Overview
North of Saint-Paul the land rises towards the limestone ranges of the Préalpes d'Azur. Two communes hold the transition between the coast and the mountains. Vence is a full town of 19,917 people (INSEE, 2023) spread across 39 km², with an old centre, a cathedral and shops open all year. Tourrettes-sur-Loup, 6 km to the west, is a village of 4,165 people on 29 km² that climbs from 47 metres to 1,246 metres, with its old houses built along a rocky spur above the Loup valley. Both communes belong to the Parc naturel régional des Préalpes d'Azur.
They share an outlook as much as a landscape. Many homes here look south towards the coast with open hills behind them. Buyers find more land for their budget than closer to the sea, at prices per m² below those of Cannes or Antibes.
Vence
The old town of Vence is built around the Cathédrale Notre-Dame-de-la-Nativité. In the cathedral's baptistery is Marc Chagall's mosaic Moses Saved from the Waters, made in 1979 and the last mosaic completed in his lifetime; Chagall lived in Vence before moving to Saint-Paul in 1966. On the edge of town, on avenue Henri Matisse, stands the Chapelle du Rosaire, which Matisse designed in every detail between 1948 and 1951, from the stained glass and ceramic walls to the vestments.
Daily life centres on the Place du Grand Jardin, which hosts markets, a professional brocante on Wednesday mornings and the Nuits du Sud music festival in summer. The square takes its name from the garden of the Villeneuve family and keeps a Roman column from the third century.
Around the centre, Vence spreads over hillsides of villas and gardens, so a buyer can choose between a house a short walk from the old town and a property on a quiet lane with land and an open view.
Tourrettes-sur-Loup
Tourrettes is a medieval village whose fortified houses form its ramparts, arranged in a half-moon around a single central lane. About forty artisans work there, from weavers and potters to jewellers and painters. The fifteenth-century church of Saint-Grégoire keeps carved and gilded altarpieces.
The village is known for its violets, a pillar of the local economy. The Fête des Violettes, founded in 1952 by the Scottish-born artist Victor Linton, is held on the first weekend of March with a flower parade and a producers' market. La Bastide aux Violettes, opened in 2010, is devoted to the flower. Below the village, the hamlet of Pont-du-Loup lies in the Gorges du Loup and is home to the Confiserie Florian, which makes candied fruit and crystallised flowers.
Markets are held on Wednesday mornings on the Place de la Libération and, on a smaller scale, on Saturday mornings on the Place du Scourédou behind the church.
Property and prices
| Sales recorded | Median price per m² | Median price | Sales of €1m or more | Sales of €2m or more | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Houses | 210 | €5,690 | €604,000 | 33 | 6 |
| Flats | 473 | €4,030 | €205,000 | 1 | 0 |
Source: DVF sales records (DGFiP, data.gouv.fr), sales from 1 January 2024 to 31 December 2025; single-house and single-flat sales of at least €50,000 and 20 m². Median price per m² of built area.
| Sales recorded | Median price per m² | Median price | Sales of €1m or more | Sales of €2m or more | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Houses | 103 | €5,870 | €800,000 | 39 | 11 |
| Flats | 12 | €4,740 | €218,000 | 0 | 0 |
Source: DVF sales records (DGFiP, data.gouv.fr), sales from 1 January 2024 to 31 December 2025; single-house and single-flat sales of at least €50,000 and 20 m². Median price per m² of built area.
Between 1 January 2024 and 31 December 2025 DVF recorded 210 house sales in Vence at a median of €5,690 per m² and a median price of €604,000, with 33 sales above €1 million and a single sale of €9.2 million. Its 473 flat sales had a median of €4,030 per m². Tourrettes-sur-Loup recorded 103 house sales at a median of €5,870 per m² but a higher median price of €800,000: 39 sold for more than €1 million and 11 for more than €2 million. Flats there are rare, with only 12 sales.
The pattern is telling. In Tourrettes nearly every sale is a house and the houses sold were typically larger, which pushes the median price up even though the price per m² is close to that of Vence. In Vence the market is broader, with village houses, apartments and villas of every period alongside each other. Homes across both communes range from village houses and apartments to stone bastides and villas provençales with gardens, with a smaller number of contemporary houses. On steep or wooded plots check access, water and the natural risks statement; our guide to property diagnostics lists what the seller must provide.
Who buys here
Vence suits buyers who want a real town with a weekly rhythm, schools and medical services, within half an hour of Nice airport. Tourrettes appeals to those who want a village, land and silence and who are happy to drive for most errands. Buyers often also look at Saint-Paul-de-Vence and Roquefort-les-Pins and La Colle-sur-Loup.
Schools and services
Vence has the public Lycée Henri Matisse on avenue Foch, which offers general and technological courses with an arts profile. The town also has the Collège La Sine on chemin de la Sine and several primary and nursery schools, among them the Chagall, Toreille and Saint-Michel schools. International schools are in Valbonne, Mougins and Nice; see our international schools guide.
Getting around
Neither commune has a railway station; the nearest are on the coast at Cagnes-sur-Mer. Measured by road distance, Vence is about 17 km from Nice Côte d'Azur airport, roughly 25 to 30 minutes outside peak hours; it is about 23 km from Sophia Antipolis, roughly 30 to 35 minutes. Tourrettes-sur-Loup is about 21 km from the airport, roughly 30 to 35 minutes; it is about 28 km from Sophia, roughly 35 to 40 minutes. Central Nice is about 23 km from Vence.
Homes for sale
Any home we present in Vence or Tourrettes-sur-Loup appears below. If you are looking for a particular kind of house, such as a bastide with land or a village house within walking distance of the market, the off-market register lets you hear about homes before they are advertised.
No home in this selection is presented publicly at the moment. Many of the finest houses on this coast change hands without public advertising.
Join the off-market registerFrequently asked questions
Is Tourrettes-sur-Loup more expensive than Vence?
Per m² the two are close: €5,870 in Tourrettes against €5,690 in Vence for houses sold in 2024 and 2025. The median house price is higher in Tourrettes, at €800,000 against €604,000, because the houses sold there were typically larger.
What is there to see in Vence?
The old town, the cathedral with Chagall's 1979 mosaic in the baptistery and the Chapelle du Rosaire designed by Matisse between 1948 and 1951.
When is the Violet Festival in Tourrettes-sur-Loup?
On the first weekend of March each year, with a flower parade and a producers' market. It was founded in 1952.
Is there a lycée in Vence?
Yes. The Lycée Henri Matisse is a public lycée on avenue Foch offering general and technological courses, with arts options.
How far is Vence from Nice airport?
About 17 km by road, roughly 25 to 30 minutes outside rush hour.
Last updated: 11 October 2026