We are headed to Nice in September for 8 days...and for planning purposes I%26#39;m hoping to clarify a few things related to day trips...
I%26#39;ve heard many shops, etc. are closed in Nice on Sunday and Monday - and the suggestion is to visit Saint Paul De Vence, Gourdon %26amp; Grasse on one of those days as there is more to do. True? If so, is it better to do an organized tour (mini-van type) or is there a train/bus route that works? We are pretty adventurous but don%26#39;t mind letting someone else sort it out for us occaisionally as well!
Another day trip - Menton, Ville Franche Sur Mer and Eze - too much, too little or just right? Could I throw in Monaco on the way back ( I don%26#39;t have much interest in Monaco other than just to %26quot;see%26quot; it and understand that busses run pretty late back to Nice from there...) Any suggested bus routes to accomplish this would be appreicated
Italian markets - are they worth the trip (meaning are there nice leather goods, etc. to purchase) or is it just designer knock off stuff? I%26#39;d hate to waste a precious day doing that only to find out it%26#39;s the same %26quot;junk%26quot; you can buy on the streets of New York! :o)
Last day trip... Antibes, Cannes and Biot or skip Cannes? And again, is there a more sensible order to accomplish this in?
Finally, my hobby is photography - I love old buildings, gardens, and scenic vistas - anything that%26#39;s a must that I don%26#39;t have on my list?
Thanks so much for your input and safe travels!
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Many but not all shops are shut Sunday - expect touristy type stuff to be open all the time. For photography , pretty places are 24/7.
Most of your trips are in my view too ambitious if you plan to connect via public transport -
St Paul and Vence are close and linked to Nice by the 400 bus out of Nice and make a good two town trip.
Gourdon is strictly by car, and Grasse alone is on both bus and train, but train out of Nice via Cannes and not connected to Vence
Its not so much about being adventurous, as standing at bus stops or station platforms for a half hour to 45 minutes - requires patience rather than adrenalin!
Eze village is 400 metres up in the air reachable only by bus out of Nice, whilst Menton and Villefranch are both on the coastal train line. You need to sort the logistics as a number of your tours need changes and only work out of Nice as a hub.
Antibes Cannes Biot - same story - Biot village is a couple of kilometres walk inland from Biot SNCF station, and you still have to get back to pick up the train as there is no direct bus from Nice.
Monaco is a half day rather than hop on hop off.
In summary, if you really want to pack so many places into day trips you need to think four wheels. Then you need to think traffic jams and parking.
The bus and train services all have route maps online - you would do well to check out where connects to where
Good planning
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Just to add for your hobby as well as the flower market, the old town buildings I would visit the Russian Cathederal.
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Thank you for your thoughtful insight...it has certainly helped! And yes we are going to rely on mass transit (it makes for a happier marriage!!!)
Okay...the organized tour I mentioned is thru Viator %26amp; it covers St Paul, Tourettes/Loup, Loup Gorges,Gourdon, Grasse %26amp; Cannes...I%26#39;m thinking that just might work on Sunday (our first full day there)...then if we fall in love with any of those places (like St Paul) we can always go back!
That would then make my Antibes/Biot day trip a bit easier to manage I suspect as Cannnes would now be out of the picture
Still trying to sort out the Menton day trip - my true interest lies in Ville Franche and Eze - but my original thought was that Menton might be interesting and at least on the map it%26#39;s %26quot;on the way%26quot;...
Is that more do-able? I promise to check the train/bus schedules as well but those tend to make my eyes cross :o)
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Hi there....
A couple of thoughts.
Your last post with the organised tour planned for your first day makes me hope that you don%26#39;t forget to bring all your vitamin pills!
Would it be possible to knock Cannes off that agenda and just do the gorges and Grasse?
If I were you, would probably plan my days something like this ( in no particular order):
1 day - Tour to St Paul de Vence, the gorges, Grasse
1day- Train ride to Cannes with stops in Biot on way there and Antibes on way back. You get better views than on the bus and it%26#39;s much quicker.
The Carte Isabelle is valid in September and for 12 euros you can get a one day pass which lets you travel on local trains anywhere along the coast ( and up to Grasse)and get on and off anywhere you want to as many times as you want. Trains run late
1 day- am Bus to Eze village , then pm bus to Cap Ferat and Villa Ephrussi de Rothschild (via Nice bus station)
Villefranche is only a short bus ride ( 15 minutes) from Nice and you could easily go there for a whole day or several times on short trips.
