Unlike flashier spots such as Cannes and Monte Carlo or major holiday hotspots like Nice and St Tropez on the French Riviera, Juan-les-Pins is a quiet escape on the Côte d’Azur.
Conveniently situated between Nice and Cannes, it is just 13 kilometres (8 miles) to the southwest of Nice Côte d’Azur Airport. Juan-les-Pins and Antibes are essentially one and the same, forming a single municipality on the French Riviera. Juan-les-Pins is the seaside district within the broader municipality of Antibes.
Known for its beaches, nightlife, and the annual Jazz à Juan festival it has everything you might want from the ritzy riveria but is slightly quieter and more affordable than its brasher neighbours. According to Fodors Travel Guide: “Cannes is generally more expensive than Juan.”
Punctuated by pine tree–covered coves and coastal villas, the rocky peninsula forming Cap d’Antibes and Juan-les-Pins has drawn many literary greats like Jules Verne, plus performers and painters like Jean Cocteau and Josephine Baker, who stayed with her pet cheetah at F. Scott Fitzgerald’s former home-turned-hotel, the five-star Hôtel Belles Rives — one of the few spots on the Riviera that is still family owned and operated.
“Locals come here on the weekends because it feels as comfortable as going to visit family,” says fourth-generation owner Antoine Chauvin-Estène, whose heritage is intertwined with the hotel’s history.
The village itself was given the name Juan-les-Pins on 12 March 1882. The spelling Juan, used instead of the customary French spelling, Jean, derives from the local Occitan dialect.
Juan-les-Pins offers an escape from the crowds swarming swanky cities on the Riviera like Cannes and Monaco every summer. Part of the appeal is its predictability. The provençal market unfolds without fail each morning, stalls piled with pyramids of soaps and spices, and everyone gathers for un café (espresso) at Le Ruban Bleu. Locals lunch on the patio of Le Bistrot du Cure, near the lighthouse, dining on regional favorites like pan bagnat, a niçoise salad–stuffed sandwich, and pissaladière, an anchovy and olive-topped onion tart.
One reviewer on TripAdvisor wrote: “If you like glitz and glamour, then go for Cannes. If you prefer a more typical French town, then I suggest Antibes/Juan Les Pins. It has great markets, good restaurants, a good variety of shops, a lovely harbour and great bars.
“As far as beaches are concerned though I preferred the beach at Juan Les Pins.The beach at Juan Les Pins is fab, large and sandy, and although there are loads of private sections of the beach, there is also a large public section as well.”
Places to visit include the botanical gardens (Jardin botanique de la Villa Thuret) The garden was created in 1857 by Gustave Thuret (1817-1875), a botanist best known for studies of reproduction in algae. Today, the garden contains approximately 2,500 trees and shrubs in its collections, representing some 1,600 exotic species. The gardens are open weekdays without charge.
Another must-see is Aujourd’hui, the curvy modernistic seaside former beach house of movie mogul Jack L Warner.
The international jazz festival Jazz à Juan, held in July in a pine grove overlooking the sea is a highlight of the Juan Les Pin calendar and is where Ray Charles and Miles Davis made their European debut. Today the festival welcomes stars such as Diana Krall and Marcus Miller.
France.fr recommends: “A lovely way to see old Antibes and Juan-Les-Pins is on the Petit Train, making the most of the stops in the heart of the town – the Provençal market, Picasso Museum, Peynet Museum, Archeology Museum, Juan-Les-Pins, beaches and shops – and returning on the same ticket. You can also head out to Cap d’Antibes in an open-top bus, or discover the town on foot with a guided tour: choose from ‘Old Antibes Step by Step’ (Tuesdays at 10am in French; Thursdays at 10am in English), ‘The Painters’ Trail’ (Fridays at 10am) or ‘Juan-Les-Pins: from the Belle Époque to the Roaring Twenties’ (dates dependent on the season).
UK direct flights to Nice are with British Airways, Air France, easyjet and Ryanair with prices starting from £55.