Overview: Today it is hard to imagine that the quintessential glamorous
French Riviera resort of Cannes was for centuries a simple, sleepy
fishing village whose only visitors were monks and wealthy pilgrims
who came to visit the monastery on the nearby Island of St Honorat.
All this changed in 1834 when Lord Henry Brougham, former British
Chancellor of the Exchequer, arrived and established the city as a
popular up-market holiday resort for the British upper classes.
Soon the French and later the Russian aristocracy also flocked to
Cannes to while away their summers. Each May the world's press
flocks to Cannes for its annual Film Festival, which draws the
world's celebrities and super-stars along with the paparazzi and
expectant fans hoping to glimpse the rich and famous at the Palais
des Festivals. Cannes may be synonymous with the annual Film
Festival, however hundreds of less exceptional international
conferences take place here each year, making rooms hard to find
and restaurants hard to book for much of the year. Cannes is busy
all year round, frequented by hosts of business travellers
off-season and besieged by tourists in the summer, when the long
sandy beaches, glitzy nightclubs, chic shops and the famous
promenade are abuzz with beautiful people flaunting the latest
designer wear. Despite the city's pretensions and massive
over-development, Cannes is still an international city of charm
and good cheer.
Attractions
Antibes: Antibes is a pleasant excursion a few miles east of Cannes. It
has one of the best markets on the coast and an excellent Picasso
museum in its ancient seafront castle, the 16th-century
Château Grimaldi. Picasso was lent a room in the castle to
use as a studio in 1946. Several extremely prolific months followed
before he moved to Vallauris, leaving all his Antibes output to
what is now the Musée Picasso. Although Picasso donated
other works later, most of the collection dates from this one
period. The best known work is Ulysses and his Sirens.
There are also works here by some of Picasso's contemporaries
including Nicholas de Stael. Picasso himself is the subject of some
of his paintings. Alongside the castle is a cathedral which dates
from Medieval times; only the choir and apse survive from the
original Romanesque building, the nave and magnificent facade are
Baroque. Nearby is a market which is open every morning over the
summer and overflows with local produce.
Website: www.antibes-juanlespins.com;
Opening time: Musée Picasso open Tuesday to Sunday 10am to 6pm (June to September); rest of year 10am to 12pm and 2pm to 6pm. Please note however that the museum is closed until further notice due to renovations;
Admission: €4.58
IleSt Honorat & Ile St Marguerite : The two islands of Lerins - Ile St Marguerite and Ile St Honorat
lie within a 20-minute boat ride from Cannes. Ile St Honorat is a
tiny forested island, the smallest and most southern of the Iles de
Lerins. It has been the site of a monastery since the 5th century
and today the Cistercian monks are the only inhabitants on the
island. Much of the monastery is surprisingly modern, with the
exception of the ruins of the 11th-century monastery on the sea's
edge. The monks organise tours of the island and try to sell their
produce to tourists including homemade wine, honey and lavender
oil. The monastery also welcomes visitors for week-long retreats.
On the neighbouring Ile St Marguerite is the fortress where the man
in the 'iron mask' was imprisoned.
Telephone: (04) 9299 5400 or 9298 7138 (boat trips);
Transport: Boats run daily to the island;
Opening time: 8am to 6pm (summer); 8am to 5pm (winter);
Admission: €8
LaCroisette : The long, shop-studded promenade of La Croisette, and its seven
miles (11km) of beach, is Cannes' major attraction. Palatial hotels
line this strip each with their own private beach and this is where
you are most likely to spot a familiar face, or topless hopeful,
especially during the film festival, though you'll be lucky to see
further than the sweating backs of the paparazzi. La Croisette is
best viewed from the highest point of Cannes' Old Town, Le Suquet,
where the remains of the fortified tower still stand, along with
the 12th-century Chapel of St Anne. Le Suquet is a lovely place to
stroll, with its winding streets, small boutiques and restaurants.
At the end of La Croisette is the Palais des Festivals, whose
endless Allées des Stars is imprinted with handprints and
signatures of the famous. Just beyond is the atmospheric Vieux
Port, with its odd medley of luxury yachts and tiny fishing
vessels, and the rows of palm trees and fragrant flower market of
the Allées de la Liberté. Further west along the
seafront are the free beaches (where the locals go), along the
Plages du Midi.
Travel Companies
Planning a holiday in France? Visit Alpharooms.com for the best deals on hotels and
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operator thomson.co.uk today.
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