About Cagnes-sur-mer

Though doubtless there has been some sort of settlement in the area for many centuries, Cagnes-Sur-Mer only really came to prominence at the beginning of the nineteenth century and records at that time show a population of 1,168inhabitants in 1800 compared to a figure nearer to 50,000 inhabitants today. The town’s most famous resident was the artist Pierre-Auguste Renoir, who spent his last few years there between 1907 and 1919 and whose estate, ‘Les Collettes’ has been preserved for posterity. The town started to gain popularity in the earlier part of the twentieth century, particularly with Americans, though todayCagnes-Sur-Meris moremulticultural and caters for those who enjoy pleasure craft and associated maritime entertainment. The town has come a long way from the 1920’swhen there were over a hundred small fishing vessels which provided employment for over two hundred fishermen, the town having established itself as one of the prime sources of quality Mediterranean fresh fish in the area.

For many towns which lie on the Mediterranean, it is hard for their main attraction to be the water, but Cagnes-Sur-Mer is also home to the Côte d’Azur’s only racecourse, or ‘Hippodrome de la Côte d’Azur’ as it is called, which is beautifully located to the south-west extremes of the town alongside the sea front. The town also offers the casino Terrazur on avenue de la Santoline which is open from 10am to 4am on a daily basis, though the gaming tables are not open until 9pm. The casino does, however, have two restaurants, three bars and outside terraces which make the most of the glorious views. Quality tennis courts can be found at le Parc des Sports Pierre Sauvaigo, while 17 Vélos Bleus (blue bicycles for hire) can be found at the vélo station on avenue Renoir, the Riviera having 175 stations and 1,750 bicycles available!

The larger towns in the French Riviera tend to have the larger and better known festivals, but they tend to be at the highest commercial levels and attract ‘stars’ and ‘names’ from all over the world. However, these events often lack the subtlety and character of the smaller, individual and less ‘glitterati’ based events, so Cagnes-Sur-Mer is more of an exception here. The Musée Renoir has been closed for some time, but is being officially re-opened in July 2013. l’EspaceSolidor is often the venue for fairs and small ‘expos’, 2013 having the ‘Hommage de Mario Pinton’ the famous Italian jeweler who died in 2008, running between June and September.

December 2012 saw the official opening of the ‘CitéMarchande’, a substantial indoor market which is open six days a week, being closed only on a Monday. The market offers everything one could want from the surrounding areas, including Italian produce, and you know you are in a form of gastronomic heaven as soon as you walk in the door. For fresh fish, the best place to go is the ‘Halle au Poissons’ down at the old harbor which is open every day. In the town centre, restaurants such as Le Flober produce traditional Provençale cooking, while le Brasserie du Printemps is well known for using little other than local seasonal produce for its fresh daily menu.