La Croisette vs Le Suquet
La Croisette holds the palace hotels and beach clubs — the Carlton, Majestic and Martinez all directly on the seafront, with JW Marriott and Five Seas a few streets back offering rooftop pools at a lower price point. Le Suquet, the old fishing quarter on the hill above the port, offers a quieter, more local counterpoint a ten-minute walk from La Croisette.
Cannes Film Festival
Each mid-May, the Palais des Festivals hosts the world's premier film festival, and the Croisette palace hotels sell out months ahead at a significant premium. Outside festival season, Cannes runs at a noticeably calmer, more affordable pace than Monaco or Saint-Tropez in high summer.
“Cannes in festival week and Cannes in September are two different towns — decide which one you're booking for.”
Day trips from Cannes
The Îles de Lérins are a 15–20 minute ferry from the Vieux Port — Île Sainte-Marguerite (the Man in the Iron Mask's fortress) and Île Saint-Honorat (a working monastery). Saint-Tropez is 90 minutes west by car; Nice and Monaco are 45 and 60 minutes east.
