Coastal Path: French Riviera

Four days on the Riviera coastal path, a right of way that guarantees public access to the shoreline even in front of private estates. The route starts at Saint-Raphael at the foot of the Esterel massif, follows Theoule-sur-Mer and its red porphyry coves, passes Cannes, Le Suquet and the Lerins islands, then Cap d'Antibes and the Tirepoil path between villas and rocky inlets, Saint-Jean-Cap-Ferrat and the Villa Ephrussi de Rothschild, before Menton, the city of lemons with its Italianate facades. The ground alternates between steps cut into rock and slippery passages at the water's edge, so flip-flops are out. Some sections close in heavy seas or after rockfalls. Spring and autumn offer the best light, with water still swimmable in October.