One and half days in Villefranche. Help with planning pleae.

[Parapara]

I know there has been a lot of information about getting to places and what to see from Villefranche but haven't seen posts where people have as long as we do in port. We arrive about midday and leave 8 p.m. the following night. Vaguely I have thought of spending the afternoon after arrival at Eze Village and then back to Villefranche. The next day going to Monaco by bus or train. However this doesn't seem a very full itinerary! From posts I have seen Nice isn't worth visiting and maybe not Cannes either. If we want to swim I think we can do that at Villefranche?

Being from NZ our interests lie in things different from here ( we have plenty of beaches!) i.e. in the old, quaint, historical and beautiful. ( That sounds as if NZ isn't beautiful! It is, but in different way).

If anyone can give ideas of the best way to spend the two days that would be very much appreciated.

Jean

[Susan-M]

In addition to the places that you mention, St. Paul de Vence and the Rothchild Villa & Gardens come to mind.

 

Rick Steves book, Provence and the French Riviera, has good info on this area and practical advice on how to get around.

 

Is renting a car a consideration?

[Parapara]

Thanks, Susan for suggestions. I don't think car hire would be for us. The thought of driving on the other side of road from what we are used to could be difficult! I should have mentioned that there are four of us and we can all walk well. I have read that you can get to most places by train or bus. Is one better than the other? Does one take a more picturesque route? Can anyone suggest an itinerary where we don't end up backtracking or missing out on something we shouldn't have?

[texancruzer]

Wow.....who said Nice isnt worth a look-see ??? We did a tour that first stopped here (just for a bit) and we enjoyed strolling the Promenade de Anglais (street along the water) and a few of the back streets with markets set up...vegies, flowers and craft items. We even got to see the new French President up close )he was 3 feet away) when he came for a visit that day. Nice is very close to Villefranche (right on the other side of a piece of land that juts out into the water) so easy to get to. We then did Eze (very cool little place) and then to Monaco/Monte Carlo getting to visit both the rock and the town area and casino. Full day - but we did it all in one. These areas are all really quite close together. Villefranche is a very cool little village in its own right. At night the harbor area is lit up and a nice place to get a bit to eat if so inclined to eat off the ship one night.

[Parapara]

I am sure every place has something worth seeing and someone did tell me Nice has interesting markets. It is just a matter of prioritising which is so hard. I have had a look at a website of Rothchild's Villa and gardens as suggested by Susan and it looks really beautiful. I see it is between Villefranche and Monaco. Do buses or trains stop there?

[kruzseeka]

I am sure every place has something worth seeing and someone did tell me Nice has interesting markets. It is just a matter of prioritising which is so hard. I have had a look at a website of Rothchild's Villa and gardens as suggested by Susan and it looks really beautiful. I see it is between Villefranche and Monaco. Do buses or trains stop there?

 

 

Villa Ephrussi is beautiful with glorious gardens and stunning views across the bay. There is a bus service (I emailed the tourist information office for info) but it's not too frequent and we walked it from the tender dock in around 45 minutes (taking it steadily and including time for peeking through the gates of the villas en route!). Walk right from the dock towards the far end of the beach and look for some steps. Go up there bearing to the right. When you reach a T-junction with the main road turn right and walk until you see the signs for the Villa on your left.

 

If you 'Google Earth' you will see the position of the Villa relative to Villefranche - it's half-way along the peninsular of Cap Ferrat. There's no train along here but we walked both ways, spent quite some time at the Villa then did the 1-hour little train trip (road train) around Villefranche to Beauville, wandered round the quaint streets of Villefranche and relaxed on the waterfront having coffee - all in a day.

 

Enjoy your visit - it's a beautiful spot.

[Susan-M]

Hi Parapara,

 

Re train vs. bus ... the train runs along the shore, and some buses do as well, so nice scenery from both. You'll be able to access more places by bus (e.g. Eze Village, St. Paul de Vence).

 

A route that would keep you busy for your full day ... train (or bus #100) from Villefranche to MonteCarlo/Monaco, bus #112 to Eze Village, same bus to Nice, bus #100 or train back to Villefranche. You can get to St. Paul de Vence by bus from Nice, but probably too much to try to fit into one day along with Monte Carlo, Eze and Nice.

 

Bus schedules: http://www.lignedazur.com/index.asp

http://www.eze-riviera.com/emotions/deplacement/ang/bus.htm

[Parapara]

Thanks very much, Kruzseeka and Susan. Seeing we are lucky enough to be in Villefranche for 1 1/2 days, maybe, we could go to the Villa first afternoon and the other places the next day. Should all be fantastic!