About Villefranche-sur-Mer
On the Côte d'Azur between Nice and Cap Ferrat, Villefranche-sur-Mer wraps around the 95-metre-deep Rade de Villefranche, where the Citadelle Saint-Elme – a star-shaped fortress raised in 1557 by Duke Emmanuel Philibert of Savoy – still anchors the old town above the harbour. Plage de la Marinière unfurls 600 metres of coarse sand east of the port, dropping fast into deep water, while Plage de Passable hides in a smaller cove opposite. Sea temperatures hold 23–25 °C73–77 °F from July through September; Nice airport sits 15 minutes away by the A8.