Antibes

Buy

grocery stores in the city center are typically open seven days of the week from around 8 am to around 8 pm Juan les Pins has a number of trendy boutiques In the old town a number of galleries with art for sale including paintings of local scenes Supermarkets - Carrefour and the by the A8, various smaller ones down the hill. The supermarkets, especially Carrefour, also sell the cheapest petrol locally. Antibes has a number of natural and health food stores, including , and . There are several other smaller health food stores in the area. The on Boulevard Wilson (near Lycée Audiberti) is 'non-stop' and has late closing hours (by French standards). They remain open when most other grocery stores do not.

Eat

Antibes features both standard French cuisine as well as local specials focusing on fresh seafood and produce from Provence. Scenic restaurants can be found around the port of Antibes, in the old town, and in Juan les Pins.

There are dozens, if not hundreds, of cafés, bars and salons de thé in Antibes. Tea tends to be expensive (up to €4 per person) and not the highest quality (Lipton tea bags, for example). Coffee from coffee machines (35-50 centimes) is actually pretty decent, and good in a pinch.

Antibes can be a difficult place for vegetarian or vegan travellers. Vegetarians should not have much trouble but vegans can expect ending up with a bland and expensive salad. Servers tend to not be very accommodating and are often visibly insulted if asked to modify a dish. There is hope, however. There is a 'falafel place' in the old town near the covered market with vegan options. There is also Chez Helen's, a vegetarian restaurant with vegan options in the old town. There are also a few Indian restaurants in the old town and, in Juan les Pins, a number of Asian restaurants.

Drink

One interesting place to drink at is the (25 Cours Masséna, Antibes - Tel. 04 93 34 93 00 -email: [email protected]). Absinthe, the mysterious green liqueur so much associated with 19th century artists and writers such as Van Gogh and Baudelaire, was outlawed for decades because of the health risks associated with its abuse, namely insanity and death. However these side effects seem to have been due to "quality control" issues and the herbs that go into absinthe are in fact good for you. Absinthe was only reintroduced legally again in about 2003, and there are very few places where it is possible to drink it. The bar is set in the basement of the Olive Oil shop by the covered market (Marché Provençal) of Antibes and is full of charm even without the lure of Absinthe. If there is a group of you the host will normally give each member of the group a slightly different absinthe so that you can try the different varieties. It is quite an experience and will set you back a mere €4 for a glass. Given the price of beer in the touristy bars by the port this is a real bargain. On Friday nights there is a piano man. The Absinthe bar also provides you with dozens of silly hats (yes, hats), which everyone wears and trades as the evening goes on.

Go next

French Riviera Nice Cagnes-sur-Mer Valbonne and Biot Mougins Cannes