The Guide · On the doorstep
Cannes drinks upward, and most of the good views belong to hotels. That sounds forbidding and is not: almost all of them will serve you without a room key, and one drink buys you a room you would otherwise never see. This list covers the rooftops and pool decks, the hotel bars where the interior is the point, and the wine rooms two streets inland where nobody looks at your shoes. It says plainly which is which, so you do not turn up at a piano bar expecting a quiet glass. The hour before sunset is when the light does the work. In festival weeks every one of these needs booking.
Cannes · on foot
Waterfront · Port Pierre Canto · Daily
Out at Port Pierre Canto at the far end of the Croisette, with the boats in front of you and none of the crowd. Open from half eight in the morning to midnight, so it works for coffee, a long lunch or a drink at the end of the day. Priced sensibly for the position. Service can be slow, so allow time to get the bill.
Cannes · on foot
Wine Bar · 850m
The oldest wine bar in Cannes, open since 1998. Over 50 wines by the glass, a good terrace, charcuterie and cheese. Fills quietly with regulars after work and stays that way until late.
Cannes · on foot
Natural Wine · 1km
Relaxed, slightly hidden wine bar built around organic and biodynamic bottles. The staff are knowledgeable without being precious about it.
Cannes · on foot
Wine Cave & Bar · 850m
A wine merchant since 1937, now also a bar, tucked behind Marché Forville. A wide, carefully kept selection across regions and budgets, including small-producer bottles you don’t see elsewhere in town. Hervé, the owner, is unhurried and good company, happy to walk you through anything you taste. A dartboard in the corner makes it the rare wine bar that turns into an evening.
Cannes · on foot
Old Town Bar · 950m
A former sheep pen in Le Suquet, low vaulted ceilings, candlelight, a resident DJ at the right volume. The sort of room that makes it hard to leave before midnight.
Cannes · on foot
Cocktail Bar · 1km
Takes its classics seriously. The French 75 is made with gin distilled in Grasse. An impressive collection of aged whiskies. Smart without being stiff.
Cannes · on foot
Hotel Bar · 1.1km
One of the great Riviera institutions. Raku ceramic counter, deep armchairs, the bartender decides for you. Bossa nova on Thursdays from 7pm. Worth going at least once.
Cannes · on foot
Rooftop · 250m
The terrace café on top of Villa La Malmaison, the last Belle Époque villa on the Croisette. A discreet spot for a proper espresso between exhibitions, with glimpses of the bay through the parapet. Tue to Sun, 10am to 6pm.
Cannes · on foot
Rooftop · 1.2km
Above the noise of the Croisette with views along the full sweep of the bay. Best in the hour before sunset, with a glass of Provençal rosé and nowhere particular to be.
Cannes · on foot
Neighbourhood Bar · 1.4km
A small, well-kept secret on Avenue de Lérins. Excellent cocktails, sharing plates and a soundtrack to match. Booking essential. Open Wed to Sun from 6pm.
Cannes · on foot
Hotel lounge, 12min walk
A 1930s seafront hotel at the foot of Le Suquet, redesigned by Raphaël Navot in natural stone, oak and pale tones. The lobby reads more like a private living room than a reception, with palms, soft music, and reliable wifi. Order a coffee at the bar and settle in for a quiet morning. Less polished than the Croisette palaces, more textured and unhurried.
Cannes · on foot
Hotel lounge, 9min walk
The ground-floor lounge is discreet, unhurried, and welcoming to non-guests who order something. Velvet banquettes, marble tables, reliable wifi, and a quiet rhythm that holds all day. Best before 17:00.
Cannes · on foot
Hotel lounge, 11min walk
Modern hotel on Rue d’Antibes with an open lobby and co-working-style seating. You can settle in with a coffee from the bar, plug in, and work for hours. Quieter than the grand palace hotels, and there is a rooftop for a break.
Cannes · on foot
Rooftop · Hotel Pool
Five floors up behind the Rue d’Antibes with a small pool and a view over the rooftops to the bay. The pool deck itself is for hotel guests, so ask for the bar side. Best in the hour before sunset, and worth reserving in season.
Cannes · on foot
Hotel Bar · Since 1929
The great survivor. Dark wood, low light and a room that has not really changed since the Riviera’s first golden age. Closed Sundays and Mondays, and it gets crowded and clubby after ten, so go early if you want the room rather than the scene.
Cannes · on foot
Live Music · Late
Behind the Martinez, a supper club with live singers working the room and a kitchen running until the small hours. Not remotely quiet and not trying to be. Deposit taken on booking, so check it comes off the bill at the end.
Cannes · on foot
Wine Bar · Cheese
On Rue Hélène Vagliano, a proper wine bar with a list long enough to be a problem and a cheese board that arrives with things you have never met. Locals call it Warner. Closed Sundays.
Cannes · on foot
Natural Wine · Cave à Boire
A cave à boire on Rue Bivouac Napoléon: low-intervention bottles, olives, chickpea bread, and staff who will pour you three things to taste before you commit. Opens at three, closed Sundays. Small, so early or late.
Cannes · on foot
Rum Bar · Caribbean
On the Quai Saint-Pierre facing the old port, run by two women, doing rum flights and salt cod fritters to island music. Completely unlike anything else in Cannes. Evenings, closed Sundays. It gets swamped, so go before eight.
Cannes · on foot
Hidden Garden · All Day
Down an alley off Rue des Frères with a walled garden at the back. Wine, small plates and a room run by Max, who will talk to you. The furthest thing in Cannes from the Croisette.
Yes, at almost all of them. The bar is normally open to anyone, while the pool deck and loungers are kept for hotel guests. Reserve in season and say you are coming for drinks rather than to swim.
The hotel rooftops along and just behind the Croisette, and the terraces at the port end of the seafront. They are at their best in the hour before sunset rather than late at night.
Nothing written down at most of them, but the palace hotels expect you to have made an effort and beachwear will get you turned away. Smart casual covers it.
On the Croisette and in the beach clubs, yes. Two streets inland the wine rooms and neighbourhood bars are priced normally. The gap is larger here than almost anywhere else on the coast.
Ordinary bars close around one in the morning; clubs and the port-side places run later. During the Film Festival and Cannes Lions almost everything runs late and needs a reservation or a name on a list.
Riviera Séjour
Notes from the coast, now and then. Nothing more.
Thank you, you are in.
