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
, especially for its "delightful drawings". The book is a memoir about a New York woman who flees the pressures of the city to spend a month in Provence.
