Villefranche

[cruz.n.carebear]

We are in port from 7-3. I've basically neglected this port on our itinerary. Seeing how we're less than a month away, I need to come up with a plan. The plan was just to get off the ship and explore the town. It's a tender port, and because of the limited time there I'm thinking I don't want to venture to Monte Carlo. Does anyone have any recommendations for neat things to see or do? Or any restaurant recommendations for lunch?

[Instyle40]

I was in Villafranche at the end of May. It was beautiful. I looked in the shops, had a glass of wine, and watched the Bentley's drive by. If you have good weather you can just hang out in the port area.

[John Bull]

Villefranche is attractive but unexciting.

 

If it's between hectic port days in places like Barca or Pisa/Florence it's a good place to chill, & to wander the little shops & bars. No need for research or transport, just get off the tender & wander.

 

But although it's a short day Monaco is very quick & easy. The rail station is a 10 - 15 min walk from the tender jetty along the waterfront, trains about every 30 minutes & take just 15 minutes or so. And Monaco station is right in the middle of town, alongside Ste Devote chapel, 5 mins from the harbour, 10 mins from Casino Square. It's a 20 minute walk or short taxi ride - including a stiff hill - in the opposite direction to the Palace, museums etc overlooking the town, You could head straight to the Palace & take the little land-train for a 40 minute tour of the harbour, Casino Square etc from there

To allow for any delay or missed train, you'd want to be back in Villefranche in good time, & that wiggle-time can be used to meander through Villefranche between station & jetty.

Again, no need for any pre-booking or significant research. And despite the early return (last tender may be an hour before sailing) you don't need a desperately early start to get a good flavour of Monaco.

 

So you can make a late decision, lazy Villefranche day vs train to Monaco, depending on circumstance of the day, such as your energy levels & the weather.

 

JB :)

[mskaufman]

We broke things up into half days, going back to the ship for lunch in the middle. You will not be in port as long. In addition to Monoco, Nice is also a short train ride away. We walked around Villefrance in the morning and then went to Nice in the afternoon. You might consider going to Nice or Monoco early and walk around Villefrance with whatever time you have when you get back. Links to pictures are below.

 

http://markandkareneurope2012.shutterfly.com/pictures/564

 

http://markandkareneurope2012.shutterfly.com/pictures/626

[Peteymil]

Villefranche is attractive but unexciting.

 

If it's between hectic port days in places like Barca or Pisa/Florence it's a good place to chill, & to wander the little shops & bars. No need for research or transport, just get off the tender & wander.

 

But although it's a short day Monaco is very quick & easy. The rail station is a 10 - 15 min walk from the tender jetty along the waterfront, trains about every 30 minutes & take just 15 minutes or so. And Monaco station is right in the middle of town, alongside Ste Devote chapel, 5 mins from the harbour, 10 mins from Casino Square. It's a 20 minute walk or short taxi ride - including a stiff hill - in the opposite direction to the Palace, museums etc overlooking the town, You could head straight to the Palace & take the little land-train for a 40 minute tour of the harbour, Casino Square etc from there

To allow for any delay or missed train, you'd want to be back in Villefranche in good time, & that wiggle-time can be used to meander through Villefranche between station & jetty.

Again, no need for any pre-booking or significant research. And despite the early return (last tender may be an hour before sailing) you don't need a desperately early start to get a good flavour of Monaco.

 

So you can make a late decision, lazy Villefranche day vs train to Monaco, depending on circumstance of the day, such as your energy levels & the weather.

 

JB :)

 

We are going to Nice, is the train easier than the bus?

[John Bull]

We are going to Nice, is the train easier than the bus?

 

Sorry, don't know what the bus journey is like, others might chip in.

But by train is so frequent, cheap, quick & easy that I can't imagine the bus being better.

 

JB :)

edit: oops, straight after posting I noticed the thread "train to Nice, how long?" Seems the bus is just as quick & easy as the train.

And 50 cents cheaper :D

[cruz.n.carebear]

Thanks for the suggestions! I agree with the suggestion to wing it depending on what we feel. It is our first stop after boarding in Genoa, and I'm concerned with our energy level at that point. But seeing how nothing requires advance reservations, we will just go with it.

