France, you were absolute magic. We made it through planes, trains, automobiles, and a serious amount of footwork to explore every bit of local culture we could find.
The trip by the numbers:
17 days of pure adventure
8,262 miles covered
286,942 steps tracked (our feet may never forgive us, but it was worth every single step)
When I look back at those nearly 300,000 steps, they tell the story of a journey that was about finding the perfect balance. We wanted to "know and do" the iconic, bucket-list sights, but we also wanted to step entirely out of the tourist bubble to capture the real heartbeat of the regions we visited.
Here is how we spent our chapters between the sea and the city.
Chapter 1: Nice – Beaches, Breezes, and Living in a Postcard
Our journey started straight from the last day of school. We rolled right from the classroom to a red-eye flight, touching down on the Riviera with 24 hours of no sleep and a determination to power through like champs.
Nice instantly welcomed us with sunshine and those brilliant Mediterranean blues. We spent our days mastering the art of the Riviera lifestyle: swimming, lounging, and having the most perfect little beach picnics of fresh focaccia sandwiches and Orangina right on the pebbles.
Beyond the Postcard Moment:
We rented a tiny, charming apartment tucked deep inside a narrow alleyway in Old Town. It was so wonderfully authentic that our front door opened right out into the middle of an outdoor restaurant's dining tables! Coming home meant weaving through locals enjoying dinner. We quickly adopted the local lifestyle, deciding that a midnight haul of fresh baguettes, local cheeses, pastries, and a bottle of wine from the market was the only acceptable way to end a sun-soaked day.
Bonus personal victory: It had been a little over 30 years since I last visited France on a high school trip, but the language came flooding back. Successfully ordering our meals and chatting with local shopkeepers in French felt like the sweetest hidden gem of the week.
Chapter 2: The Rail Adventures – Hopscotching Across the Riviera
One of the absolute best parts of setting up a home base in Nice was the train station. We used our "Passports" side to its absolute fullest here, turning our week by the sea into a hub-and-spoke adventure. Nearly every other day, we’d wander up to the station, look at the departures board, and hop a train to a completely new town to see what we could find.
Menton & Italy: One morning we took the rail right along the coast to Menton, completely falling in love with its steep hills of pastel-painted houses stacked high above the sea. Because the tracks keep going, we pushed right across the border into Italy for the day. Sitting down for a completely different language, a different culture, and an authentic plate of pasta just a short train ride away felt like a total daydream.
Antibes & Monaco: We spent another afternoon exploring the historic, stone-walled coastal charm of Antibes, and balanced it later in the week with a quick trip down the tracks into Monaco, walking the steep, pristine streets and marveling at the sheer scale of the yachts in the harbor.
Villefranche-sur-Mer & Èze: We hopped off at Villefranche-sur-Mer to check out its gorgeous, dramatic bay where stone arches frame the beach, and hiked our way up to the breathtaking medieval heights of Èze, where the stone village clings to the cliffs high above the water.
Having the freedom to breakfast in France, lunch in Italy, and be back on our pebbled beach by sunset was pure travel magic.
Chapter 3: The Moments in Between
Between the sea and the city lies the transition—the travel days that often turn into the best stories. For us, that meant a high-speed train cutting through the changing French countryside toward the capital. Watching the palms of the coast melt into the rolling hills and historic architecture of the north was the perfect pause button. It gave us a chance to reset our compasses, look out the window, and prep for the fast-paced energy of the north.
Chapter 4: Paris – Charm, Cobblestones, and a Record-Breaking Heatwave
If Nice was defined by its coastal breezes, Paris welcomed us with something entirely unexpected: a historic, intense heatwave. We hit the city just as the temperatures skyrocketed, enduring two consecutive record-breaking weather days that turned the city of light into a beautiful, sun-baked kiln.
It got so intense that we officially started joking our travel budget had a new line item: Hydration Over Nutrition. We were spending significantly more on bottled water, Orangina, and anything remotely cool than we were on actual food. And when I say cool, I mean European cool—because as anyone who has traveled there knows, actual ice cubes are far, few, and very far between!
The extreme temperatures threw a major wrench into our "Passports" planning, too. Some of the city's most iconic sights closed down early, and major parts of our visits were restricted. In fact, our highly anticipated tickets to the Louvre were canceled entirely due to the building's soaring indoor temperatures—and to rub salt in the wound, there wasn't a single open spot left to rebook for the rest of our trip.
