We are arriving in Nice at 1:00 p.m. on September 5th for the first part of our trip to France. We will be staying for 3 nights so we will have two full days plus what we can manage the first day with some jet lag. We are staying at the Welcome Hotel in Villefranche-sur-Mer. After other forum advice we plan to take a taxi from the airport to our hotel since we will have luggage and lag going on!
1. Is the customs process generally fairly smooth at the Nice airport?
2. Is there a particular taxi company to look for at the airport?
By the time we get to the hotel, check in and shower, we figure it could be 3:00 or 4:00 in the afternoon so we were thinking about staying in Villefranche and just exploring that town, then having a nice dinner. Restaurant recommendations? Les Palmiers is a restaurant that looks like it is on the water right next to our hotel and since that is our last name, I am thinking we must eat there sometime!
September 6th: We plan to go to Monaco that morning no later than 9:00 since I have read that you should wait until after rush hour. We will probably take the train since that is quickest, then walk to all of the well known sights. I saw information about the tourist train that you can pick up across from the Musee Oceanographique that is a 30 minute audio tour past the main sights.
3. Will a walk from the Gare de Monaco train station to the Musee Oceanographique take us through/past the palace, cathedral, gardens and old town with the farthest point being the Musee? I was thinking we could do the little tourist train from that point when we are ready and that would take us past the Hercules Harbor and the Casino (which we won't be going in, just want to see the outside and area).
We don't plan to tour the inside of the palace or wait for the changing of the guard. We will go into the Princess Grace cathedral, walk through the gardens and possibly spend some time in the Musee Oceanographique.
4. Opinions on spending time in Musee Oceanographique if we have been to major aquariums in the states such as Monterey Bay? Are there other exhibits that would be interesting in regard to Jacques Cousteau that shouldn't be missed?
5. Not counting transportation or having lunch, how much time should we figure on spending in Monaco based on what I have planned?
After we leave Monaco, we plan to spend the rest of the afternoon and evening in Nice Old Town area. Our dilemma is how much time will we have, and should we take the train from Monaco to the Nice train station since that is quicker? The bus trips look very appealing for the middle corniche but that would probably add quite a bit of time plus I assume the bus schedule and how many other people are trying to ride it could be an issue as far as space. Any advice on this?
Sept. 7th, last full day: We would like to walk on Prom. des Marinières from our hotel to the Villa Ephrussi, tour that and then walk on to Villa Kerylos and see that as well. I have read on other forums that you can get a combined ticket.
6. Can we purchase the ticket for both places on the spot at Villa Ephrussi? Is the walk really beautiful scenery and fairly easy to navigate? And would that most likely be half of a day gone?
We would then take the train from the station that is a 10 minute walk from Villa Kerylos back to Nice again for more time there. We are 66 and 67 so we can hopefully do all of these things without needing much of a break in between( like going back to room for a short nap or just freshen up.
So this is the basic plan. We leave very early the next morning to catch a train to Provence. I have a couple more questions!
7. Will the trams in Nice be helpful to use for getting around between Old Town, Promenade, and other areas we will want to see?
8. Will an hour be enough time (walking and getting to the platform included) from the Welcome Hotel to the Nice train station where we have reservations to go to Avignon? Thanks!
Posted by
11570 posts
Walk into the charming town of St-Jean right below Villa Ephrussi, have lunch, then continue your walk to Villa Kerylos. Buses go along this route, right near both Villa Ephrussi and Villa Kerylos. I would choose to take the bus which is right there on the seaside road. The trains are much farther away without the great views . We spent two weeks in Nice, visiting many places and only used the train once, to visit Antibes. This was advice from the Nice Tourist Office and it worked very well.
In Monaco we did the Palace tour, visited the tombs of Princess Grace and Prince Rainier in the cathedral. That was enough of Monaco for us.
