8 Essential Things to Do in Grasse for First-Time Visitors

Looking for the best things to do in Grasse? I’ve got some great recommendations for you – read on for details!

Grasse surprised me. I’ve traveled all around the French Riviera on 3 different trips to the region, and truly this area of France is one of my absolute favorites. However, I’m not exactly a perfume enthusiast – would Grasse be interesting and delightful, or would it fall flat?

I’m extremely happy to say that I *loved* Grasse – the town is charming and pretty, and I loved all the historic perfume workshops and experiences. It was fascinating to learn about this important industry in France, and after smelling different fragrances, my interest in perfumes was certainly piqued.

A little bit about Grasse’s history: Grasse has long been a favored location thanks to its fertile land, access to water, and abundant wildflowers. In the 1500s, Queen Catherine de Medici visited Grasse and was gifted scented gloves by local tanner, Jean de Galimard.

When she returned home to the Royal Court, the gloves were a big hit among high society and left Grasse with an aromatic reputation.

The perfume business soon blossomed into a booming trade in Grasse, aided by the roses, lilacs, lavender, jasmine, and other flowers in the region, which helped to disguise the smell of the then-prosperous tannery trade (and a stench more worthy of covering up is hard to find).

Grasse is still known today as the perfume capital of the world! In fact, it’s actually a UNESCO Intangible Cultural Heritage site thanks to the “skills related to perfume in…Grasse.”

8 Unforgettable Things to Do in Grasse

1. Create Your Own Perfume with Molinard

The three top perfume houses in Grasse are Molinard, Fragonard, and Galimard. While I visited Fragonard’s historic factory and museum (more on this in the next section), I also decided to do a perfume-making workshop at Molinard.

(Galimard has places to visit as well, but they are much farther from the town center.)

Molinard had the most beautiful and intimate facility, and offered a really unique and engaging perfume creation experience.

The perfume-making workshop is led by an experienced perfume expert who taught us about how perfume is constructed and how to select scents to include in the perfume.

We got to smell dozens of delicious scents and pick out our favorites. When we found a favorite, we dipped a strip of paper into the scent and laid it out in front of us to come back to later.

The guide came around to each person and worked with us to decide which of our favorite scents worked well together, to create the perfect combination for our perfumes.

Once we were happy with the combination, we were given a “recipe” to know how much of each fragrance to add. Then we went back to the collection of perfume fragrances and used a dropper to fill up my personal perfume bottle. It was so fun watching the bottle of perfume take form in front of me!

When you’re done, you’ll leave with a high-quality, heavy glass bottle of your own perfume that you personally chose and created.  They also keep a record of your perfume “recipe” – if you ever want to reorder your scent, you can just call and they’ll make up another bottle to send to you.

I wrote up an entire post with more detail about what this perfume workshop in Grasse was like, but the TL;DR is that I loved it.

The setting was beautiful, the materials we used were high quality, and the experience was so unique and interesting. I truly think this is a must-do activity in Grasse to really experience the alluring process of perfume creation.

>>Check rates and availability for this perfume workshop here

2. Fragonard Historic Museum, Factory, and Boutique

As I mentioned above, the perfume brands of Fragonard, Molinard, and Galimard all have factory tours and boutiques in Grasse.

Fragonard is the most central factory in Grasse, offers a really great experience, is thus the most popular to visit, and is definitely one of the best things to do in the city. Fragonard was established in 1926 and named after the painter, Jean-Honoré Fragonard.

Museum

The Fragonard museum, factory, and main boutique in town are all housed in the same historic building. The top level is the small museum, which is just a few rooms and has a few old copper machines used for perfume creation. 

The exhibits feature artwork that has perfume-related paraphernalia in the painting, as well as collections of lovely, antique perfume bottles, cases, and vases. Beautiful vials, pots, and trinkets were created solely for holding the fine perfumes made in Grasse.

