In 2017, we decided to tour parts of Europe again, this time Southern France (with a quick stop in Monaco), Southern Spain, and Portugal.
We took an overnight flight from Montreal to Nice. Usually flying economy class, we upped our seats for a couple of hundred dollars for some extra leg room, and invested money into the Ostrich light pillows. We wanted a good sleep on the plane so we could hit the ground running upon our arrival in Nice.
Both the seats and pillows were an excellent investment! The extra leg room let us spread our legs (we opted for exit aisles – seats 28a/28c) and the pillows were wrapped around our eyes and ears, providing a very cozy pillow-like solution; simultaneously, they kept the area dark and muffled some of the airplane noise. We have never slept better in Economy and actually woke up just an hour before landing in Nice.
Asides from a slow 30 minute wait for our shuttle…
we had a quick stop at our hotel Mercure 3000 to unpack a few things. This is a small hotel with even smaller rooms, but conveniently located near the airport, a 7-minute walk to the train station (which can take you into downtown Nice, Monaco, Cannes, etc.), and is right beside a mall (in summer 2017, it was undergoing a lot of construction).
After that, we decided to head to Nice’s downtown via train. Stopping off at Nice Gare, and having a quick bit of ice cream, we walked down the main Street where it bustled with people walking down the street of shops and restaurants. 
After that we briefly checked out the promenade which had activities and festivities taking place… 
Before dinner, we stopped for a few well-priced drinks at Les Distilleries Idéales.
Feeling happy and relaxed, we ventured out to our first official dinner at Voyageur Nissart, which included a 3-course meal of beef cutlets, calamari, cold cuts, and the likes.
We finished off with a unique French pastry dessert and crème brûlée (which happens to be my favorite dessert!).
Finally exhausted after a long day, we took the train back to our hotel to get a good night sleep before venturing off to Eze and Monaco! 
Hi! Bonjour! I’m Sophia, a traveler since birth, a lover of nature and culture and a linguist! I want to share with you all the wonderful things you can do and experience if you just set your mind to it and travel!