An ordinary tourist who has set aside a large enough sum for rest does not care where to go, to Sochi or Cannes. A traveler who dreams of combining relaxation and participation as a spectator in major international film forums has to choose. The Cannes Film Festival is held, as a rule, in April, the beach season is just beginning, the Sochi meetings of movie stars with the audience are planned for June, here the options for a beach holiday are quite favorable.
What else unites these two resorts, why have they been in the center of attention of guests from different parts of the world over the past century? Let's try to compare individual positions of tourist rest in the French and Russian resorts.
Sochi or Cannes - where is the best beach holiday?
The first thing that a tourist sees by the sea in Sochi is pebble beaches, sandy corners are extremely rare. There is a choice, you can relax directly on the pebbles, you can use the sun loungers (for a fee). Three recreation options: free public beaches, crowded, but with a developed infrastructure; wild, without amenities, but stunningly beautiful and deserted; closed beaches, for vacationers in expensive hotels or sanatoriums.
Cannes beaches surprise with a combination of white sand and azure sea, as well as a huge number of tourists. Because of this, the city beaches are cramped and not very comfortable. Therefore, many people prefer to look for paradise on the coast not in the city itself, but in the vicinity.
Shopping price
Sochi will not delight fans of holiday souvenirs with anything special, traditional sets of magnets, mugs, badges with marine symbols. Several large shopping and entertainment centers will brighten up your leisure time, but are unlikely to greatly delight you with purchases, prices are at a high level.
Since Cannes is considered one of the most fashionable resorts in France, you should not expect cheap goods and democratic prices. In places of favorite walks of tourists, on the Croisette and on Rue d'Antibes, the price tags will surprise people even with a very thick wallet. The main souvenirs are associated with the world of cinema, pens, key rings and movie clappers are quite democratic.
Resort attractions and entertainment
There are few historical buildings in Sochi; tourists are offered to entertain themselves in other ways. The most popular are sports, sea travel, city museums, amusement parks, themed Sochi Park. The Winter Olympics have significantly improved the sports infrastructure of the city, so you can try both traditional and newfangled extreme sports. Sea cruises are also an important part of the leisure of tourists; walks with access to the sea and a visit to neighboring Abkhazia are assumed.
Cannes as a tourist center began to develop not so long ago, in just a century it has turned from a modest fishing village into one of the best resorts in the world. There are no fewer architectural attractions in it now than in any other French city with a long history. You can walk around the city center, or go to the Suquet quarter, where several ancient churches have survived and the city's highlight is the 22-meter tower.
The most popular place of entertainment is the Croisette, its length of several kilometers allows guests to arrange evening promenades, show off chic outfits and enjoy beautiful sea views. The second popular holiday destination in Cannes is boat trips; from the coast you can see the most beautiful Lerins Islands, the pride of local residents. On the island of Saint-Ment there are preserved: the old Royal Fort; a prison built during the time of Louis XIV; powerful defensive structures. And on the neighboring island there is a monastery, which is more than one hundred years old, its most famous inhabitant was the monk Patrick, later canonized.
Comparing the individual positions of tourist rest in the French and Russian resorts, you can see that there are many different things between them, but there are also similarities. The first concerns the beaches - they cannot be called ideal, that is, you need to look for other entertainment in these resorts. The second similar feature is that recreation is too expensive (hotels, restaurants, shopping for souvenirs and gifts). The third point that unites them is the holding of world-class film festivals.
But at the same time, these resorts are strikingly different from each other, so Greater Sochi is chosen by tourists who:
- a priori do not like foreign resorts;
- dream of visiting all the sports facilities built for the Olympics;
- love mountain nature;
- are patriots of Russian cinema.
Travelers who:
- they love rest in the original French style;
- dream of seeing the stars of world cinema;
- love old European monasteries and temples;
- they love unhurried walks among architectural attractions.
