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Advice on itinerary

Posted by (Sterling, MA, United States) on

Hello,

We are two senior couples travleing together in mid may. We are flying into Milan from Boston USA and will head directly to Rapallo in the Italian Riviera as a base for 5 night and explore the surrounding area. We will have a car but will take trains or ferries in the area. We are thinking of driving to Antibes for 4 or 5 nights and then over to Saint Remy de Provence for another 4/5 nights. We are hoping to use those two towns as bases to explore the surrounding area. I have not booked anything in those two towns so I am totally open to suggestions of a better itinerary. We love learning about the history of an area, beautiful walks/light hikes and soaking in the experience. Wondering if we should see Avignon or Arles or just stick to the smaller villages? We are not interested in Monaco but do want to experience a day in Nice via guided walking tour or private tours. If at all possible would like to visit the Mary Magdalene Grotto at Saine Baume.

Thank you in advance for any comments or opinions on the best approach to our itineary.

Posted by
6746 posts

I haven't been to Antibes but it would be OK as a base for exploring the Riviera. Nice might be a better one, unless you're more focused on the beach scene. St-Remy would be OK for Provence. Whether to spend time in Avignon, Arles, and/or smaller villages really depends on your own interests. I liked Arles a lot.

You say you'll have a car but will take trains or ferries, which seems a little confusing. For Provence a car would be an advantage. If you're renting the car in Italy, you'll pay a big dropoff fee if you don't return it in Italy. That's something to keep in mind planning your flights.

Posted by
16 posts

One could write a book attempting to answer your query. In fact, at the risk of stating the obvious, I highly recommend the Rick Steves guidebook Provence & the French Riviera. The latest version just got released last week. You'll find it an incredibly helpful guide to deciding what to see and do. It's $25 very well spent. There's a huge number of YouTube videos (of varying quality) available, too. Simply Googling something like "best things of historical interest to see in the French Riviera" or "best scenic walks to take in the French Riviera" will generate a treasure trove of useful information.

Nice is a great base for exploring the Cote d'Azur; it has the best train and bus connectivity to everywhere you might want to go. Antibes and Villefranche are popular, too.
In western Provence, there's a lot of considerations to choosing the base that best meets your needs; good candidates include Arles, Avignon, or Aix if you want a larger town; Saint-Rémy and L'Isle-sur-la-Sorgue are popular choices if you want a smaller town.

Posted by
13462 posts

Based on OP's other post, she scored a great airfare deal r/t to Milan.
( I just scored a super deal from Boston to Milan in mid May. We have two weeks to play with. )

Further advice should take into account OP looks to be heading back to Milan to fly home.

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