The sun really does shine on the south of France, with the French Riviera outclassing every other region in the country when it comes to sun-filled days. But where does it shine brightest? 

More than two thirds of the destinations that made it into the Top 30 of the list, which was created by travel platform Holidu, are to be found in the south of France, or more specifically the Provence-Alpes-Côte d’Azur region. Its Alpes-Maritimes department had the best showing overall, clinching all top five slots. 

Grasse takes the top spot 

Perfume capital Grasse came in first place, with an estimated 285.5 hours of sunshine a month. Antibes was a close second, with just shy of 285 hours, while Cagnes-sur-Mer, Cannes and Nice were also all within reach of the top spot.  

Into the Top 10 and there are plenty of other familiar locations: Fréjus, Martigues, Marseille, La Ciotat and Hyères.  

It’s not until 18th place that another French region gets a mention, with Perpignan in Occitania getting that honour. The Coriscan cities of Bastia (22nd) and Ajaccio (24th) also made the otherwise PACA-dominated list.  

The statistics used in the compiling of the “France’s Sunniest Cities” report came from World Weather Online, which has tracked the average monthly hours of sunshine in France between 2009 and 2022. France’s 100 biggest cities – those with over 20,000 inhabitants – were all considered in the rankings.  

To see the full list, please click here.  

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Photo source: Pays de Grasse Tourisme