[Instyle40]

If you a are going to Nice, I would recommend getting a taxi to take you to the train station which should be about 6 minutes from your port. The directions that Celebrity gave me which was walking ended up being a 35 minute walk uphill, up stairs, and downstairs. I personally would go to Monte Carlo. You will save the walk time if you use a taxi to get to the train station. also your ship should have the train schedule if you ask concierge. NIce and Monte Carlo are not far from Villefranche by train. It will cost you round trip 7 Euros to Nice.

[John Bull]

I would recommend getting a taxi to take you to the train station which should be about 6 minutes from your port. You will save the walk time if you use a taxi to get to the train station. .

 

:confused: :confused: :confused:

It's 500 metres/yards.

Google rates it 0 mins 39 secs by car.

Or 7 - 8 mins on foot.

All on level ground, mainly along the waterfront.

Sounds like Celebrity owe you an apology.

 

http://maps.google.co.uk/maps?saddr=Unknown+road&daddr=43.702951,7.3117231+to:Av.+Georges+Clemenceau&hl=en&ll=43.705065,7.312431&spn=0.004824,0.023775&sll=43.705887,7.313547&sspn=0.005321,0.011888&geocode=FXXamgIdT5FvAA%3BFafamgIda5FvACmnuWkbKdvNEjEYnlKcj9veKg%3BFU7qmgIdoJhvAA&t=h&dirflg=w&mra=dme&mrsp=2&sz=17&via=1&z=16&layer=c&cbll=43.703483,7.312177&panoid=h0PMMvLZ3BXjXNPqYaMU5g&cbp=11,170.2,,0,0

(The white catamaran with the blue furled sail is where the tenders berth)

 

JB :)

[Instyle40]

Johnbull,

Not sure who gave you directions but the train station from the Celebrity port was a good 25 minutes to walk. The train station is on top of a hill so unless you have wings to fly be prepared to walk up stairs and uphill.

I hope the weather is beautiful for you.

All the best and have fun!!

[crazygirl!]

Sorry, don't know what the bus journey is like, others might chip in.

But by train is so frequent, cheap, quick & easy that I can't imagine the bus being better.

 

JB :)

edit: oops, straight after posting I noticed the thread "train to Nice, how long?" Seems the bus is just as quick & easy as the train.

And 50 cents cheaper :D

 

The bus to Monte Carlo is pretty easy. I'm not sure if it's "easier" than the train since we did not take the train. I guess it would be a personal preference.

 

If you want to take the bus to Monte Carlo, it's the #100 Eastbound bus. It will say "Menton" on it, as that is the last stop. Returning, you will want the #100 Westbound Bus that says "Nice" on it. From the port, you walk up and slightly to the left and follow the bus stop signs. Going to Monte Carlo, you will want to be on the water side of the street (there is a tourist office right there). Across the street by the stores is the Westbound bus stop. Buses run about every 15 minutes and it's about a 20-minute ride. It was 1 euro as of last year and you pay the driver.

 

You could also go to Eze, which is on the same bus route.

 

Right there in Villefranche where you tender there are some shops and restaurants. We were back in plenty of time to have a leisurely lunch along the waterfront before tendering back to the ship.

 

Oh, here is the link to the bus schedule...

http://www.lignesdazur.com

[Peteymil]

The bus to Monte Carlo is pretty easy. I'm not sure if it's "easier" than the train since we did not take the train. I guess it would be a personal preference.

 

If you want to take the bus to Monte Carlo, it's the #100 Eastbound bus. It will say "Menton" on it, as that is the last stop. Returning, you will want the #100 Westbound Bus that says "Nice" on it. From the port, you walk up and slightly to the left and follow the bus stop signs. Going to Monte Carlo, you will want to be on the water side of the street (there is a tourist office right there). Across the street by the stores is the Westbound bus stop. Buses run about every 15 minutes and it's about a 20-minute ride. It was 1 euro as of last year and you pay the driver.

 

You could also go to Eze, which is on the same bus route.

