By Garen Ajderhanyan · · 8 min read
In brief
Saint-Jean-Cap-Ferrat occupies a pine-planted peninsula between the Villefranche roadstead and the Beaulieu bay, halfway between Nice and Monaco. The village has retained the scale of its former fishing port, with its square and quays, whilst the Villa Ephrussi de Rothschild and its themed gardens overlook the isthmus facing both bays. A coastal path circles the cape at water level, from the Pointe Saint-Hospice to the lighthouse, at the foot of villas hidden behind the pines. It is, qualitatively, one of the most sought-after addresses on the Cote d'Azur.
Where does the peninsula begin, and why does one's pace change there?
From the Promenade des Anglais, it takes less than half an hour to change pace. The lower corniche follows the Villefranche roadstead, then a road branches off and descends beneath the pines. The Cap Ferrat peninsula extends into the sea between two shelters: the Villefranche roadstead to the west, the Beaulieu bay to the east. Two water frontages for a single wooded territory, and therein lies the key to the place.
What strikes me, each time, is the silence. The roads narrow, the stone walls rise, the umbrella pines close off the sky. One drives at walking pace without anyone becoming irritated. The peninsula does not reveal itself all at once: it allows itself to be traversed, and one quickly understands that what matters lies behind the hedges.
What remains of the fishing port at Saint-Jean?
Before the villas, there was a fishing hamlet facing Beaulieu. The village of Saint-Jean was built around its port, its square and its quays, and this geography has not changed. One still finds the scale of a village there: a church, a few sloping lanes, coloured facades facing the boats.
Today, the quays line up cafés and restaurants, and leisure boating has replaced most of the fishing. In the morning, out of season, one encounters mainly residents. This is what distinguishes Saint-Jean from many other addresses on the Cote d'Azur: the village is not a backdrop, it functions, with its shops that trade year-round.
Why does the Villa Ephrussi de Rothschild provide the key to the place?
At the beginning of the 20th century, Baroness Béatrice Ephrussi de Rothschild had her pink villa built on the narrowest part of the peninsula, where the view takes in both the Villefranche roadstead and the Beaulieu bay. Around it, she had nine themed gardens designed, French, Spanish, Florentine, Japanese, exotic, laid out like the decks of a ship facing the two bays. Bequeathed to the Académie des beaux-arts in 1934, the villa is open to visitors today.
I often recommend this visit before any property viewing on the cape, because it encapsulates the founding gesture of the place: to choose a point between two waters, plant a garden, live facing the sea. Everything the peninsula contains in hidden houses declines, in its own way, this same programme.
What does one see from the coastal path?
A public path circles the peninsula at water level. From the Paloma beach, it rounds the Pointe Saint-Hospice, its chapel and its marine cemetery, then heads south to the lighthouse, at the tip of the cape. One walks between the rocks and the sea, with Beaulieu, Eze and the mountains of the hinterland on one side, the open sea on the other.
This path is the best property lesson I know on the cape. One sees the villas from the sea: the staircases carved into the rock, the gates greened by salt, the private landing stages. And one measures this very Riviera paradox: an essentially private territory, encircled by a passage open to all.
Why do the villas of Cap Ferrat prefer not to show themselves?
For over a century, the peninsula has attracted names that history has retained. Leopold II of Belgium had his properties there, Somerset Maugham wrote at the Villa Mauresque, Jean Cocteau decorated Santo Sospir. Yet, from the road, one sees almost nothing: walls, hedges, pines. Here, the house does not display itself, it is glimpsed.
It is this withdrawal that creates the value of the place. Qualitatively, Cap Ferrat remains one of the most sought-after addresses on the Cote d'Azur, not despite its discretion but thanks to it. Properties there rarely change hands, often without publicity, and the calm is passed on with the walls. From the Promenade des Anglais, where we have observed this market since 1999, the peninsula stands as a fixed point: fashions pass, the pines remain.
Frequently asked questions
- Where is Saint-Jean-Cap-Ferrat located?
- On a peninsula in the Alpes-Maritimes, between the Villefranche roadstead and the Beaulieu bay, halfway between Nice and Monaco. It is accessed via the lower corniche.
- Can one visit the Villa Ephrussi de Rothschild?
- Yes. The villa and its nine themed gardens are open to the public; hours and fees are published on the official website. It occupies the narrowest part of the peninsula, facing both bays.
- Can one walk around the peninsula?
- Yes. A coastal path follows the coast at water level, from the Paloma beach to the Pointe Saint-Hospice then towards the lighthouse. The route is public, partly rocky; good shoes are sufficient.
- Has the village preserved its fishing port?
- Yes. The former fishing port has become a marina, but the village has retained its square, its quays and shops that trade year-round.
- Why is Cap Ferrat so sought-after?
- For a combination difficult to find elsewhere: two bays, a living village, the calm of the pines, the proximity of Nice and Monaco, and a discretion maintained for over a century. It is, qualitatively, one of the most sought-after addresses on the Cote d'Azur.
References
The author
Garen AjderhanyanEditor of La Gazette de la Promenade
Editor of La Gazette de la Promenade. He writes on Riviera property and the art of living, from Nice.