Rado Plage

Rado opened in 1958 and claims, credibly, to be the first private beach ever set up on the Croisette. It sits on the sand between the Carlton and the Martinez, which is the most fought-over hundred metres of seafront in Cannes, and after more than sixty-five years it is still run with a family feel rather than as a brand extension. A recent refresh moved the look away from the primary-coloured parasol era towards terracotta tones and natural materials, warm rather than glossy. The beach is the standard Croisette formula done properly: raked sand, loungers in ordered rows, calm shallow water, and the Esterel massif closing the view to the west. Service runs to the sunbed, so lunch can happen without anyone getting up, and there is a separate seaside menu for people who want to eat where they are lying. The kitchen works from midday to eight in the evening, longer than most of its neighbours, and the wine list is treated as seriously as the food. If you care about the history of Cannes beach culture rather than about being seen, this is the address: the same stretch of sand that photographers were shooting starlets on before the festival became what it is now, still selling loungers by the day.