Here is a news that we can easily qualify as light but that some municipalities of the Côte d'Azur take very seriously: tourists choosing to leave the clothes in the suitcase and taking full advantage of their stay with a bathing suit for only clothing. If it is a well-established habit on the sand, it seems that these light outfits can inconvenience some inhabitants in the streets. As a result, several cities have banned the wearing of bathing suits or going bare-chested outside of bathing areas. Our Airbnb concierge in Cannes takes stock of the situation:
Nice, Menton, Cannes: proper attire required
It is no longer possible to walk shirtless or simply wearing a swimsuit outside the bathing areas in the cities of Nice, Menton and Cannes. A decision endorsed by the municipalities to fight against these outfits deemed inappropriate by many. With sunny days, the summer season in full swing and the mercury at its highest, many tourists no longer bothered to get dressed after cooling off in the various bathing areas, which may have inconvenienced residents. Having heard of this dissatisfaction, the municipalities took the decision to react and punish these outfits deemed incorrect: in the event of a finding of this offense by an agent, the fine amounts to 38 euros.
This may surprise more than one, accustomed to light clothing or not, since there is no law governing the wearing of swimsuits outside bathing areas and it is theoretically very legal to walk around bare-chested outside these areas. The implementation of this type of system is therefore the responsibility of the municipalities whose scope of action is limited to their territory. If this type of offense is indeed in a kind of legal vagueness, it is not only in the streets of Cannes and some of its neighbors, it will now be compulsory t-shirt or shirt.
The point of view of our concierge in Cannes:
It is true that during the summer, particularly in July and August, many visitors are in Cannes just for the holidays and tend to miss certain conventions. This is all the more true when the weather is favorable to it. However, this type of outfit is only adopted by a tiny part of visitors and, apart from the beaches, not everyone walks around in a bathing suit either. However, it is perfectly understandable that some people are inconvenienced and that the municipality reacts to it. In fact, it seems above all that these PVs are only very rarely drawn up and that they were put in place solely for the purpose of dissuasion. In any case, we have not heard of anyone having had to pay these 38 euros.
As tourism professionals, more specifically Airbnb seasonal rental managers, we are in constant contact with tenants. However, not all are present for the holidays and some come to Cannes for work, seminars or congresses and exhibitions. In this variety of profiles, it has never happened to us to carry out an inventory, repair or any other service with a tenant only dressed in swimsuits, even when he returns from an outing in town or to the beach. This problem, if we can say so, seems to exist above all in a minority way and in very specific situations that are not part of our daily Airbnb concierge service in Cannes.
Other cities less affected by the issue:
If it could be expected that many cities of the Côte d'Azur take similar decisions, this is not the case. Cities even very close to Cannes and frequented in the same way do not see things the same way. In Antibes, the municipality indicates to inform those concerned of the need to adopt proper attire on public roads when necessary, while admitting that this is something of a minority and exceptional. Similar story in Mougins, where the mayor indicates that he has no feedback from the inhabitants on this point. At the present time, the majority of municipalities therefore seem to be emphasizing exchange and prevention in order to get tourists to dress in clothing deemed appropriate by the majority.
On the whole, it seems above all that the ban on wearing swimsuits or being shirtless outside the bathing areas in Cannes and nearby towns is more a matter of dissuasion than a real hunt for offender. This is to ensure a serene summer for everyone where swimsuits are at the beach and shirts in the city. Moreover, our concierge agency in Cannes wish you a beautiful summer, in swimsuit or t-shirt.
