Nice is the capital of the French Riviera and fifth-largest city in France, with 350,000 inhabitants. It is also the second tourist destination in the country, with 5 million visitors every year, and has the second-busiest airport, with fourteen million passengers every year. Its unique environment and pleasant climate make it an exceptional location and a very attractive setting for major international cycling events.
Paris-Nice has been turning Nice into a cathedral of cycling every March since 1933. The final stage of the Tour de France, which was held in Nice last July for the first time in the history of the Grande Boucle, laid the mind-boggling cycling potential of Nice and its surroundings bare for the whole world to see. The last few stages, featuring an incredible finish on the Col de la Couillole and a stunning individual time trial between Monaco and Nice, have confirmed —following the Grand Départ in 2020— that Nice and its environs are a one-of-a-kind natural stage for the world's premier cycling races.
The closing stage of Paris-Nice will continue this tradition, with a new visit to the fabled Col d'Èze, which looms over the Mediterranean from a height of more than 500 metres and commands a fabulous view of the French Riviera, before heading back to the Promenade des Anglais.
Our ambition is to offer the very best in cycling, a commitment that extends to high-level competitive cycling. Métropole Nice Côte d'Azur is also dedicated to breaking new ground in the field of mobility. In 2024 we focused on expanding our bicycle path network, which now spans 231km across the metropolitan area, and renewing the bicycle market, with 2,000 bicycles in our bicycle sharing scheme, 90% of which are electrically assisted. Other priorities include making roads safer for cyclists, with 250 preventive signs, and shining a light on the mountain passes where golden pages of cycling history have been written, 50 road and gravel circuits, and 60 recreational routes for MTBs and e-MTBs spanning over 1,000 km across 24 municipalities.
And, finally, an unparalleled project: a 261 km MTB trail linking Auron and Nice through the most stunning panoramas in the metropolitan area, crossing sixteen towns and cities and stopping over in seven. No surprise that Nice has been awarded the "Tour de France Cycle City" label twice, first in 2021 and again in 2024.