 

Right there in Villefranche where you tender there are some shops and restaurants. We were back in plenty of time to have a leisurely lunch along the waterfront before tendering back to the ship.

 

Oh, here is the link to the bus schedule...

http://www.lignesdazur.com

So if we are going to Nice, we will catch the bus on the opposite side of the street, not the water side, correct?

[xxHadleyxx]

Johnbull,

Not sure who gave you directions but the train station from the Celebrity port was a good 25 minutes to walk. The train station is on top of a hill so unless you have wings to fly be prepared to walk up stairs and uphill.

I hope the weather is beautiful for you.

All the best and have fun!!

 

How odd. Are you sure you were in Villefracnhe? We have sailed there many times an also rented a house in town and stayed two weeks.

 

You are right that the train station is on a hillside and there is a need to walk up about a flight and a half of stairs. Otherwise though, the only place I have EVER seen tenders pull in there is (as the PP said) about a 7-10 minute walk along the water's edge (and all flat) to where those stairs take you directly to the station.

 

 

We love, love, love Villefranche--it is my all time favourite port. The town itself is charming and the beach is nice and everything is so close if you want to just stay and relax.

Monaco is great and incredibly easy and cheap to get to if we want to do more.

 

Nice is not our thing, but it is also cheap and easy to get to (by train--I would not use a bus).

 

You could also take a taxi (or bus, but I do not know the numbers to give you, sorry) up to Villa Ephrusi and tour the lovely home and gardens (with incredible views), then walk the trail along the summit down to Villa Kerylos (right on the water level) and tour that very dramatic home as well before getting a taxi (or bus) back to port.

[John Bull]

......... the only place I have EVER seen tenders pull in there is (as the PP said) about a 7-10 minute walk along the water's edge (and all flat) to where those stairs take you directly to the station.

 

Correct.

Though you hardly need me to tell you that.;)

 

If you spin the camera on the google photo that I linked, you can see the entrance to the rail tunnel, just above the waterfront (not the higher level viaduct, that's a road)

We walked it just a couple of weeks ago. Took about the same time as google's 7 to 8 minutes.

 

Mebbe Celebrity tender elsewhere. But I suspect they simply fouled-up their directions.

 

JB :)

[xxHadleyxx]

Correct.

Though you hardly need me to tell you that.;)

 

If you spin the camera on the google photo that I linked, you can see the entrance to the rail tunnel, just above the waterfront (not the higher level viaduct, that's a road)

We walked it just a couple of weeks ago. Took about the same time as google's 7 to 8 minutes.

 

Mebbe Celebrity tender elsewhere. But I suspect they simply fouled-up their directions.

 

JB :)

 

Yes, I think I have figured out what likely happened ;)

 

Our family has commented previously, that it is odd that there is a small sign directing people to turn left into town to get to the train station.

 

You CAN turn left there, ascend about one flight's worth of stairs, the turn right on the first cobblestone street you come to and it lets out at the station, on the same level as the tracks. This takes about the same amount of time as walking along the shoreline, but if you do not know where you are going, you can't see so it can be confusing to tourists who are not familiar with the area (thus, I never recommend it--even though it is shadier and cooler)

 

What makes it odd to us is that there is no second sign telling tourists to make that right turn.

 

I am betting the poster kept going up stairs (another 3 or 4 flights worth of them) to the next car friendly asphalt street before turning right. From there, you would have to then walk along the sidewalk as the street climbs up hill before it finally turns in on itself and winds around a steep curve to come in behind the station.

 

I can imagine that if you came in that way it would be hard to see that there were in fact much easier and shorter routes and think that this was the only way to get there (you really cannot see the other roads or stairs from back there).

[eliopia]

we will tender in villefranche too (msc orchestra),will be there from 9 to 7,ifirst time in a tender port,i guess they start the tender at 9,no:confused:,if so ,how long will it take to get to port?? we are planning to go to monte carlo ,i need to know how much time we have.

[dodger1964]

we will tender in villefranche too (msc orchestra),will be there from 9 to 7,ifirst time in a tender port,i guess they start the tender at 9,no:confused:,if so ,how long will it take to get to port?? we are planning to go to monte carlo ,i need to know how much time we have.

