About Nice in France

[Punam]

Is there a tender off the ship, or does Constellation use a port that puts us on land right away? We're thinking of getting a taxi and heading to Saint Paul de Vence rather than rushing the day to see all there is to see (impossible anyway). Does anyone know if taxis are available right where the ship docks?

[Miaminice]

Villefranche (Nice) has no dock. Ships tender.

 

There are taxis, yes. But when in high demand (it is a very small port) some of the drivers charge what they want and refuse to turn on the meter. So be careful and talk about the price before you get into the taxi.

 

There is also a train going to Nice or Monte Carlo.

 

You can read more in our review if you like: http://travellove.one/Our-Trips/Mediterranean-Liberty/mediterranean-liberty.html

Edited December 20, 2017 by Miaminice

[lilghallinsf]

Villefranche (Nice) has no dock. Ships tender.

 

There are taxis, yes. But when in high demand (it is a very small port) some of the drivers charge what they want and refuse to turn on the meter. So be careful and talk about the price before you get into the taxi.

 

There is also a train going to Nice or Monte Carlo.

 

You can read more in our review if you like: http://travellove.one/Our-Trips/Mediterranean-Liberty/mediterranean-liberty.html

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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[lilghallinsf]

Also look up tom’s tour guides online. It is free and a great source of info for these ports. The train is super easy. However it can take a bit to get a tender. You need to go early to get early tickets of your captains club status doesn’t help you

 

 

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[Redtravel]

You tender in Ville de France. Small port with a street of cafes and shops, small sandy beach, and not much else. Trains are easy to get if you want to go to Nice. I used a Viator small group tour from MonteCarlo to get to Eze and St. paul de Vence. If you haven't been to Nice, it is worth going. Check distances. You may be closer to St. paul de Vence from another port.

[krmnc]

We recently (September) went to St Paul de Vence from Cannes...it was our favorite place that we visited. We used Walter at Blu Riviera to take 8 of us to/from port and gave an abbreviated walking tour. Then spent about 3 hours there. Enjoy!

[Punam]

We recently (September) went to St Paul de Vence from Cannes...it was our favorite place that we visited. We used Walter at Blu Riviera to take 8 of us to/from port and gave an abbreviated walking tour. Then spent about 3 hours there. Enjoy!

Thanks so much. All the info provided by everyone helps a lot. Your particular experience is exactly what we want to do, so having Walter's name is great!

[Marigold252]

There's also a HOHO bus from the port.

 

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[mnocket]

There's also a HOHO bus from the port.

 

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From Villefranche? Are you sure?

[Cruise Junky]

I adore St. Paul. We've been three times on a land trip for 3 nights each time. It's even lovelier when the crowds leave :)

[Hlitner]

Ok, so lets clear up some confusion (in posts). It is about 26 Kilometers (16 miles) from Villefranche to St Paul de Vence and there are no HoHo buses that go anywhere near St Paul de Vence (which is out in the countryside). There may or may not be some taxis at the tender pier...depending on the mood of the taxi drivers and whether they prefer a long coffee break to dealing with cruisers :). If you do get a taxi, you will not find taxis just waiting around St Paul de Vence. As to the cost...taxis are expensive but you might be able to pull it off for as little as 100€. I guess you could then pay the driver another 100€ to wait :(.

 

I have written many threads (over a lot of years) on how to get to and from St Paul de Vence using public transit (a bit complicated). The easiest way is with a tour (we prefer small groups) or a rental car (our personal choice). Do a search of this blog and you will likely find some of my older posts with specific public transit instructions.

 

Hank

[Lastdance]

We have been there twice, both times with a small group of six. I would not attempt to do this by yourself, especially since you are asking for directions on CC. Spend the money to create or join a tour. There are many trusted tour operators around the area that could offer you different packages based on your needs and wants, even guaranteeing that you will be back to the ship before it leaves. Look at your roll call and do a little research yourself; you will be less stressed and have a very pleasant visit to a beautiful town!

 

Ditto on the above post!

 

 

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[krmnc]

As I mentioned above, we used Blu Riviera to go to St. Pau de Vence out of Cannes. We used Riviera Premium Tours out of Villefranche to go to Nice, Monte Carlo/Monaco and Eze. I would recommend both of these tour companies if you don't want to plan something on your own.

[Texed]

We have been there twice, both times with a small group of six. There are many trusted tour operators around the area that could offer you different packages based on your needs and wants,

 

Yeah! And we thought Ingrid was one of the best. :D

[footer6]

I don't want to give you bad information, but I was on an Azamara cruise 2 years ago that ended in Nice. We were at the dock to disembark. Now, the Azamara ships are only 30 grt, so it may be the larger Celebrity ships must tender.

[Cruise Junky]

I don't want to give you bad information, but I was on an Azamara cruise 2 years ago that ended in Nice. We were at the dock to disembark. Now, the Azamara ships are only 30 grt, so it may be the larger Celebrity ships must tender.

 

Smaller ships can definitely dock in Nice, the larger ones Tender into Villefranche

[Marigold252]

From Villefranche? Are you sure?

Yes, we tendered into Villefranche in September. There's a HOHO/tour counter in the information center and you can also buy tickets on the bus.

 

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[Miaminice]

I don't want to give you bad information, but I was on an Azamara cruise 2 years ago that ended in Nice. We were at the dock to disembark. Now, the Azamara ships are only 30 grt, so it may be the larger Celebrity ships must tender.

 

The OP asked about Celebrity Constellation. The port of call for Celebrity is actually Villefranche, very close to Nice, but not Nice itself. There is no dock in Villefranche.

 

Azamara docks in Nice itself. However, no Celebrity vessel is small enough to dock in the port of Nice.

 

This is Villefranche:

 

 

This is the port of Nice:

[suec12]

You may want to check out the "ports" forum here on CC - esp. about if there is a HOHO. What I think is very close to Villefrance is Cap d'Ail and Villa Euphrisi which is wonderful. And possibly walkable from the tender docks. Otherwise it sounds like a small group, maybe connecting on your roll call, would be a good option. Tours by locals could be a good resource as well.