Site tours

A choice of 6 visits to explore the archaeology and history of Nice

The site visits will take place on Wednesday 19 April

to choose when registering

Terra Amata Museum of Prehistory

Located on the site of the Middle Pleistocene human settlement uncovered during a rescue operation in 1966, the museum presents a reconstruction of the site in its fossil beach context. The excavation yielded some of the oldest hearths in human history. Recently renovated and redesigned, it incorporates the latest discoveries made at Terra Amata.

Details on the website (in French):  https://www.musee-terra-amata.org/

Lazaret Cave - FULL

An iconic site of the Middle Paleolithic, this cave presents a significant stratigraphic and archaeological sequence, allowing us to study the way of life of the populations, the climatic and environmental changes on the Mediterranean coast during the Pleistocene, in particular thanks to the numerous preserved faunal remains.

Details (in French) on: https://grottelazaret.departement06.fr/grotte-du-lazaret-9179.html

Museum of Archaeology - Nice Cimiez

This site museum is located on the hill of Cimiez, the ancient city of Cemenelum, capital of the Alpes Maritimes. This major archaeological site presents the remains of three complete thermal complexes (1st to 3rd century), streets, a residential area with its shops, and an amphitheatre. There is also an early Christian complex comprising a cathedral and a baptistery, which represents the last instance of urban life in Cemenelum (from the 5th century).

The museum, inaugurated in January 1989, succeeds the first site museum created in 1960 in the Villa des Arènes, now the Matisse Museum.

The collections cover the metal ages, Antiquity and the early Middle Ages. They relate to the life of Cemenelum and the province of the Alpes Maritimae, through the numerous objects discovered during the archaeological excavations of 1950 to 1969 in the site acquired by the municipality of Nice, but also beyond. Indeed, objects from the whole region as well as those discovered in the wreck of the Fourmigue C off the coast of Golfe-juan are presented.

Details on the website (in French): https://www.musee-archeologie-nice.org/

Visit of the Old Town (Vieux Nice) and the Castle Hill (colline du château)

The historic centre of Nice forms a triangular area bounded by the castle hill to the east, the beach to the south and the boulevard Jean-Jaurès to the north. Originally the first inhabitants of the city settled on the castle hill before migrating to the "lower town".

The old town of Nice has kept its Italian aspect. With its narrow streets and alleys, its ochre or red Sardinian buildings decorated with shutters, its baroque churches, its squares and some original curiosities. The site of the Castle Hill dominates the city of Nice and shows recent discoveries, in particular tombs and medieval funerary elements.

Practical aspects: visit in two groups, one for the Old Town, the other for the Castle Hill, organised by the Archaeological Service of the Metropolitan Côte d'Azur

Source : https://www.lasourisglobe-trotteuse.fr/le-vieux-nice/

Visit to the archaeological crypt of Nice - FULL

After three centuries of oblivion, this crypt reveals the remains of the medieval fortifications of Nice. It is a huge underground room of 2,000 m² located under the Place Garibaldi.

It is comparable to the Louvre crypt, notably for its historical and heritage interest and its facilities for the general public.

Source : https://www.explorenicecotedazur.com/fiche/la-crypte-archeologique/

Valrose Castle and Park

Guided tour of the Valrose estate, the scientific campus of the Université Côte d'Azur, which is one of the Riviera's major historical sites. A 10-hectare landscaped park, original statuary and buildings designed by the great names of the time make it a characteristic place of this "winter resort on the Riviera" which has earned Nice a place on the Unesco World Heritage List. An invitation to travel through time! The Côte d'Azur University has set up one of its university campuses here.

Details on the website (in French): https://univ-cotedazur.fr/universite/nous-connaitre/patrimoine/decouvrez/valrose