 

don't specifically know about msc, but generally tender transit time is very short (5 minutes).

 

if you go to google earth you will see a ship that is tendered. (43 41'42.59").

 

we only have cruised with celebrity and we get priority tender tickets which greatly speeds up our place in tender line. (they usually let ship tours off first, then priority then general)

 

our line hands out tender tickets at a specified time and the earlier you get that ticket the earlier your tender number is. (i know on one our trips it took almost 2 hours to get all the passengers off!!)

 

ymmv, but the actual time you will be on the tender will be very short.

 

have a nice trip!!

[Hlitner]

Would just add that Celebrity, and every other ship, tender to the exact same pier. And the walk to the train station normally takes us less then 15 min....and that is walking at a pretty normal pace. As has been properly posted, its a simple flat walk along the harbor (keeping the water on your right) and then you have to go up the long stairway to the small train station. But even getting to the nearest bus stop involves some walking (part of it uphill) so we think the primary factor determining bus vs. train is a personal preference. Keep in mind that the buses are cheaper (only 1 Euro) then the train and the local 100 bus runs a lot more often then the train. Another factor for consideration should be the location of the bus stops in Nice and/or Monte Carlo vs. the train station location. Although the bus ride might take a bit longer then the train, it might actually get you to your destination faster given the train schedule and station locations.

 

Hank

[festivalfrau]

we were on the orchestra in April. The tender was quick, but you had to line up for tickets early in the morning on the ship.

 

We took the train to Monte Carlo. It was super easy. The information booth at the cruise port has a sheet under plastic that shows the train times. We took a photo or it and then started walking to the train station ahead of the crowd and then studied it as to how to get back on time for the ship :)

 

The bus system once in Monte Carlo was quite easy as well to get to the tourist areas.

 

Good luck!

[eliopia]

we were on the orchestra in April. The tender was quick, but you had to line up for tickets early in the morning on the ship.

 

We took the train to Monte Carlo. It was super easy. The information booth at the cruise port has a sheet under plastic that shows the train times. We took a photo or it and then started walking to the train station ahead of the crowd and then studied it as to how to get back on time for the ship :)

 

The bus system once in Monte Carlo was quite easy as well to get to the tourist areas.

 

Good luck!

Can u please tell me,once in MC and out of the station ,how easy is to reach the bus station ,we speak frensh,i guess asking for direction wont be a problem but i need to know in advance if it is too far ,then will look for other option.

[weluvrpups]

We just returned from a port stop at Villefranche about a week ago. Here is a link to my TR http://www.disboards.com/showthread.php?t=3124303. VF is the first port stop, so it's not too far down in the thread.

 

I can't stess enough that if you are planning to take a train in Villefranche, print tomsportguide.com villefranche port. He has an 8X10 color photo of the dock with an arrow pointing to the train station. We easily walked it in 8 minutes, towing 2 kids with us. His photo matched the wharf exactly.

 

We got off the ship around 815 and we were at the doors to the Oceanagraphic Museum in Monaco by 915. If the museum doesn't interest you, just walking around Monaco or to the palace for a look would be fun, then head back to Villefranche and easily have an hour to walk VF before you have to be on board at 3.

 

To the person who asked about reaching the bus station after exiting the Monaco train station - you don't really need to find a station, per se. Stops for Bus #1 and #2 are right outside the Place Ste Devote exit, follow signs out of the train station for Nice Ville/Palace as the station has 3 exits - it's huge!!! Bus costs 2 euros to buy a ticket from the driver and it makes a nice long loop around the city. Very upscale comfy bus. Bus maps are found multiple places online and I think in tomsportguide.

[eliopia]

Thank you for your reply,very nice report on villefranche.

[festivalfrau]

Can u please tell me,once in MC and out of the station ,how easy is to reach the bus station ,we speak frensh,i guess asking for direction wont be a problem but i need to know in advance if it is too far ,then will look for other option.

 

 

it's just outside the main doors, but be aware that the station itself is quite large, so make sure you know which direction you want when you get off the train!