Posted by
OP
231 posts
My husband pointed out that it might make more sense to go to Nice Old Town first on Saturday, then go to the Villas in the afternoon. That way we can see the Cours Sleya market. In addition, if we are too tired after touring the two villas on Cap Ferrat in the afternoon, we can just take the train or bus back to our hotel. I saw somewhere that Villa Keyrlos is undergoing major renovations and some parts of it are not accessible. Does anyone know anything about this? Thanks.
Posted by
464 posts
You have planned a wonderful trip! My husband and I have stayed at the Welcome Hotel in Villefranche sur Mer and loved the view from our balcony and the waterfront area in this charming village. We also enjoyed breakfast, lunch, and dinner on different days at Les Palmiers which is very convenient and has great food. We loved their peach melba dessert.
The Nice airport is a nice size and easy to navigate. When we went to Monaco we took bus #100. In Monaco we got off at the Place d'Armes bus stop and walked up to the Prince's Palace with gorgeous views of Monaco's port on the way up. We bought a combo ticket for the Prince's Palace and the Oceanography Museum which was well worth it. The Oceanography Museum was fascinating and we had lunch on the rooftop terrace. Across from the aquarium we walked up stairs and a bit to the right to stops for buses #1 and #2 which run to the port, the casino, and the train station. We stopped at Place du Casino to see Cafe de Paris and then walked north a few blocks to take bus #100 back. You can buy tickets on board.
When you to go Villa Ephrussi de Rothschild you could go to the Octroi bus stop in Villefranche and take bus #81 to St Jean Cap Ferrat to the Passable bus stop at the driveway to Villa Ephrussi. We had lunch on the terrace with great views. If you get a chance there is also a beautiful walk along Promenade Maurice Rouvier behind Hotel Royal Riviera with spectacular views to St. Jean where there are shops and restaurants down steps to the harbor.
Another restaurant that we enjoyed in Villefranche sur Mer was Le Grenadiere on Rue Poilu. Walking to the beach in Villefranche is lovely also because it is more of a pebbly beach with gorgeous views. Whereas the beach in Nice has large rocks.
In Nice we ate at Campo di Fiori in the Cours Saleya area and also climbed stairs to Castel Hill for views of Nice.
I hope you have a fabulous trip!
Allow plenty of time to get to the Nice train station from Villefranche for your reservations to Avignon.
Posted by
OP
231 posts
These suggestions are fantastic! Thank you both!
Posted by
Paris
7304 posts
Hi,
1. If you have a connection in Europe before reaching Nice, which is likely unless you're taking that direct NYC flight, you will do immigration there, not in Nice.
2. There is a taxi rank, nothing to specifically look for. And Uber, not necessarily better.
3. While train is faster, bus 100 is more scenic and drops you closer to Monaco's "Rock" where the Palace and Oceanographic Museum are located.
4. The latter is a historic aquarium, so don't expect huge tanks, but it's beautiful nonetheless.
5. Yes, take the train back to Nice Ville, once you are in Monte Carlo you are closer to the Monaco station and you will beat the traffic. Take the bus to Monaco instead, as suggested.
Otherwise you are likely to have plenty of time, there just isn't that much to do in Monaco.
6. I don't know
7. Tram is useful to get from the Nice Ville station to the edge of the old town. But not yet to go to from there to the Promenade, as the line is incomplete. Buses along the Promenade are plentiful.
8. Probably, double check with your hotel.
Posted by
Nice, France & San Francisco
713 posts
I think you got a lot of good advice on the options, so here are a few other points:
1. If you have a lot of luggage or people, consider a pre-booked service, roughly the same as a taxi service. Friend in France is one such company.
2. If you choose to go to Nice for the market, yes it is best in the morning. You could even get an earlier start on the day. The tram line 1 will drop you at the edge of the Old Town in two stops, but I have a different suggestion. (The second tram line has opened until Jean-Medecin, right in the center, to exchange with line one. It runs all the way to the airport._ You can walk the length of Jean Medecin from the train station, or get off at Place Massena (2nd stop, near Galeries Lafayette). The main Place there on the Promenade du Paillon is quite beautiful. From there, you can walk across to Cours Saleya directly. While there you can exit directly to the Promenade. To the left, up a quick rise near the Hotel Suisse are free elevators to the top of Castle Hill. You can then wander down to the heart of the old town. Bus 100 leaves from the Port area, to the left of the church when facing the harbor .
