sea, the Lérins Islands, and the Southern Alps.
Tip! Choose the second half of the day to climb the tower when the sun sets. Photos taken at this time are much brighter and more vibrant than those taken in the morning.
Address: 6 Rue de la Castre, 06400 Cannes, France.
Website: cannes.com
From October to March, the museum is open from 10:00 to 13:00 and from 14:00 to 17:00, closed on Mondays. From April to June and September, the exhibits can be viewed from 10:00 to 13:00 and from 14:00 to 18:00, closed on Mondays. In August, the museum is open daily from 10:00 to 19:00.
Admission costs €6. You can visit the museum for free on the first Sunday of each month from November to March.
The Carcassonne Fortress: The Oldest Architectural Ensemble in France
Marché Forville
The Forville Market can safely be included in the ranking of the best attractions in France. No wonder the French say: those who haven’t visited this market haven’t seen the full wealth and diversity of Provence.
Forville is the most popular food market on the entire Côte d’Azur. Both “ordinary” people and top chefs of haute cuisine restaurants come here to shop.
This market sells everything you could wish for, invariably of high quality: vegetables and fruits, herbs, cheeses, fresh seafood and fish, meat of all kinds, and spices.
What is surprising is the complete absence of any unpleasant smells despite the vast amount of products (particularly fish and meat)! The food stalls are so picturesquely arranged that they look like advertising pictures in glossy magazines.
Tip! Don’t forget to haggle! But note that vendors mostly speak only French.
On Mondays, Forville transforms from a food market into a flea market. You can buy many interesting items there: interior items, vintage dresses and bags, antiques.
Address: 6 Rue du Marché Forville, 06400 Cannes, France.
Official website: marcheforville.com
Operating hours: from 7:00 to 13:00.
Port
This is not just an attraction of Cannes – it is the city’s and the entire Côte d’Azur’s calling card.
The Old Port (Vieux Port de Cannes), built in 1838, is known worldwide, as its docks are the starting point of the Royal Regatta. Every autumn, during this yachtsmen’s competition, it’s impossible to find a free room in Cannes hotels – they are all booked in advance.
At the docks, you can see both luxurious billionaire yachts and modest fishing boats that go out to sea daily.
From the port, you can head to the Lérins Islands, with boats departing every 15-20 minutes.
Royal Fort
On Île Sainte-Marguerite – the largest of the Lérins Islands, there is another attraction worth seeing: the Royal Fort.
The Royal Fort is famous for having held the mysterious “Man in the Iron Mask” under guard for 12 years during the reign of King Louis XIV. The prison cell of the “iron mask” has not been preserved, only the legend shrouded in mystery remains.
Today, the fort houses a museum occupying the “Old Castle,” built by the French on the ruins of Roman fortifications in the 17th century. The Old Castle is the oldest structure of the fort and is classified as a historical landmark of Cannes and all of France.
At the Museum of Underwater and Ground Archaeology, you can see many fascinating exhibits. Some are artifacts from sunken Roman and Saracen ships: fragments of frescoes, amphorae, and ceramic items. There are also objects found during ground excavations. The extensive collection of ship models, from ancient to the most modern, is particularly interesting.
Address: 1 Place Bernard Cornut-Gentille, Île Sainte-Marguerite, 06400 Cannes, France.
Official museum website: cannes.com
From October to March, you can view museum exhibits any day (except Monday) from 10:30 to 13:15 and from 14:15 to 16:45. In April and May, access to the collections is open every day (except Monday) from 10:30 to 13:15 and from 14:15 to 17:45. From June to September, the museum is open daily from 10:00 to 17:45.
The full ticket costs €6, and the reduced ticket costs €3. Children under 18 years old, students up to 26 years old, and all visitors on the first Sunday of each month from November to March can visit for free.
Lérins Abbey
Near Sainte-Marguerite lies the second-largest Lérins Island – Saint-Honorat, with an area of no more than 1 km². In 410, Saint Honoratus founded a men’s monastery on this island, making it the oldest monastery in France. Every year, many people visit this abbey – tourists as an interesting attraction, and Catholic pilgrims as a great shrine.
The monastery complex includes several chapels, four of which are open to visitors. Tourists can also visit the church and attend services, study exhibits in the medieval manuscripts museum, walk through the covered cloister gallery, and even stay for a few days in the abbey’s guesthouse.
Tip! Visit the shops. You can buy wine, liqueurs, and jams made from grapes, oranges, and mandarins, as well as honey and national souvenirs.
The eastern part of Saint-Honorat is a “silent zone.” Only monks who have taken a vow of silence can be on the territory of this zone.
Address: Île Saint-Honorat, 06400 Cannes, France.
Website: abbayedelerins.com
Admission is free at any time of day.
Parc Naturel Forestier de la Croix des Gardes
The luxurious Croix des Gardes park, covering an area of 80 hectares, is an excellent place for a walk. The park features picturesque lavender fields, meadows with wild marigold and mimosa, and several walking routes. If you climb to the highest point – a hill with a metal cross – you will be rewarded with breathtaking panoramic views of Cannes and the Maritime Alps.
There is a small parking lot near the park, so you can easily drive there for a walk.
Location: 166 Boulevard Leader, 06400 Cannes, France.
We hope our “Best Attractions in Cannes” rating will be helpful to you. May your acquaintance with this amazing city bring you only positive emotions.
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