But a true adventure means adapting. Armed with giant bottles of water and sheer determination, we hit the ground running. We traded the blazing open lines of the major tourist plazas for long, shaded, unscripted walks through historic neighborhoods where the tall stone buildings threw cool shadows over the cobblestones. We watched the city move from under the awnings of outdoor café tables, took refuge in the greenest canopies of local parks, and let our feet guide us into tucked-away courtyards that felt miles away from the heat and the crowds.
Sweating, laughing, and constantly hunting for a stray breeze, Paris challenged our endurance (and definitely pushed that 286k step count to the absolute limit!), but it rewarded us around every single corner.
Beyond the Postcard: Tips & Recommendations
If you’re planning your own French adventure—and want to balance the bucket-list spots with deep local culture—here are a few battle-tested tips from our 286,000 steps:
📋 The "Passports" Side (Smart Logistics)
Master the Hub-and-Spoke: Don't pack and unpack your bags every two days. Setting up a base camp in a central spot like Nice allows you to take effortless regional train trips without the stress of moving luggage.
Hack the Riviera Transit Passes: Nice offers two main options for 7-day passes. There is the local Lignes d’Azur 7-Day Pass (€20) which covers your in-city buses and trams. But if you want to hop towns like we did, upgrade to the Pass Sud Azur (€50). It gives you unlimited access to regional trains, trams, and buses across the entire Alpes-Maritimes region and even into Monaco.
The Border-Hopping Trick: The Pass Sud Azur will take you all the way to the French edge of the line, but it doesn't cover Italy. When we crossed over to go to Ventimiglia, we simply jumped onto our rail app while on the train and bought a separate, inexpensive ticket to cover the gap from the pass's final French stop on into the Italian station. Seamless and stress-free!
Cracking the Paris Transit Code: When you transition to Paris, figuring out the transit system is another puzzle. You have two primary paths depending on your timeline: the tourist-focused Paris Visite Pass (which gives you unlimited rides on the metro, RER, and buses for 1, 2, 3, or 5 consecutive days) or the local secret, the Navigo Weekly Pass (Navigo Semaine). The weekly Navigo is incredibly cost-effective for unlimited travel across all zones (including airports and Versailles), but remember its golden rule: it runs strictly on a Monday-to-Sunday calendar week schedule!
The Golden Rule for Visiting Èze: Do not take the train to Èze if your goal is to see the historic village. The train drops you at the very bottom (Èze-sur-Mer) at sea level, leaving you to either figure out a secondary transfer or tackle a brutal, incredibly steep mountain climb to the top. Instead, take Bus 82 or Bus 602 from the Vauban Bus Station in Nice. The bus takes the high road and drops you off right at the entrance of the hilltop village.
The Bus Station Secret: When heading to Èze, catch Bus 82 or 602 directly from its starting point at the Vauban station (easily reached via Tram Line 1). Because these buses get absolutely packed at later stops in the city, boarding at the origin ensures you are first in line, guaranteed a seat, and get front-row access to the gorgeous window views on the way up!
Have a Heatwave Backup Plan: Summer in Europe can surprise you. Always check museum and landmark operations during extreme weather, keep a flexible afternoon slot open, and buy flexible tickets where possible in case of sudden closures.
🗺️ The "Page-Turners" Side (Local Gems & Culture)
Live Like a Local (Literally): Skip the sterile hotels and look for authentic apartments tucked away in historic districts. Waking up to the sound of an Old Town alleyway or stepping out directly past local bistro tables changes the entire context of your stay.
Ditch the Tour Buses for Footwork: The best stories are found in the details. Walk the neighborhoods, wander down the shaded residential side streets, and let yourself get a little lost away from the main tourist plazas.
Respect the Nietzsche Path: If you do decide to walk between the hilltop village of Èze and the beach at the bottom, use gravity to your advantage. Be warned that the famous hike is absolutely no joke in the intense summer heat. We chose to hike it down, and we can't even imagine trying to trek up it. If you tackle it, bring tons of water and proper shoes!
The Magic of Basic Courtesies: Dust off your language skills! Even if you aren't fluent, simply singing out a warm "Bonjour!" when you step into a shop or restaurant, and a genuine "Merci!" as you leave, completely alters the vibe. Local shopkeepers appreciate the cultural respect, and it opens doors to much warmer, more authentic interactions.
The Perfect Blend
In the end, this trip reminded me exactly why I love to travel. It’s not just about standing in front of a monument to take the photo; it's about the magic that happens beyond the postcard. It’s the balance of a perfectly planned itinerary meeting the messy, beautiful reality of a family adventure.
We packed our passports, lived out our own pages, and returned home with a collection of stories that we'll be retelling for a lifetime.
Want to see the exact route we walked? You can follow our interactive map and see the day-by-day footprint of our journey over on
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