Another question about touring with Sylvie

[cbowler]

Hi - My DH and I have a private tour set up with Sylvie. For those of you that have toured with her, do you think it's better for me to research what we want to see or just leave it up to her to take us to worthwhile places and sights?

 

We're planning on going to Nice, Eze, and Monaco. Part of me thinks that some of what I'm paying for is her knowledge and experience of what to see. But, the natural planner in me says that I should figure it out on my own so I don't miss something! If you all think I should research what we want to see then I had better get started!

[barnstormer]

You probably read the post I made earlier this week: For those who have toured with Sylvie

 

Good question and here are a few of my opinions and we all have our own tastes:

 

a) Nice is a lovely city. We weren't there long so we didn't truly tour the city, but from our walking and cab ride I know you could spend time there. If you're into churches, museums, parks, etc. there could be a lot to see, but IMHO, it is like many other upscale European cities, not truly with a tourist theme.

 

b) Eze is a close drive, as is Monaco. Eze to us was an excellent way to see how life was in the 1,200-1,500 period without feeling like we had been to Disneyland. With Sylvie it was so much easier to understand why the layout was designed that way, how people lived and the evolution. There are some excellent websites on Eze and I went though those to know it was what we wanted.

 

c) We were in Monaco 4 years prior and that too is full of history as well as the palace, casinos, and of course the traces of the race track. It is a more modern city, not as large feeling as Nice. It too doesn't feel Disney like and there is a lot to see. We choose at that time to use the public bus system and maps to get a feel for the city, we had researched restaurants, and sites to see. Again in hindsight, Sylvie could have added so many more of her "secrets" that we walked or drove by and will miss forever.

 

She is a wealth of information and has been doing this for over 20 years. So my simple suggestion is plan a few "must see" things from your bucket list, give her an outline of where you want to go, perhaps where you want to dine and let her do the rest.

[Kentucky Mockingbird]

We did a tour with Sylvie last Thursday from Cannes of the southern Alps which she recommended. It was the best tour we have ever had - bar none. Just fabulous. She took us up into the mountains and we visited and had coffee and pastries in small cafes in small villages -- no tourists. The scenery was unbelievable and Sylvie was the best as a tour guide. We had been to other places on the Riviera but this far exceeded anything we had done previously. I would recommend it even to those who have not previously visited the Riviera.

[jms]

We did a tour (6 of us) with Sylvia last October. She picked us up at the pier in Monte Carlo, gave us a brief tour of the town with a bit of time for shopping, then took us to St Paul de Vence because that's where we wanted to go (having seen Eze on a different trip). She also took us to Nice for lunch in the flower market area and that was just enough to do there. Just email her and tell her your interests and she'll fashion your tour around that. Have a great time!'

[flrose]

We toured with Sylvie last month. We were supposed to stop in Monaco, but due to the Grand Prix we were relocated to Cannes, which by the way, was right in the middle of the Film Festival.

 

Sylvie took us around town and showed us the venues where all the film "action" was taking place, then we drove up the coast to Cap dAntibes. It was wonderful. We stopped at a little market place that had fresh vegetables, flowers and homemade items. We purchased some beautiful French soaps made in Provence.

 

We then drove up into the hills to St Paul de Vence and had a lovely walk around the old town and had lunch there. The view of the Alps was so beautiful and quite a surprise to see snow covered peaks from our warm location!

 

It was a wonderful day...as you can see Sylvie will create the perfect tour based upon your wishes as well as what is of importance to see. She is a wonderful guide!!! There were 8 of us on the tour and she made sure she had a comfortable van for us to ride in. She is very knowledgable and fun.

Enjoy

Julie

[seabreezer]

I think no matter where you go with Sylvie you'll have an excellent tour. I agree that Nice is nice but not really as interesting as some of the hill towns. Monaco is also okay but I would limit my time there. Sylvie can tell you alot about it as she is driving through. The real treasures of the area are the hill towns. We were easily able to see Eze, Nice and Monaco on our own since the bus and train system is so good to those towns. We used Sylvie for a hill town tour and we left it to her. We ended up seeing Cagne Sur Mer, Tourettes Sur Loup, Vence and St. Paul de Vence. All excellent and unique and Sylvie is delightful. She knows her history and has loads of personality. We had a thoroughly enjoyable day with her.

[katmich12]

Who is Sylvie and how do I get in touch with her? I will be on a Celebrity cruise that stops in Nice in Sept. 2011. I have never been to that area before. Any suggestions and info is appreciated.

[NH Cruiser]

Here's the website for Sylvie (http://pagesperso-orange.fr/dicristo/pivot-eng.htm). We booked with her for August 2011. We're doing Nice, Monaco, Monte Carlo, Eze, and St Paul de Vence.

[enmom]

We spent July 4-11 on the Windstar Windsurf cruise from Rome to Nice. Our day with Sylvie was definitely a standout! She picked us up at the port in Monaco for our tour.

 

The itinerary was a combination of her suggestions and our requests (Eze and the winery). We had a wonderful time. Sylvie is like the cool friend or relative you wish you had in a vacation spot. Within 10 minutes of being in the van, she seemed like an old friend. She is warm, personable, and very knowledgeable.

 

Our day started with the drive through Monte Carlo, which we hadn't asked for specifically, but I'm very glad that she included. Other than the palace, gardens, and casino, there aren't a lot of sights in Monte Carlo and it's not the easiest town to walk around. On the drive, we got to see a lot of the public art that it scattered around town. Sylvie also told us about the history of Monaco and answered our questions about the principality.

 

Our first stop was Eze (not to be missed, imo), Sylvie walked around with us and told us the history of the town. At out request, she brought us to the amazing Chevre D'Or hotel for coffee (not the cheapest cup of coffee, but worth it for the amazing views) and showed us some stores.

 

We then drove to Nice and along the ocean on our way to Vence for lunch. I don't think I would have known this town existed if it weren't for Sylvie. We seemed to be the only English speakers in town, which was great. We went to this wonderful restaurant for lunch and learned about the town as Sylvie drove us around.

 

We then went to this small local winery for a wine tasting. We didn't have an official tour of the vineyard, but they explained (through Sylvie) about the process of making the different types of wines. The tasting was enjoyable - we especially liked the dessert wines - and we bought wine for the rest of the cruise.

 

We then went to St. Paul de Vence where we saw Chagall's grave and did a little shopping.

 

It was a VERY full day. The entire time, Sylvie was as charming and helpful as possible. We learned a lot about the area and saw some great places.

 

Be warned, though, that Sylvie is a one-woman operation, so book her in advance or you will have trouble getting on her schedule.

 

If you want more information, feel free to send me a private post.

[umtigerfan1]

I emailed Sylvie a few days ago and have not heard back, does it normally take a few days? Thanks in advance.

[katmich12]

Sylvie's new website is http://www.frenchrivieraguides.com.

 

Lindy

[notentirelynormal]

Sylvie's new website is www.frenchrivieraguides.com.

 

Lindy

 

I got an error message when I clicked on the new website.

[katmich12]

I got an error message when I clicked on the new website.

OOPS!! Try FrenchRivieraGuides.net.

 

Lindy