Welcome to Nice! I stayed in the old town for 2 weeks at the begining of October. Here are some of the best spots I found to walk Meeka — all within walking distance from the old town. You’ll find a map with all locations at the bottom of this post.

Parc de la Colline du Chateau

Castle Hill (as it’s known in English) has a large open space at the very top of the hill with endless pathways and stairs that circle the mountain. It boasts of trees, bushes, open green space and small landings in between the staircase levels. These landings create great little pockets surrounded by the woods to let your dog play safely away from cars and crowds of people. Officially dogs are allowed on leash only. If you arrive early in the morning right after the gates open and before the crowds of people arrive, the space is empty except for the occasional jogger and the other dog walkers. Top pick for morning walks.

Promenade des Anglais

This is a wide boardwalk for pedestrians located between the main road and the beach — you can see it in the picture above, look for the row of palm trees following the beach. It’s a wonderful walk starting from the bottom of Castle Hill going towards the airport and back (as far as you want to go) — great spot for a night walk, very safe, lots of lights and people. There’s over 5km of boardwalk from the airport to around the coast point to finish at the pier. Depending on where you start, the closer you are to the point and Castle Hill, the more people and night life you’ll see.

Parc Castel des Deux Rois

This park has an official enclosed area for off-leash dogs. Unfortunately, that part is not very big and hangs off the side of the hill in a wooded section. If you enter the park from the South-West end (the side closest to the Port of Nice), you’ll walk right beside it — look to your right as you come up the hill through the more wooded section of the park. Luckily, if you keep going past the dog park and climb to the very top, you’ll be greeting by an extremely wide open field with a view of the city. One end of the park has a children’s section (there’s a drinking fountain in this section as well) but the space is more than big enough to keep your pup clear of the play area. I was lucky enough to find this space in the afternoon during a weekday so it was completely empty and made an excellent space to throw a ball around and let Meeka run wild.

La Tête Carrée

There’s a great park surrounding La Tête Carrée (a set of offices that form a 30m tall structure in the shape of a head). Technically, the park is the Jardin Sacha SOSNO but the only open entrance I could find is on the North end (from Traverse Barla). Apart from the entrance, the entire garden is surrounded by a fence, keeping your pup safe from passing cars. There’s usually a group of people with dogs that meet up around 17:00. The only downside — and this might have been due to the season I was in Nice — is that the park closes relatively early, around 18:30.

Promenade du Paillon

There’s a long stretch of doubled sided pedestrian only paths with grass in the middle that runs from the Promenade des Anglais and the beach, through the Place Masséna going all the way to La Tête Carré. It’s quiet from the streets, has lots of space for walking and is lively with plants, fountains and people. The downside is that dogs aren’t allowed on the grass section in the middle, you’re only allowed to walk on either side pathways. The grass area is meant for people to sit.

Beaches

Dogs are not allowed on the beach anywhere near the old town on central part of Nice. There’s a dog beach at the far end of the strip, near the airport and another one on the other end of Villefranche-sur-mer — both quite far to walk but easy to get to if you have a car. Otherwise, you’ll have to avoid the beaches during the main seasons. By October, we noticed dogs on the beach at night but be mindful that people still lie down there during the day — contrary to popular belief, it is the law in France to pick up after your dog. Note that at night, there are rats that hang along the edges of the beach where there’s rocks just below the wall — if your dog has good hunting instincts just be aware.

• Plage Lanterne (sometimes called port de Carras)
• Plage de l’Ange Gardien (a portion of the cove is authorized)

###Full day costal hike to Villefrance-sur-mer