Come October and right up to March, the mornings and late afternoons can be chilly and daylight hours are shorter so sight-seeing is best done between the hours of 10am to 4pm. Though it can be cold at night (it can drop to -15°C/5°F in some places), it's also a wonderful excuse to savour delicious hot chocolate or hot mulled wine - and partaking of a wonderful meal close to a roaring fireside is utter magic. December and January are exceptional months here with some stunning blue skies and warm days that even eating Christmas lunch outside is possible. You'll also have the added attraction of some very special Provençal Christmas markets and, with all the various towns and small villages adorned with Christmas lights - the French Riviera is absolutely enchanting.

Though it's true that the Cote d'Azur can claim more or less 300 days of sunshine, it is also true that it gets as much rainfall as the south of England in the remaining days (ie. 65) occurring in March and April, while the end of August and beginning of September can suffer severe thunderstorms, causing landslides and flooding and disruption to Nice airport on occasion.