7. The trams basically run an axis and will be mainly useful to go from the train station to Place Garibaldi or Place Massena. The line 2 opens further to the Port at the end of the year. Everything is quite walkable within the center. A bus is only required if you want to head up from Place Massena to the Musees Matisse or Chagall. The rest is pretty walkable, except perhaps the Port. LIgnes D'Azur is the app for finding your bus/tram combo (geosensitive with live updates).
8. Note your stop is the 2nd one, Nice Ville.
Note in general you will find better restaurants at all price points in Nice than Villefranche, if you choose wisely. Something to keep in mind if you keep one of your dinner plans. Uber also works exceptionally well in Nice, with a higher level of quality in the US, in general.
Posted by
Tel Aviv
15788 posts
I flew into Marseille in March. After baggage claim, there was a long line** to go through customs. The agents were checking passports, asking a lot of questions and often directing people aside to have their bags examined. They looked at my Israeli passport and waved me through.
** line is hardly an accurate description . . . there were two agents and passengers split into two groups, but there was nothing as organized as a line, just masses of people crowding in and trying (and often succeeding) in getting ahead of less insistent passengers.
In Nice, I didn't find the tram particularly useful. Old Town, Promenade, and main shopping area are easy on foot. You need a bus to get to the excellent Chagall Museum.
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In Villefranche there are several places to eat with sea views. The RS self-guided walk was very enjoyable.
Posted by
OP
231 posts
Thanks to all of you, I have our itinerary worked out for each day. I like to have a plan even if it is subject to change based on whatever factors! We are going to take bus 100 to Monaco based on all of the recommendations and then take the train from Monaco to Nice that afternoon. I do have an additional question about getting bus 100 on a Friday morning. It looks like the first bus would be at the Octroi bus stop by around 6:34 give or take I assume. We will go to the bus station the afternoon before and pick up a schedule and maybe buy a carnet of 10 tickets so we are set for several trips. I have seen posts about avoiding taking a bus or a train towards Monaco before 9:00 a.m. due to rush hour. But we would like to try to take an earlier bus, we would even consider trying to be there in time for the first one to get a jump on our day. Even if we couldn't get on the first one, would we be able to be farther up in the line to get on the next bus coming through? Or could the pre-9:00 buses be full already by the time they get to Octroi from previous stops? Just wondering how it works. If we get to Monaco before 8:00, would there be cafes open where we could get coffee and a croissant and enjoy a leisurely breakfast before heading up to the other areas we want to see? I know most museums don't open before 10 but we could walk around the palace and gardens before then I assume. Thank you!
Posted by
OP
231 posts
Another question; should we make dinner reservations each night and would the day prior or that morning be soon enough?
Thank you.
Posted by
11570 posts
We only used a tram once in Nice during our two weeks there. We walked up to the Musee Chagall, a must see. The building was created to fit the specific pieces of art there. You can take a bus if preferred.
We went to the Cours Saleya market daily, only closed on Mondays. Didn’t spend much time in Old Town.
Posted by
11570 posts
Probably the morning of the night you plan to go to a restaurant except in Nice. We booked places there ahead.
In Villefranche, if cruise ships are in port, you may need to adjust your plans.
Posted by
Nice, France & San Francisco
713 posts
For some of the more popular and top rated restaurants, you may need to book a few days ahead, but the day before or the morning of is generally OK.
Posted by
OP
231 posts
Thanks again everyone, I am so excited. Lisalu, I will try to post a couple times when I get there but if I don't manage to do that, I will be doing a trip report upon my return as I did two years ago after Budapest, Vienna, Salzburg and Munich.
Time to pin down all of the Provence plans and then Paris!