Nice, the comely capital of the Cote d’Azur, has one of the most accessible airports of any resort city in the world. Yet wealthy homebuyers have largely overlooked it in favour of smaller, surrounding villages, such as Saint Paul de Vence and Mougins. A mere glance at the traffic snaking interminably along the Promenade des Anglais in high season is enough to send the most ardent of city-lovers fleeing in search of a rural farmhouse surrounded by fields of sunflowers.

But the completion of the city’s new tram system (pictured left), scheduled for later this month, could change all that. One of the largest infrastructure projects in Europe, it has cost €370m and engaged more than 1,200 workers over the past six years. The result, city officials say, will be to reduce traffic flow, regenerate key areas and put previously inaccessible suburbs within striking distance of the Mediterranean.