What to Do in March in and around Nice – 2024
Catch the final days and nights of the Nice Carnaval through March 3, 2024, including the free final-day procession, which finishes with the dramatic burning of the King float, and then fireworks!
The last two Carnaval Bataille de Fleurs Flower Parades, are on Saturday and Sunday March 1 and 2, 2024.
And if that doesn’t give you your fill of floats, head up the coast for the last days of the Menton Lemon Festival through March 3, 2024
Old Nice Spring Sidewalk Sale – first week of March. Over 300 boutiques pull their wares out on the streets of the Old Town, for a week-long ‘braderie‘ bargain-fest.
More Bargain Hunting: Every spring the Monegasques empty their fabulous closets to make room for the new styles, and donate them to Monaco’s annual Kermesse de Soeur Marie, a giant charity flea market/prize raffle held under the big top circus tent in Monaco’s Fontvieille district, usually the first weekend in March.
Paris-Nice Bike Race March 10, 2024 – Free. Missed the Tour de France? Catch the Paris-Nice! Covering over 1000 kilometers over 7 punishing days, the Paris-Nice bike race roars into Nice for its spectacular final day and dramatic finish. There is a free village off Place Massena from March 8-10 with food, fun, expos, demos, and more.
Mars aux Musees All Museums in Nice are free in March for students and those under 26, with lots of special activities, conferences, soirees and tours.
Saint Patrick’s Day in Old Nice, Sunday, March 17, 2024 A plethora of Irish Pubs await you in the old town, for the wildest pub crawl night of the year! See if you can hit them all!
Jazz/Blues/Rock Concerts in Nice Besides nightly concerts at local jazz clubs and rock bars, there is also a robust monthly concert schedule with Nice Music Live; the concerts at Theatre de Verdure, Black Box, and Stockfish, all have easy tramway access.
Sunday Orchestra Concerts – FREE – Every Sunday at 3:30pm the Nice Orchestra d’Harmonie gives a free concert in the either the Church in the Port (tram stop Port) or the Basilica Notre Dame (tram stop Jean Medecin). Click here for this week’s concert program.
Classical Concerts in Nice – There is a whole slate of at least 10 classical concerts every month by different Baroque and Classical ensembles performing in Nice’s fabulous Baroque Churches.
The Nice Opera has all kinds of events going on every week: Here is this month’s schedule
- Deal Alert: The Nice Opera ticket office has a last-minute ticket line, where one hour before the performance, unsold tickets drop to half-price …and for students and under-30s tickets are just 5€!
Free Parc Phoenix Weekend for local residents – Free – The first full weekend of each month Parc Phoenix nature park/arboretum is free to local residents (but you need to bring proof: a recent phone or electric bill, or tax notice). Right after lunch is the busiest time with a line to get in so mornings or late afternoons are best. Tram stop Parc Phoenix
English Book Sale – early in March, the small but overflowing English-American Library holds a semi-annual book sale to trim down their stacks. All books are in English and just 1€!
Go to the Snow: Take the bargain snow-bus for just 14€ round trip and in just 90-minutes, you can be up in the mountains for an easy day-trip with the feel of a mini-vacation. Here is a recent ranking of the best ski resorts and why, but know that Valberg is worth the day trip even if you don’t ski: you can still play in the snow, warm up with raclette for lunch, soak up the alpine ambiance, hike or snowshoe the Planetary Trail in the afternoon (a multimedia GPS guide is available at the tourist office), and sip hot spiced wine in a warm chalet before napping on the bus ride back.
How to get there on the Ski Buses: Besides the Valberg ski bus, there are three other Ski Express Buses to three different ski resorts, Isola 2000, La Colmiane and Auron… so really you can shuss in a different ski resort every weekend of the month and your transpo costs are only 7€ each way!
See Related Pages:
- Weekly Open-Air Markets – don’t miss the famous Monday Antique Market at Cours Saleya, and great shopping for Italian wares at the sprawling Friday Market in Ventimiglia, even in Winter!
- What to do on Sundays in Nice
- Nice by Nite – concerts, jazz clubs, salsa and tango venues, pub quiz nights, English-language theater and movie venues…
Photo credit: Bike race by Josh Hallett licensed under creative commons.