I really enjoyed reading about all the different ways perfumes were used and stored, and admiring the vessels used to store them, and would recommend you don’t skip this small spot!

Factory Tour

On the bottom floor is the historic factory (usine), and you can join a tour where you’ll learn about the process for perfume creation, what machinery was used historically, and hear lots of interesting details. 

The perfumes are developed by professionals who go through 5 years of specific training to become a “nez” (literally, “nose” in French). We were told you can only learn 50 smells a month and a nez knows more than 3,000 smells! 

You’ll see the massive old copper basins and pipes that were used to extract essences from flowers, fruits, and other natural materials, and learn about the different components of a fragrance. 

A highlight for me was seeing the old strainers (that look like massive coffee filters) used to remove impurities from the fragrances – each cloth was used for a specific scent, and you can still smell the fragrance on the fabric today.

We also saw someone actually creating soaps, another product created with the fragrances from the perfumeries. 

• Cost: Tours are free
• Hours: 9am-6:30pm, every day of the week, and tours run every 20-30 minutes throughout the day (some in English, some in French). You can just show up and get the time for the next tour, no need to reserve ahead of time.

Boutique

At the end of the tour, you’ll go up to the boutique with your guide and stop in a sampling station, where she’ll spray 4-5 perfumes on smelling strips to sample.

You’ll be guided through several varieties of fragrances – ones that are lighter, ones that are woodier, ones for men versus women, etc, pointing out some of the notes you can smell and the features of the perfume.

Of course, this is done as a way to induce you to buy some perfumes and is absolutely a selling tactic, but I still loved it. It was so interesting to be guided through smelling the different types of perfume, and having someone point out particular perfumes that might be of interest.

There’s also absolutely no pressure to buy anything – the perfumes sell themselves, they really don’t need to do any hard selling. You can definitely just join the free tour, enjoy all the delightful fragrance samples, and be on your way.

3. Musée Fragonard

Besides being the center of perfume making in the world, Grasse also produced several world-class painters, including Jean-Honoré Fragonard. The Fragonard perfume company was actually named in honor of this painter (whose father was a perfumer). 

Be careful not to confuse the Musée Fragonard – showcasing the artwork – with the historic Fragonard factory and museum where you learn about perfumes. 

Besides showcasing the works of Jean-Honoré Fragonard, paintings by Marguerite Gerard, and Jean-Baptiste Mallet, all of whom were painters originally from Grasse.

Fragonard and Gerard were known for painting in the Rococo style, which is characterized by its rich and delicate brushwork, lighthearted themes, and sensuous colors.

You would probably recognize Fragonard’s painting, “The Swing,” if you’ve seen the movie “Frozen” (though that specific painting is in London). Mallet painted in the troubadour style which is represented by smooth and detailed paintings of historical scenes.

• Entrance Cost: Free
• Hours: Monday-Saturday, 10:30am-1pm, 2pm-6:30pm

4. Musée Provencal du Costume et du Bijou

This museum – the Museum of Provencal Outfits and Jewels – is just down the street from the Musee Fragonard and is another interesting stop in Grasse. Located in a beautiful mansion, the exhibits here highlight many clothing pieces and jewelry worn in the provencal region in the 18th to late 19th century.

They are one of the few establishments “devoted exclusively to traditional Provençal clothing and ornaments from the past.”

• Entrance Cost: Free
• Hours: Monday-Saturday, 10am-1pm, 2pm-6:30pm

5. Wander the Streets of Old Town

Old Town in Grasse is cute and charming – old buildings full of character lining streets covered by an adorable pink umbrella canopy.

The streets are filled with restaurants, bakeries, candy shops, Provencal souvenirs, and a whole host of perfumeries. If you’d prefer to shop at a smaller perfume boutique, there are plenty scattered throughout the old city.

While exploring, you can’t skip the Place aux Aires. This pretty central square features a fountain, several cafes with sidewalk seating, and multiple umbrella alleys leading off of it.

