And surrounding coastal towns. Will be in the region in early may and would enjoy some good recs. Prefer the more authentic over super touristy. Not sure if possible I. That area.

Gypsies. Watch out for the gypsies and if you have the chance to order a Cyclops Pizza, order it.

I spent a day in Nice while I backpacked thru Europe after graduation. It's a nice enough town, but I didn't really find much to do there. Hit the beach, tour the fortress on the big hill protecting the harbor, and walk around all the shops along the main drag. We took a trip out to Monte Carlo as well (easy bus ride) which was cool to walk around. Check out the marina to see the yatchs, dodge rolls and bentleys on the streets, check out the church that Princess Kelly got married in, wear nice clothes to get into the casino....my one regret is that I didn't shell out the 100 euro to rent a ferrari to drive the streets. You'll see ads for it all around town. I'm not sure if it's a scam, but if it's legit that would be too cool.

Don't want to completely hijack, but what about Montpellier and Marseille?

YEs. Im open to the entire French Riviera. Not familiar with the area. The only certain thing is that we will be taking a train from Paris to Nice. We will be open to any of the towns. Honestly, the less commercialized the better.

I only spent 6 hrs in Marseilles (train layover), but I liked that town a lot too...wish I had more time to explore. It seemed a lot bigger than Nice. Chateau d'If was pretty cool, there's a church on the tallest hill around town that was quite a sight...the docks were fun to walk around.

I can't offer any real help because I didn't even eat in town...my only opinion is that I'd like to go back and explore more.

And I'll agree with the poster above about the beach at Nice. The entire thing is rocky with very small patches of sand that fill up quickly. Also, I remember there is another rundown fort or church on the eastern tip where you can enjoy the sunset and look out across the Nice side and the Monte Carlo side at the same time.

I haven't been to Nice, yet, but I'm going in June. While there are a number of things to see in Nice, it's best selling point is probably as a jumping off point to the restof the Riviera. Good bus and train connections to just about everything you want to see, plus some sites worth seeing in town. Cannes has little going for it but the beach, St. Tropez has poor transportation connections to the rest of the Riviera, Monaco is too expensive, and the hill towns (St. Paul de Vence, Eze, etc.,) aren't as convenient for seeing other sites by public transportation (and you don't really want to drive into Nice, Monaco, etc.).

Antebes is a really nice beach town in France and not too far away from Nice.