Menton is a long way beyond Villefranche and further than Monaco . It%26#39;s not worth a visit in my opinion unless you decide to go to Ventimiglia for the market on Fridays.
Monaco is a concrete jungle but does have a certain style and glamour- if you go ,allow half a day and this could be combined with a trip to Italy and Menton.
Rest of time spend in Nice and enjoy!!
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No car no Biot. I went there by train 3 years a go and I had to call a cab from Antibes to bring me to the village, and then another one from Biot%26#39;s Old Town back to the train station. Just to add that there are ;less trains stopping in Biot than Antibes for instance.
Keep Biot for 2nd trip...or 3rd... or 4th... It is still a nice medieval village to visit though.
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Best online map of towns and places on the Riviera I have found is AngoInfo%26#39;s here:
http://riviera.angloinfo.com/maps/
The best compendium of all imaginable travel links for the Riviera is the wonderful Provence Beyond, here
http://www.beyond.fr/links/travel.html#rail
The worst of all sites is the French state railways SNCF - hopelessly inward looking and utterly clueless about what %26quot;customers%26quot; might be looking for. (Its a metaphor for France)
Its poor offering here includes a map of some help
regionpaca.fr/uploads/media/GuideTrainsTouri…
Best by far is the Lignes d%26#39;Azur map of bus connections for Nice and all surrounding towns, found here:
http://www.lignedazur.com/ftp/US_plan/Nice%20Canca%2090protégé.pdf
This is my bible and it is not difficult to follow
Fares and most important timetables are here:
www.lignedazur.com/plan/index.asp…
Cheers!
PS I still see people recommending day tours that have no public transport connections between some of the the towns mentioned.
Is it %26quot;car drivers memory%26quot;?
More tips and travel tips arround the riviera over on VirtualTourist.com Member NiceLife
http://members.virtualtourist.com/m/6cdeb/
Cheers
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Oops,
Not sure if Nice Life was having a dig at my ideas , but I%26#39;d better clarify what I meant !
Kim ,
Is it possible to get an organised tour like you suggested in your last post to Vence, the gorges etc but without the Cannes element in it ?
If you go to Eze village another day, you will see perfume factories, so maybe Grasse isn%26#39;t so important either ? Would give you more time.
Re Biot- it might be best to leave for another time as suggested in another post , but I am assuming you could take a taxi from the railway station if you really want to vist it this time?
Enjoy your visit!
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Yes you can take a taxi from the train station as long as you have a cell phone with you and you speak enough French so the lady who answers the phone at the cab company understands you are at the Biot train station (she was incredulous and I told her I was a tourist from Canada and the man at the train station had gone for lunch, etc). Should I say she remembered me when I called back 2 or 3 hours later to get a cab to get back to the train station...
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Thank you all for your great suggestions! Okay, I%26#39;ve now learned I need about a month in this region rather than 8 days!!! Looks like I will just have to go back!
I haven%26#39;t given up on Biot yet (ever the optimist that I can figure this out either on two feet or with taxi%26#39;s and my pathetic French!!!)
Appreciate the feedback also on Menton...Also appreciate the mass transit info...that will help a ton...Italian markets came off the list as after researching further they do sound more New York-ish than Italian-ish (aka junk-ish)!!!
Teetering precariously on this list now is Cagnes Su Mer and still hanging on by a thread is some time in Monaco (since it%26#39;s in the %26quot;neighborhood%26quot;!) I%26#39;m not much of a gambler or over-priced boutique shopper and with my hiking boots and backpack I%26#39;m certainly NOT one of the beautiful people (giggle) so that leaves the palace and acquarium I think ;o)
Anyway - thanks again for all of your help - please feel free to continue to suggest away!
One last question - is it possible to take the bus from the airport to a stop near our hotel (Le Royal). I came across a post (can%26#39;t remember where now - it%26#39;s all starting to run together!) and it looked like the bus stopped very near there - although after traveling all night and part of the following day, I%26#39;m not sure how perky I%26#39;ll be to schlep luggage, find the right bus, then find the exact change, schlep luggage again while trying to find the hotel - but then again the cab rides seem ridiculously high given the proximity of the airport to Nice itself...(hmmm did I just talk myself out of the bus???) wink
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Hiya KimWright.
Yes the bus no. 98 at the airport runs along the promenade and will stop almost opposite or near to your hotel and then you only have to cross the road, for 4 euros each. A taxi is going to cost about 30 euros.
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