I have posted several times about our hotel in Nice that is a short walk from the center of Old Town in Nice http://www.hotel-la-perouse.com/
I have stayed there three times pre-cruise, and love it, because I am there for just a night or two, and don't need to have access to the beach, although the hotel is on a bluff over the sea.

I really like Nice for the flower market in the morning! Nice little shops, too. Other than the typical tourist spots in Monte Carlo, I really like getting out of town into the little villages up in the hills for some real "old Europe" feel. Of course, they are commercialized (some more than others) and have lots of shops, but it just suits me better than the same traffic I see here. I am not a "city" person.