The French Riviera follows the Mediterranean coast from Saint-Tropez heading eastward to Nice. Also known as the Côte d'Azur, visitors pamper themselves at high-class resorts, gamble at elegant casinos, shop at designer boutiques and laze on sparkling beaches. Each year in May, Cannes' annual Film Festival takes centre stage of the world's arts scene, and Nice's consistent energy comes from several more festivals celebrating music, history and life on the Mediterranean.

The colours of Matisse were inspired by the Riviera, that boasts a brilliant colour palate, in part to an average of more than 300 days of sunshine per year. A donated artist left behind the Chapelle du Rosaire in Vence as a tribute to the nuns who helped restore his unstable health. The Riviera's patrons have toiled endlessly, amassing and exhibiting important works of art, as the vast collection of the Clews Museum in Mandelieu-la-Napoule displays. Picasso's works are showcased in Antibes Juan-les-Pins, and Vallauris' pottery firm carries the exclusive rights to reproduce his earthenware designs. From a passionate nightlife to a provocative past, the Riviera simply seduces.