There’s no precise official data on the share of foreigners in France in the source material — the vlogger himself calls his figures a rough guess, putting it at 20-30% of the population, compared with 6% in Italy.

In short

  • The 20-30% figure for foreigners in France cited in the video isn’t statistics — it’s a rough guess with no source
  • According to INSEE for 2025, the official share of foreigners in France is 9.1%, and immigrants including naturalized citizens make up 11.6%
  • Entry to Saint Nicholas Cathedral in Nice is free, while the attached museum charges a fee that’s worth confirming on site
  • The Baroness bequeathed Villa Ephrussi de Rothschild on Cap Ferrat, with its nine gardens, to the French state
  • The villa’s gardens were used in an American comedy about con man Lawrence Jamieson, who swindles money out of wealthy women

How many foreigners live in France: what the video says and why it isn’t statistics

According to an unofficial, off-the-cuff guess, roughly one in three residents of France could be called a foreigner — about 20-30% of the population. This is a rough guess, made without checking any data, and it needs verification. Italy is offered as a comparison, with the foreign share there guessed at around 6% of the total population — again without any claim to precision.

For comparison: according to INSEE for 2025, the official share of foreigners (people without French citizenship) in France is 9.1% of the population, while the share of immigrants (including naturalized citizens) is 11.6%. The 20-30% figure cited in the source is two to three times higher than the official data.

The gap comes down to more than just migration — it’s also about how you count. The French figure includes long-settled foreigners who are barely distinguishable from native French people in appearance or language — sometimes only skin color “gives them away.” These people speak French among themselves and have lived in the country long enough not to be seen as newcomers, yet formally they still count as part of the foreign population in the statistics.

sometimes only skin color “gives them away”

The gap in estimates is also tied to the wage difference between the two countries: by informal accounts, wages in France are said to be only slightly higher than in Italy — a difference that feels small to a traveler, though official INSEE data puts the annual pay gap between the two countries in the thousands of euros, not hundreds.

None of these figures amount to official statistics — they’re a single observer’s spoken estimate, offered without a source and with obvious uncertainty about the numbers.

Estimate vs. statistics

The 20-30% figure for foreigners in France is a spoken, off-the-cuff guess with no source. Official INSEE data for 2025: 9.1% of the population without French citizenship, and 11.6% immigrants including naturalized citizens.

Don’t confuse estimates with facts

The multiple-fold gap between the quoted figure and INSEE data comes down to more than migration alone — it also depends on who actually counts as a “foreigner.”

Nice: Saint Nicholas Cathedral and what to see along the way

By travelers’ account, entry to Saint Nicholas Cathedral in Nice is free, while a separate fee may apply to visit the museum attached to it — the exact rate is worth confirming on site, since official sources don’t publish it.

On the way along the French Riviera, it’s worth stopping in the town of Beaulieu-sur-Mer: under the fictional name Beaumont-sur-Mer, it became the setting of a comedy filmed on Cap Ferrat. One of the film’s characters is a con man named Lawrence Jamieson, covered in more detail in the section on the villa’s film history. In the story, he advises his partner not to linger in Beaumont-sur-Mer because it’s full of retirees, and that they’d be better off in Portofino — a line that’s become part of the town’s local lore.

A stop along the way

Heading along the French Riviera, it’s worth stopping in Beaulieu-sur-Mer — the very town that appears in the Cap Ferrat comedy under the name Beaumont-sur-Mer.

Villa Ephrussi de Rothschild on Cap Ferrat: history and gardens

The villa on Cap Ferrat was built in the early 20th century by Baroness Béatrice de Rothschild (Ephrussi). She collected art, porcelain, tapestries, and furniture from across Europe — the villa holds France’s largest collection of Italian furniture.

The baroness bought the plot in a hurry after learning that Belgium’s King Leopold II was interested in it — even the Rothschilds followed the principle of “buy it now, or someone else will.” The site turned out to be difficult for a garden — cliffs, wind, and rugged terrain had to be literally reshaped to fit the villa and its grounds.

even the Rothschilds followed the principle of “buy it now, or someone else will”

Nine themed gardens surround the villa, created over five years, from 1907 to 1912. The main one, the French garden, was designed by Béatrice to resemble the deck of a ship: from the cape, the sea is visible on two sides.

After her death, the baroness left the villa, its gardens, and the entire art collection to the French state. Today the villa houses a restaurant-café, where visitors can enjoy a glass of champagne or a meal with a view of the coast.

Villa Ephrussi de Rothschild on Cap Ferrat and one of the nine themed gardens surrounding it
The Rothschild legacy

Baroness de Rothschild bequeathed the villa, its nine gardens, and her art collection to the French state — today it’s a place where you can dine with a view of the coast.

The villa on screen: which comedy was filmed on Cap Ferrat

The villa’s garden made it onto film — the scenes were shot right here, and the grounds are unmistakably recognizable in the movie. One of the film’s characters, con man Lawrence Jamieson, works big schemes, swindling money out of wealthy women.

In the story, the two leads have very different attitudes toward money: Freddy simply blows through his, while Lawrence puts his into wine. Freddy can’t wrap his head around it — wine, at least, you can drink, but why spend money on gardens and statues you can’t “use” is a mystery to him. In the film, one of the villa’s gardens is restored using money from the baroness’s brooch — a plot detail that points directly to the real history of the villa and the woman who created it.

wine, at least, you can drink, but why spend money on gardens and statues you can’t “use” is a mystery to him

The atmosphere of Cap Ferrat, where scenes of a well-known comedy were filmed in the villa's garden

Frequently asked questions

Can you visit the gardens of Villa Ephrussi de Rothschild separately from the villa itself?

That information isn’t provided: it’s only known that nine themed gardens surround the villa, created over five years from 1907 to 1912, and that a restaurant-café now operates on the villa grounds.

Who owns Villa Ephrussi de Rothschild today?

After her death, Baroness Béatrice de Rothschild left the villa, its gardens, and the entire art collection to the French state, so the property is now state-owned, with a restaurant-café operating on site for visitors.

Can you go inside the villa where the Cap Ferrat comedy was filmed, or are only the gardens open to visitors?

The source only mentions the gardens: those are what appear on screen and are recognizable in the film. There’s no separate information about access to the villa’s interior for filming or for tourists.

How many years did it take to build the gardens of Villa Ephrussi de Rothschild?

The nine themed gardens surrounding the villa were created over five years, from 1907 to 1912. The baroness designed the main, French garden to resemble the deck of a ship, so the sea would be visible from the cape on two sides.