US–Riviera Festival Flights Set for 2026
Air France has confirmed a pair of seasonal long-haul links to the French Riviera in 2026, timed around major cultural events. Direct Los Angeles–Nice flights will run in May to coincide with the Cannes Film Festival, while New York–Nice services in June will align with the Cannes Lions Festival. The routes are positioned as limited services tailored to festival attendance rather than permanent additions to the carrier’s transatlantic schedule.
Festival-timed US links with upgraded cabins:
- The Los Angeles flights are scheduled for 11 and 25 May 2026, with an outbound day flight from California and a same-day afternoon return from Nice.
- The New York flights are planned for 20, 21, 25 and 26 June 2026.
All services will use Boeing 777-300ER aircraft fitted with Air France’s new La Première suite, reflecting the carrier’s renewed attention to premium long-haul cabins ahead of the 2026 summer season.
The airline has also outlined a wider deployment plan for its new La Première product. Routes from Paris to Abidjan, Atlanta, Boston, Dubai, Houston, Los Angeles, Miami, New York, San Francisco, Sao Paulo, Singapore, Tel Aviv, Tokyo-Haneda and Washington D.C. will feature the cabin next summer. From July 2026, all flights to New York and Los Angeles will offer the upgraded suites, with full network coverage targeted by the end of the year.
Riviera access beyond the red carpet
Visitors using these links gain straightforward access to key spots along the Côte d’Azur and nearby Monaco, including:
- Cannes for festival venues and beaches
- Nice for coastal promenades and museums
- Antibes for old-town lanes and Cap d’Antibes hikes
- Monaco for the harbour and cliffside viewpoints
- Menton for gardens on the Italian border
The timing aligns with peak late-spring weather, when coastal paths, ferries and seaside towns are fully active.
The announcement blends logistics, culture and Air France’s long-standing connection with cinema. The carrier has been a Cannes partner for decades and curates festival-adjacent films within its in-flight catalogue, reinforcing the link for travelling industry guests. For many leisure travellers, the practical angle lies in new seasonal capacity into Nice from two major US gateways at a moment when hotel rates surge and seats traditionally tighten during festival windows.