Watch out for some old villages with extremely narrow streets (in some of these places, such as Eze, les Baux, and Vence, you can park just before entering the walled town) and avoid the "Napoleonic route" unless you're comfortable with mountain driving.

Obey parking restrictions and pay for parking as required.

In many towns, "autres directions" is the way to the main road and how to get out of the center. Unless your destination is signposted separately, that is....In France (like most of Europe) one tends to navigate by a following sequence of major towns (or minor towns with major intersections) rather than road numbers. French expressways (autoroutes) are generally toll (peage), and sometimes you must pay at frequent intervals, although usually when you approach a major city, the expressway becomes free. Get a good map (Michelin makes some detailed ones that focus on particular regions--a general map of France is almost useless) and plan your route in advance.

Be sure to drive along the corniches (moyan = intermediate and grand = big, which seems to mean the highest one) near Nice. These are very scenic roadways with wonderful views of the sea. There's an area around Toulon that IMO is ugly, so I would suggest spending your time at both ends rather than in the middle of the coast between Nice and Marseille. Lock your car at all times and do not leave anything in visible in the vehicle when you park, even briefly. Breakins are common and in fact it's better to put items into the trunk before you park, so that no one sees you and decides to force the lock.

Finally, when you say the end of summer be VERY careful about your travel dates. Most of France migrates to the south for the month of August (traditional vacation time which also coincides with school break) and the expressways becomes big parking lots around August 31st. It's common to see stories in the news of families being trapped on the road and unable to move for ten hours or more. Especially if you need to go to the airport around such dates, do not underestimate the time that might be reequired. You should do as the Europeans do and pay attention to school vacation periods in other countries as there can also be massive movements of German etc. tourists on certain dates.