What to Do in September in and around Nice – 2025
Nice Ironman Men’s World Championship
- Saturday, September 13, 2025 – Free – Inauguration ceremony followed by the Parade of Nations (70 countries!) along the Prom across from the Old Town
- Sunday, September 14, 2025 – Free to watch! An ultra-endurance race of insane proportions… but we mere mortals can still watch! The 6:25am start is a 2.4 miles (3.8 km) open-water swim, then they bike over mountains for 112 miles (180 km), and if that wasn’t enough, then they run – I’m not kidding – a full marathon of 26.2 miles (42 km) on the Prom.
Ironman Prom Closure: On Ironman day, the Promenade des Anglais is closed to traffic all day, so even couch potatoes can take advantage of the unusually silent Prom for a relaxing drink at one of the bars facing the sea, with only the sounds of the waves and seabirds.
Last Days: Don’t miss the last days of the ‘Matisse Mediterranee(s)’ exhibit at the Matisse Museum which runs through September 8, 2025; or the Chagall Museum mosaic exhibit ‘Glass and Stone’ which ends September 22, 2025. Take bus #5 to Chagall stop, then Matisse/Arenes stop.
La Fiesta at the Port – September 12-14, 2025 – 3€ entry. Concerts Friday and Saturday, food trucks, vintage shopping, lots of happenings… Tram stop Port Lympia
History Weekend Fete du Patrimoine – FREE – third weekend in September, 20 & 21 September 2025. A weekend full of free tours, open houses, and lots of open sites that normally are closed… albeit all in French. Here is the 2025 schedule, but I find it easier to navigate the printed booklet which you can pick up for free any museum in Nice, at the tourist office on the Promenade des Anglais, or at the Bureau du Patrimone at the top of Cours Saleya. Even if you don’t speak French, all museums are free, and check out the free concerts.
Nice Prom’Swim Open Water Swim Sunday September 21, 2025 Plage des Ponchettes, across from the Old Town.
Grande Braderie de Vieux Nice – September 19,20,21 – all the old town shops put their wares on the street to tempt you with their bargain prices!
Bellet Winery Shuttle – Every Saturday in September, Nice runs a special shuttle bus that does a continuous loop of Bellet wineries for the cost of a regular bus ticket!
Free Port Ferry Boat – If you’ve never been on Lou Passagin, the free little boat that ferries 6 people at a time from one side of the Nice port to the other, now’s the time because its last day of the season is September 30, 2025.
Free Swing Dancing – Every Sunday in September from 6pm-8:30, strut your stuff or just watch! Its either in front of the Gare du Sud (Sept 7 & 14, tram stop Liberation) or in the old town at Place Palais de Justice in Old Nice (Sept 21, tram stop Opera). Swingin’Nice brings the music, and the dancers bring the mojo… from beginners to pros. If you’re not up twirling, then just have a drink and watch from one of the surrounding bar terraces.
Stand up Comedy in English – Every Sunday, the Bobar Comedy Club in Old Nice does a stand-up comedy show (Spill the Tea) in English at 5:15pm and cover charge is just 8€ or 5€ students. 27 rue Benoit Bunico, tram stop Cathedrale.
Fete de Sainte Fleur in Old Nice – FREE – Last weekend of September… The patron saint of florists (of course) is honored with a wandering floral fashion show made with over 6500 blooms, and wandering musicians.
Sunday Orchestra Concerts in the Park – FREE – Every Sunday in September at 3:30pm the Nice Orchestra d’Harmonie gives a free open-air concert in the gazebo in the Cimiez gardens. Click here for this week’s program. To find it, just take the bus #5 Rimiez and get off at the Musee Matisse stop, and you might as well visit the Matisse Museum or adjacent Roman Ruins as long as you’re up there!
The Nice Opera has all kinds of events going on every week: Here is this month’s schedule
- Insider Tip: 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€!
Catch one of the eclectic Candlelight Concerts at the Nice Observatory. A one-of-a-kind concert venue in a historic (but still operating) observatory lit only by a thousand candles… and at the end the cupola opens up to the stars! Tickets start at 47€ and the Observatory is a bit complicated to get to, but worth it for a unique concert in a truly magical ambiance.
Monaco Classic Week classic wooden yacht show – It happens every other year, so skipping 2024, but back for September 10-13, 2025 – Free
Other September Yacht Shows (but not free!) Cannes Yachting Festival September 9-14, and Monaco Super-Yacht Show September 24-27, 2025… it’s 600€ a pop for a day pass, so obviously I’ve never been, but here is a really interesting article on what it’s like behind that velvet rope…
Nice Music Live presents jazz and world music concerts at local venues. Particularly interesting are the concerts at the open-air Theatre de Verdure, and also those at the Black Box, or Stockfish, both of which have easy tramway access.
Flea Markets/Car Boot Sales/Neighborhood Garage Sales September is prime season for Vide Greniers, which means ’empty your attic’ …and empty it they do, with all kinds of oddball stuff trading hands at bargain basement prices. One person’s trash is another one’s treasure, and believe me, ‘treasures’ abound at these local sales. Click here to find one near you.
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
The Crossover Music Festival is THE festival for electro, rap, DJ, and cutting edge bands. Happening September 5-6, 2025, at Le 109 (also known as Le Frigo). Tickets are 25€, or 2-day pass for 40€. Tram stop Palais des Expositions then 10 minute walk.
Last year, Villefranche-sur-mer started a new Treme Jazz Festival, celebrating New Orleans music and culture. Will they do do it again in 2025?
Annual Autumn French Wine Sales (Foire aux Vins), when the large French supermarket chains crank out over 25% of their yearly wine business in a few short weeks with deep discounts, bulk buying and margin slashing. The biggest sellers for restocking cellars are bottles in the 5-8€ range, but the deals are deep on all price ranges. Cheers!
Giant ‘Apero’ Street Party on Rue Delille – Friday, Sept 26, 2025 Rue Delille closes to traffic and from 6:30pm to midnight throws a giant annual ‘Apero’ street party, and this year’s theme is Rock-n-Roll. The 15€ entry fee includes an ongoing finger-food buffet provided by the surrounding restaurants and drinks are just 4€ each, and the there is dancing in the streets with live music followed by DJ. Last year the tickets sold out fast so get there early, and the food is usually finished around 9pm, but that’s when the dancing really heats up. Tram stop Garibaldi
Biot International Glass Festival – held every other year, so hold that thought until 2026.
See Related Pages:
- Weekly Open-Air Food and Antique Markets – don’t miss the famous Monday Antique Market at Cours Saleya
- What to do on Sundays in Nice – free afternoon orchestra concerts, free museum days, special family-friendly concert matinees at the Opera House, and of course numerous Catholic masses to choose from…
- Nice by Nite – concerts, jazz clubs, salsa and tango venues, pub quiz nights, English-language theater and movie venues…
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Photo credit: Rugby World Cup fans by Best of Nice, Nice Ironman photo by Patrice Lapoirie courtesy of the Nice-Matin