Cannes is a city in southern France on the Riviera that lies on the Côte d'Azur within easy reach of the Maritime Alps. Cannes is the "star" of the French Riviera, renowned for the International Film Festival and the glitzy hotels, cars, beaches and visitors it attracts every year.

Until the early 19th century, Cannes remained a small agricultural and fishing village with the highest density of population on Le Suquet hill. Since the 1830s, foreign and French aristocrats built holiday homes in the area, gradually turning Cannes into the resort town it is today. The development of the coastal village encouraged enterprise and the Tramway de Cannes opened in 1899, following the opening of Cannes Station in 1863. Cannes lies on the main railway line from Italy to Marseille and is well served by the TGV, national and regional trains. Cannes is located about 25km west of Nice and easily reachable by bus from Nice's international airport.

The city of Cannes is dense, centred mostly around the old port. There is plenty of shopping to be done in Cannes, filled with chic and expensive items from clothes and jewellery to art galleries. The Rue d'Antibes is the main street running east to west through the centre of the city, reaching the Rue Félix Faure at the bottom end, past the Allée de la Liberté and the port. This street has a range of shops along with movie theatres, also try Croisette for interesting shops. The ‘old town' of Cannes is known as "Le Suquet" which overlooks the west end of the port. The Le Suquet area consists of narrow streets climbing up and around the hill, with a picture perfect view. Whilst standing on the ancient rampart wall in front of the church, you can see east across the city, the port and the bay to the Cap de la Croisette and to the west across the Gulf of La Napoule to the Massif de l'Esterel mountains, a breathtaking moment! Also worth a visit are the 12th-century Tour de Mt. Chevalier, ramparts and 12th-16th-century church Notre-Dame-de-l'Espérence which give a touch of medieval flavour to the city. The casino Croisette is one of the largest, most well-known and loved casinos in France. Located near the main promenade, the casino features all of the classic games and slot machines. The ornate room offers something interesting at every turn, from blackjack to roulette. Jackets are required.

Cannes has many markets to compete with its size; the main daily market is at Forville, which is a big, active covered market, which takes up a full long block. A flower market is at the west end of the covered area and on Mondays, Forville becomes a Marché Brocante (flea market). There is another Marché Brocante which is held every Saturday at "Sur Les Allées", opposite the old port, beneath the trees. This becomes a two-day market on the first Sunday of the month. Place Gambetta is a smaller daily market in the covered area in the centre of the square.

Cannes is renowned for its miles of gorgeous sandy beaches along Golfe de la Napoule which are mainly open to the public for a fee, particularly the beaches to the west towards Cannes La Bocca. The famous "La Croisette" is the beach that extends around the bay to the east of the port, in the protected "Rade de Cannes" area. Out around the point at the west side of the port, the Boulevard Jean Hibert runs along the coast to the west, with even more fine sandy beaches. The beaches are all sandy here, as in Antibes and Juan-les-Pins.

Cannes is host to the annual presentation of the Palme d'Or, which attracts movie stars from around the world. The Cannes Film Festival was founded in 1939 and is one of the world's oldest, most influential and prestigious film festivals. The private festival is held annually, usually from mid to end of May, at the Palais des Festivals et des Congrès, in Cannes. Please visit Cannes Festival website for further information.

Cannes International Boat Show takes place annually at Port de Cannes in September. For exhibitors from the luxury yachting and pleasure boating community this is the industry's priority event; visitors also find this a great day out. 50,000 boating enthusiasts visit the show every year and you can expect to see 450 boats in water - including 360 motor boats and 90 sailing boats - and 200 boats on land. For further information, please visit Cannes Boat Show.

The International Festival of Pyrotechnic Art takes place at intervals through July and August over the Bay of Cannes; an international cast of fireworks production companies compete for the laurels awarded at Cannes – at the end of the festival, eight judges sit down to decide who put on the best display. This is an annual festival which was first held in 1967; resulting in some of the most explosively spectacular evenings of the summer. Further information can be found if you click here.

From catered villas with a chef and full team to self-catered properties with a private pool and gardens, luxury Cannes villa holidays from our portfolio are matched to the size, board basis and pace of your group. View the villas below or send us a quick enquiry for the right match.

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