I was there for 2 days and it didn’t seem like there was much else to do but shop?? I’d recommend visiting Eze (Jardins Exotique and Fragonard parfumerie) and Monaco. If you stay in Nice, you can take a day trip to these.

For a simply cheap one, you can take Hotel Interlaken.
BTW: You know that the beach in Nice is stony?
Have fun!

There’s loads to do in Nice! I was there for a week at Christmas and had a great time. A few suggestions:

1. Walk up and down the Promenade des Anglais.
2. Wander round the old town (there is a little restaurant there selling only Nicoise specialities which is excellent).
3. The Museum of Naive Art is very good…
4. ...As is the Musee des Beaux Arts.
5. Visit the Russian Cathedral.
6. Walk up the hill to the castle for fantastic views.
7. Rent a bike and go cycling.
8. See the Palais Lascaris – a Baroque villa.

There are also other art museums, churches etc to visit. Watersports and boating in summer.

Monaco is good for a day trip – it has a huge aquarium to visit (quite expensive I think), a great car museum, some gardens and a palace museum (very small and not terribly interesting unless you love Napoleon and/or the Monaco royal family).

Have a great time!

I stayed 4 days in Etap Hotel in Cannes and made regular trips to Nice, because the beach there is much better (see my flickr set: http://www.flickr.com/photos/arhus/sets/72157594235761547/). The old town is very nice, esp. in the evening. I liked the Etap Hotel very much, the price is great (and there are more than one in Nice, AFAIK). 4 days were enough to realize that I want to stay at least one month. Summer in Cote d’Azur is really great! (Note: in the image above is my girlfriend posing on the English Promenade. I wish you have such a nice weather.)

I stayed at Villa Saint Exupery Hostel (22 Avenue Gravier), and it was a great place to stay. The staff was very, very friendly, and there is a bar in the hostel, so you can meet other travelers and pick up tips.

We spent only a short time in Nice, and would like to go back again. July is the beginning of the busy season, from what I understand, so you may find it difficult to find a room – make preparations ahead of time! While we were there, wandering the colorful streets at night, we were drawn by the unmistakable smell of chickpeas (which both my wife and I love!). It turned out to be ‘socca’, and Nicoise specialty – sort of a huge crepe make with chickpea flour, cooked over a flame on round flat metal disks, which gypsy vendors cut into ‘slices’ that are scooped up into paper cones (the texture is crumbly, it is meant to fall apart). IT WAS WONDERFUL!! I still dream about this treat! I’ve read that some vendors make it too greasy – the one we happened upon seemed to make it just right, we could not imagine how it might be improved! We went back for seconds later! If you search the web for ‘socca’ and ‘Nice’, you’ll find lots of people trying to replicate the recipe back home. I am sure that the gypsies have secrets they are not revealing to anyone!

I stayed here last summer for 4 days, and although i wanted to stay here forever it was great! i went to the chagall museum, monte carlo, and tried to go to a winery but lost track of time… very easy to do here!
one thing i suggest is to get some gelato in Cours Saleya (in the Old Town). Get it at Finnochio’s…. it’s very very good. Cours Saleya is a great place to hang out and people watch. I also loved walking down Rue de France during the day for shopping and at night for the people.
As for hostels…. we stayed at an apartment which came to about 50 CAD per night per person (4 of us). not bad, and beautiful! I suggest looking at virtualtourist.com for tips and http://www.holiday-rentals.co.uk/France/Cote-dAzur-Riviera/Nice-Area/r2552.htm
for a place to stay. Also, if you’ve got cash to burn, take a helicopter to Monaco! amazing way to enter one of the most wealthy countries in the world.
danicing – gotta love wayne’s. the clubs you want are in old town. but trust me, wayne’s will NOT disappoint. most will tell you not to go, but for 4 days there, you won’t get sick of it as i am sure the locals do. we met a lot of people, and the music is good. there’s also oxfords for drinks and some other after hours bars. recommended: buy a bottle of vodka, they will give you tons of juices and pops to mix it with.
beach: bring a chair! or a inflatible raft! the beaches are rocky, but it’s not the end of the world. i liked the beaches, because the rocks don’t seem to get as hot as sand. but if you don’t want a bruised bum, don’t lay on just a towel.