While on a vacation in France and Italy we stayed 2 days at the Petit Palais , which is situated in a quiet area of Nice called "Cimiez" .
A friend of mine who lives in Nice had lived in the area, and recommended it to us. This Hotel has to be the best kept secret concerning hotels in Nice !
It has a fantastic view of the city , ( see pictures & videos) , with very confortable rooms ( ours had a small balcony facing the city & the sea) and you are close to Musee Matisse at the Jardins du Cimiez , The Monastery of the Cimiez ...just to mention a few ! In the summer it gets really hot in Nice , but it is always nice & cool in this area .
By car, you are about 10 minutes from the Promenade des Anglais , the beach , the old harbour etc !!! The hotel's WI FI connection was very good , and you can have breakfast outdoors in a charming little garden !
I recommend it to everyone staying in Nice , it is almost impossible to find a better hotel in the area, if you look at what it costs to stay there and what you get !!! We certainly will come back , whenever we are in Nice !!!

Needed a room last minute and everything was booked. Stumbled across the Petit Palais by accident on a European web site. It looked nice, so booked it. What a pleasant surprise it was. The staff was apologetic about not having a sea view that I requested, but it actually did have a bit of sea view! Also, there are some large gray parrots that live nearby in the trees that make exotic birdsong. The superior room was large and comfortable. There was a bright street light that shown into the window at night, but if you drew the outside metal blinds it blocked it out. Breakfast was very good too. They have a nice patio with fountain if you want to sit outside too. The location is up in the hills a bit, but still within walking distance of the Old Town. It is a bit of a hike getting home each night up the hill- but we thought it was well worth it being in a nice quiet residential neighborhood with beautiful gardens. Other hotels down in the middle of Nice can be in some pretty grimy areas and quite noisy. Also, the Petit Palais is family operated and you can sense the pride of ownership. The staff are very friendly and helpful and pleasant. This place is a real hidden gem.

Also, as many have stated, Nice is under major renovation and streets are torn up everywhere to build a new metro. They are supposed to be finished this year (2007) but I think it will most likely be another 2 to 4 years. But when it is done, Nice will be transformed to former glory. But don't let that stop you from going now. Nice is a good central location for exploring the Riviera and has lots of good restaurants.

This was our second stay at the Petit Palais and we had another lovely room (twin with table and 2 comfy chairs). There was a small garden leading to the car park where our dog could go out if she wanted but as no grass she wasn't impressed!

The staff were friendly and remembered us from our last visit which is always a plus in my book and they made our stay very comfortable indeed. We were there over Christmas and New Year and a box of chocolates and card were waiting for us on Christmas Day when we arrived back from an extended lunch at a restaurant recommended by the hotel.

Our only problems were with the parking in Nice as the town was so busy we had to park in the underground car parks and these are a little restrictive if you have a large car and also very expensive.

We would definitely stay at the Petit Palais again if in Nice.

A lot of trouble with this hotel. Booked through an agency. Initially denied any knowledge of the booking and then tried to get me to sort out the mess. To cap it all ended up being double charged and am still battling with them to recover the funds.

Hotel is a long way from town; up a steep hill . Very few rooms benefit from the fine views. You'll probably find yourself in very ordinary accomodation on the ground floor. Very expensive for what is on offer.

Don't waste your time on this hotel. Stay in the city centre instead.