Antibes Town Beaches
Côte d'Azur, France

 

 

Plage de la Gravette, but not in summertime (actually November), Antibes.
Fort Carré is visible to the left, with Cap d'Antibes far left.

Antibes is jokingly referred to as Angletibes by local French people as so many English people live there. The old quarter is a pleasant place to hang out for a while but is less than fascinating compared to many of the fortified towns in France; nearby are many facilities and night life is lively but bugbog would struggle to put Antibes in a must-see list of France's best attractions or beaches, though the place is well known for its music festivals.

Plage de la Salis, looking over towards Vieux Antibes. This beach marks the start of Cap d'Antibes.
Click the pic to see the lovely Cap d'Antibes walk.

Apart from the town, the Antibes region encompasses the famously expensive and lush Cap d'Antibes peninsula (including the superb Cap Eden-Roc hotel) and quite a few kid-friendly amusements such as Marineland theme park, the most popular kid's attraction on the Côte d'Azur. Museums include a Picasso, a Naval, a Napoleon and an Archeology/History but best of all is the Absinthe museum and bar. More on that lush establishment below.

 

Inside the old town, Antibes.

When boredom kicks in a fit tourist might consider a bike rental. There are plenty of shops nearby offering bikes and a ride around the Cap d'Antibes is an invigorating and interesting way to see how the other half live. Or walk it.

Getting to Antibes and Juans-les-Pins

 

 

Antibes' somewhat over-sold Marché Provençal, near the harbour, offers fresh products every morning except Monday, ranging from meat, fish, cheese and vegetables to tourist souvenirs.

 

An interesting place to have a drink in Antibes is the Absinthe bar/museum, beside the market.

This mysterious green spirit is associated with 19th century artists and writers such as Van Gogh and Baudelaire, but was outlawed for decades due to the health risks associated with it, such as insanity, death and loss of ears.
However these side effects seem to have been due to 'quality control' issues and the current thinking is that the herbs in absinthe are in fact good for you - or is that PR optimism?
Absinthe was reintroduced legally in 2003. Antibes' Absinthe museum/bar is set in the basement of the olive oil shop adjacent to the Marché Provençal and has a pleasant ambience with varied Absinthe at about €4 a glass.

 

 

Antibes' old town wall.

 

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