What is the best way to do this day trip from Nice

Are you going to spend any time in Nice? I love Monaco so I spend days on end there. You could spend a whole day there easily. To walk steadily up into Eze, enjoying the views and seeing the Jardin Exotique at the top is 2 to 4 hours. Villefranche and vicinity, including the Cap Ferrat area is a day or two. So if you want to check them off a list you could do all in a day. If you want to really experience any of them it would be very difficult. And, don't write off Nice itself. There are loads of things to do there too.

Nigel, I will be based in Nice for three days. Just trying to make good use of my time.

Liz, I would spend one day in Nice itself. One day take the bus to Eze-le-village and then on to Monaco. Then take either the bus or train to Nice, stopping off in Villefranche-sur-Mer. Then the last day, rent a car and drive to Antibes, Vence, and St. Paul de Vence. You can do the third day by bus, but it is much less convenient than going east.

I agree with David on how to go from Nice to Eze-le-Village, to Monaco, to Villefranche-sur-Mer, and back to Nice. I'll add some details. I would go to Eze-le-Village th first thing in the morning, before all the tour buses arrive. Bus #112 goes from Nice to Eze-le-Village and on to Monaco, but it doesn't run on Sundays. The first bus leaves Nice at 7:00 and the second one leaves at 09:00. Bus #82 runs only between Nice and Eze-le-Village. The first bus departs at 06:30 and the second one departs at 08:00. A single train ticket from Monaco to Nice will allow you to stop off in Villefranche-sur-Mer at no additional charge. Skip Cannes in favor of more time in Nice.

Hi Liz - I don't know what kind of traveler you are or what your interests are but I regret spending half a day at Eze. I know Rick raves about it but it was literally the most boring thing I've ever done in Europe. Sorry. We took the bus from Nice, you walk around the old cobblestone area and check the view and then you have to wait 4 hours for the next bus. Monaco was worth the bus ride, absolutely. Gorgeous drive on the coast, sit on the right side of the bus so you can see the water. I don't typically support aquariums but it is beautiful and worth the entry. I WISH i would have used my time in Eze to go to Villefranche b/c I hear it is a gorgeous little seaside village. Better beach too. Good luck with your decisions and have a wonderful trip! Also - the Fruit de Mer platter at Le Safari in Old Town Nice was a death row meal.

A couple more details. If you time it right, you won't have to spend much time in Eze-le-Village. Bus #112 leaves the village for Monaco at 09:30 and 11:30. Take an early bus from Nice, see as much of the village as you wish, and be on your way to Monaco. Go here for bus timetables. Click on the British flag for English. If you decide to go anywhere west of Nice, make it Antibes for a half day. You can get there quickly by train. Visit the Picasso Museum and explore the walled old town on foot. Again, skip Cannes. It's mostly "famous for being famous" and has few things designed for tourists. It would be a waste of your very limited time.

Just to prove that everyone has different impressions of places, my experience was quite different from Sarah's and Tim's (and, for that matter, Rick Steves's). I enjoyed Monaco much more than Rick did; I liked Eze, particularly the gardens at the top (fabulous views); and I found Villefranche a total snooze. And, while Rick does not care for the botanical gardens in Monaco and did not even mention the car collection there, these were two of the highlights for me. I also enjoyed Cannes more than Tim did, but I agree, it doesn't seem like you have time to head west of Nice on this trip in any case. If you do head west, my favorite place in the region was Haut de Cagnes (the town where Renoir lived). "If we all liked the same places, they'd get awfully crowded."

Hi Liz, I just returned from Nice (5 nights) and Cannes (3 nights) last month. Your timing is much better than mine. It was a warm 82F each day and I didn't anticipate the 50% plus humidity that nobody talks about. I did take the bus from Nice to Villefranche-sur-Mer and on to Monaco. Short trip, one Euro each way. Both interesting but I'm not into Yachts, gambling or siting on rocky beaches so unfortunately for me it simply turned out to be a checklist event. The scenery is stunning! Actually Cannes has very nice sandy beaches. I did enjoy the Chagall Museum (English Movie at Noon) and I am a huge Matisse fan but was a little disappointed with the Paper cutout museum. Train to Cannes was uneventful. Later I took a short bus ride to Antibes which has a fun market and a Picasso museum - both are worth seeing. Cannes has less to do than Nice but getting away from the hoards of people in Nice made it worthwhile. It would be interesting to read a trip report from you about your experience in Nice. Hope that everything goes well.

We took a mini van tour. I think we booked it through the tourist bureau. We went around the bay, stopped at Eze and Fragonard for a short time. We were dropped at two different place in Monaco. Since it was a small tour, the driver could make some adjustments. It was also nice to know we didn't have to worry about finding the train or bus stations. It was more expensive than doing the train or bus but since we wanted to see other things in Nice, it was great.