Sure, everyone’s going to have their own opinion about the most beautiful walk in the world. I’m a lover of architecture, the sea, dramatic coastlines, saturated color, and nature. This walk is all that.
Every March we spend a month at Cap Ferrat on the Med. Now I know what you’re thinking. This is the chic and chichi spot of the Riviera. Uber-rich royals and celebrities looking for old-world glamour have their eight-figure estates here (as did Hollywood luminaries like David Niven and Gregory Peck). Not exactly our social set.
But we’ve managed to unearth a small, modestly priced rental house, owned by some natives, with a fabulous view. It’s in the heart of Saint Jean, the Cap’s central village by the marina, where the housing is more dense, more modest. And a haven of the rich is a great place to be if you want peace and quiet on the busy Cote d’Azur, plus some gorgeous real estate to drool over as you cruise around.
All very nice, but the best reasons to stay here are the Sentiers du Littoral, which begin a block from our door. These are a series of walks around the Cap that are so spectacular I can hardly find the words to describe them. But put on your ‘baskets’ (the French word for athletic shoes) and let’s give it a shot.
Cap Ferrat has tall cliffs which fall down to the sea, and on the top of these steep cliffs are the elegant estates of People Not Like Us. Halfway down, at the base of their extensive but often natural tropical gardens where the rock formations begin, there is a narrow walkway cut out of the cliffs and paved with stone. This circless the cap. Look up and you get a seductive peek of some of those pastelstuccoed, tile-roofed dream houses. Look down and you see foamy azure waves, 
breaking dramatically against the rocks. Look out and you see the perched village of Eze, or the candy-colored town of Villefranche-sur-Mer, or the top of the highest corniche. And this might catch your eye: a crisp white mega-yacht or two, languishing in the intense turquoise water of the harbor, or maybe a rustic fishing boat making its way to shore from the open sea. For me it doesn’t get much better than this. There is the feeling of being on some wild, enchanted island, instead of on the over-developed French Riviera, and in March you’ll have the paths mostly to yourself. Climb down the rocks a bit and you’ll have the perfect perch for une pique nique. Photo: the Cap Ferrat lighthouse, along the walk.
There is one leg of the walk which takes you from Cap Ferrat to the town of Beaulieu, less of a hike and more of a wide, landscaped promenade. Here you’ll see families out for a stroll, bicycles and baby strollers, flâneurs with their dogs. Photo below: one of the mansions on the hill, this one owned by Bill Gates' former partner, Paul Allen.
If you come: as you can imagine, you can find the luxe hotel of your dreams here (Grand Hotel du Cap, the Royal Riviera, the Voile d’Or), but in the past we’ve stayed in a well-located little hotel of immense charm, with great views and a reasonable price. It’s called the Brise Marine and it’s a short stroll to the village and the restaurants. Our other favorite is the Hotel Welcome, across the bay in Villefranche-sur-Mer. Better yet, rent an apartment or villa for a week or more. Shelley Dobyns of http://rivieraexperience.com/ has several in all price ranges which are just perfection. It’s all a 10-minute drive from Nice, so it’s a great base if you’re exploring the coast. Just don’t show up in July and August, when toute l’Europe heads for the Med, unless you love the thrill of the crowd. Photo below: The walks begin and end In Saint Jean.
RECIPES: For this week's recipes, cruise over to The Daily Basics to read my article, In for Lunch Out of Time: How to Déjeuner in Style. While you're there, do subscribe to The Daily Basics, to stay au courant in food, books, lifestyle, and fashion.
In the COMMENTS: So fun reading about everyone's gelato places and flavors: avocado, green apple, basil/mint, key lime…And Hampton says hand-cranked is the only way to go, unless it's the southern Blue Bell ice cream.
Favorite Reads: Our reader Mel recommends Bo Thorne Niles' book, Window on Provence: One Summer's Sojourn Into the Simple Life
14 thoughts on “Grab ‘les baskets’ for the Most Beautiful Walk in the World”
Lovely! It looks like a fabulous place to visit.
Lyn, that top photo takes my breath away! On one trip, we trekked to Villefranche-sur-Mer to check out the immersion school that you went to and then ventured over to Cap Ferrat. We walked down the wide promenade but did not find the spot in your top photo. That photo is a feast for the eyes. I do hope you’ll be showing more photos from this area. (Unfortunately, I haven’t done the immersion course…yet.)
Harriet, we had been there several times too before we found the walks. They are fabulous, now they’re our favorite thing to do.
Having been on this walk several times, it is as lovely as Lynn describes! Beyond enjoying the beauty, the walk also burns some calories which I think gives me permission to have profiteroles later in the day!
Enjoyed learning about your winter getaway and the lovely walks you’ve discovered. Hope spring awaits you when you return home.
Oh My! We took this walk in 2008 while staying in Nice. Indeed, it IS the most beautiful walk in the world (the walkway around Cap Ferrat) and doesn’t cost a dime to soak up all the luxurious sights of the homes in the hills above. How fortunate you were to find un petit ‘pied a terre’ c’etait pas trop cher!
Lovely! My prettiest walk ever was probably the Via del Amore along the Cinque Terre in Italy. In some spots it was a little scary though! Seconded by maybe a night walk across Rome.
By the way, I’ve made your granola bars (with the ‘secret’ ingredient of Weetabix) twice now and they are way more than “Pretty Darn Good …”! Thanks – we love ’em!
Lynn, now you’ve given me another “must see” in France. The photos look like a fantasy land.
Thanks for this post and the great photos. It looks like a bit of heaven.
Please give the name of immersion school that you went to..I just
studied in Aix en Provence for two weeks and love the adventure.
Thanks
Thank you very much for sharing the rental information. They’re furnished beautifully, and that is not always easy to find. A comment on Mel’s book recommendation…The professional review is scathing for the book. I like to see the average reader’s comments since quite often they are best. For instance, I love “Vie de France” by James Haller. The professional reviewer said he wouldn’t accept it as a high school report on what he did during the summer. The book captures a wonderful month in the Loire in a rental house shared by friends. I hope he sold many copies!
That walk sounds heavenly! Thanks for sharing your amazing world with us!
This is definitely one of the prettiest walks I’ve ever seen! I’ve bookmarked this post so I can come back often and plan and dream, and dream and plan…sigh 🙂