Menton and Roquebrune-Cap-Martin among France’s worst-hit tourist hotspots, study finds | Riviera Radio

A new study has ranked Menton and Roquebrune-Cap-Martin among the French municipalities experiencing the greatest tourism pressure

16 Jul 2026, 13:02
| Updated: 2h ago

Menton and Roquebrune-Cap-Martin have been identified as two of France’s municipalities under the greatest tourism pressure, according to the 2026 SurTouriscore, a nationwide study by territorial data platform Metricity

Both Riviera towns received the lowest possible rating – E, indicating “very high” tourism pressure – after scoring poorly across all four key indicators used to assess the impact of tourism on local residents

In Menton, the study recorded 1,958 tourist rentals among 29,519 homes, representing 6.6% of the housing stock

The town also has 10,605 commercial tourist beds for a population of just over 30,600, equivalent to 35 beds per 100 residents

The report highlights the area’s exceptionally high proportion of second homes, with 42.8% of Menton’s housing classified as secondary residences

Short-term holiday rentals have more than quadrupled over the past decade, contributing to growing pressure on the local housing market

Neighbouring Roquebrune-Cap-Martin was found to be under even greater strain in several categories, including housing affordability

Nearly half of all homes are second homes, while average property prices have reached €6,094 per square metre, with the study estimating it would take around 20 years of median income to purchase a typical 70m² property

The report also rated Nice at level E, pointing to an especially high concentration of tourism in the city centre, where short-term rentals and hospitality businesses are heavily clustered

The findings come as French municipalities gain new powers under the Le Meur law, which allows local authorities to tighten controls on short-term holiday lets

Measures include reducing the maximum annual rental period for primary residences from 120 to 90 days, introducing quotas for furnished tourist accommodation, and requiring compulsory national registration of all holiday rentals

Menton’s municipal government has already indicated it intends to use the new legislation to encourage the development of more permanent housing

Source: www.rivieraradio.mc