Nice
Photos from 2013
Place Masséna
The Place Masséna is the main square of the city. Before the Paillon River was covered over, the Pont-Neuf was the only practicable way between the old town and the modern one. The square was thus divided into two parts (North and South) in 1824. With the demolition of the Masséna Casino in 1979, the Place Masséna became more spacious and less dense and is now bordered by red ochre buildings of Italian architecture.
The recent rebuilding of the tramline gave the square back to the pedestrians,
restoring its status as a real Mediterranean square. It is lined with palm trees
and stone pines, instead of being the rectangular roundabout of sorts it had
become over the years. Since its construction, the Place Masséna has always been
the spot for great public events. It is used for concerts, and particularly
during the summer festivals, the Corso carnavalesque (carnival parade) in
February, the military procession of 14 July (Bastille Day) or other traditional
celebrations and banquets.
Seqway tour
The Place Masséna is a two-minute walk from the Promenade des Anglais, old town, town centre, and Albert I Garden (Jardin Albert Ier). It is also a large crossroads between several of the main streets of the city: avenue Jean Médecin, avenue Félix Faure, boulevard Jean Jaurès, avenue de Verdun and rue Gioffredo.
The Place Garibaldi also stands out for its architecture and history. It is
named after Giuseppe Garibaldi, hero of the Italian unification (born in Nice in
1807 when Nice was part of the Napoleonic Empire, before reverting to the
Kingdom of Piedmont-Sardinia). The square was built at the end of the 18th
century and served as the entry gate to the city and end of the road to Turin.
It took several names between 1780 and 1870 (Plaça Pairoulièra, Place de la
République, Place Napoléon, Place d'Armes, Place Saint-Augustin, Piazza Vittorio)
and finally Place Garibaldi in September 1870.
A statue of Garibaldi, who was fiercely in favor of the union of Nice with
Italy, stands in the centre of the square. The recent rebuilding of the area to
accommodate the new tramway line gave mostly the entire square to pedestrians.
The architecture is in line with the Turin model, which was the norm of urban
renewal throughout the entire realm of the House of Savoy.
pedestrian since the introduction of the Nice tramway.
bicycle rental
