International The city I would always come back to

AT the end of this month, the elites from the worlds of film and motorsport will descend on the Côte-d’Azur, a place which has become a byword for luxury. Although I fit into neither category, I will be joining them for a post-exam break in Nice — a city which, in half-a-dozen or so visits, has become a home-away-from-home for me.

Of course, I am very aware that a holiday in the French Riviera might be the most Exetah-sounding activity since Invades the Races. It can, however, be done on the tightest of student budgets, picking up a cheap flight and hotel and using the very affordable French rail network to get around when you’re there (provided they aren’t on strike, of course).

Harry Craig, Music Editor, recommends a holiday in Nice

Aside from affordability, I truly believe Nice is the perfect city break. It is just over an hour’s flight from London, and offers beaches, cities, culture, food and sport. The latter is particularly pertinent for me; as a Formula One (and, more specifically, Charles Leclerc) fan, being 15 minutes away from Monte Carlo is always a tempting prospect.

I truly believe Nice is the perfect city break

This proximity even afforded me the ability to attend last year’s Monaco Historic Grand Prix, staged a few weeks before the main event to showcase some classic motor racing machines — and more affordable than the British Grand Prix I attended a few weeks later! Even outside of racing season, Monaco is a city that lives and breathes Formula 1 — and there’s very few places in the world you can walk an entire Grand Prix circuit, let alone the most historic track of them all. As long as you don’t lose all your money at the casino, you can take the €5 train from Nice along the coast and sip an Aperol Spritz in the sun whilst overlooking Port Hercule. Just a tad better than Tesco tinnies in the rain at Exmouth. Nice also sits in the culinary sweet spot sandwiched between France and Italy on the Mediterranean coast. Con- sequently, I have never gone hungry on a visit there, between the croissants, croque monsieurs, steak-frites and seafood. You don’t even have to venture into an expensive restaurant on Promenade des Anglais to enjoy this cuisine, either; some of my best lunches in Nice have come from buying some bread, ham and tomatoes from a French supermarket and eating them on the beach. A bottle of wine on the side is optional, but recommended if you want to look truly French.

As a (half-)Frenchman, my perspective may be slightly biased, but Nice is by far my favourite city to visit. Even if my French family are originally from the north of France, my heart will always be in the south.