6. La Cathédrale Notre Dame de Puy

This large medieval cathedral is a focal point in Old Town, and is unique and notable for the artwork displayed inside. On the walls of the cathedral are large paintings in ornate gold frames, including several pieces by Rubens, a famous Flemish painter.

Other painters with similar styles also have paintings on the walls, including Charles Negre, who was born and died in Grasse. These paintings are all of Biblical scenes, and most portray moments of Jesus’ life, or of the Passion. 

This beautiful church building is free to enter and definitely something you don’t want to miss. After you’re done in the church, swing around to the backside of the building for a lovely view over the valley surrounding Grasse.

7. World War I Memorial

Just outside of the cathedral is this grand memorial dedicated to the men from Grasse who died in World War I. Interestingly, memorials to the fallen in the Great War are pretty common in small towns in southern France, and I’m always shocked at what feels like a large number of fallen men from just one small town.

8. Musee Jean-Honoré Fragonard Villa

This villa was one of the first homes built outside the city walls and was where painter Jean-Honoré Fragonard and his family lived beginning in 1790.

When the house was put up for sale in 1977, the City of Grasse bought it and devoted three rooms on the first floor to exhibit works by the painter and other painters in his family.

Though the Villa is currently closed, it has some pretty gardens and, when open, offers a guided tour, a drawing course, and has a shop inside.

Practical Information for Visiting Grasse

How to Get to Grasse?

By far, the easiest way to get to Grasse is by train – the main SNCF line that runs through the French Riviera terminates in Grasse. It’s a quick 25-minute ride up from Cannes, and about 1 hour by train from Nice. Trains generally arrive 1-2 times an hour, and you can just show up at the station and buy a ticket for the next train out.

Getting From the Train Station to Town

The train station in Grasse is actually a decent walk from the town – it takes about 20-30 minutes and is uphill. Certainly, you can do the walk, but you can also hop on a bus at the train station that will take you up to the city center. 

This bus costs €1,50 and is easy to catch – just look for a bus right outside the station and confirm it’s heading to the city center. You can pay the driver directly. 

Guided Tour to Grasse

If you’d rather not deal with logistics, learn more about the places you’re visiting, and/or be able to visit multiple French Riviera villages in one day, then a guided tour might be a great option for you!

On this Full Day Tour to Medieval Villages, you’ll visit Grasse, as well as the hilltop villages of Gourdon, Tourrettes-sur-Loup, and Saint-Paul-de-Vence. You’ll have just over 2 hours in Grasse, enough time to explore the village, stop in a museum or two, and get a tour of the Fragonard historic factory. (You won’t have time on the tour to do the perfume-making workshop, though).

Get more details, and check prices and availability for this guided tour to Grasse + other medieval villages here!

How Long Do You Need in Grasse?

You can see and do everything in Grasse with a half-day, or a full day if you arrive mid to late morning and spend more time leisurely exploring the city or lingering at a cafe over lunch.

Where Else To Visit on the French Riviera?

The south of France is a great area to explore – there are tons and tons of little towns and coastal cities to visit and discover and you could easily spend 7 days exploring the French Riviera.

The glitzy city of Cannes is close to Grasse and has some of the nicest beaches on the French Riviera.

I love the charming villages of Saint-Paul-de-Vence and Eze. I’d recommend spending a few days in Nice to explore its top sites and hidden gems, and I also really enjoyed visiting Antibes, a fairly large coastal city,

I also love the colorful towns of Villefranche-sur-Mer and Menton, as well as the coastal hike around Cap Ferrat. Finally, the Principality of Monaco is always a popular nearby destination, but the village of La Turbie above Monaco is a new favorite spot.

The Wrap Up – Things to Do in Grasse

Grasse is a delightful town tucked in the hills of the French Riviera. I think it’s definitely worth visiting to wander through the cute old town, visit a historic perfume factory, and have the experience of making your own perfume!