Villefranche on a Sunday?

[ahoymatey3]

Hi all. Who has been to Villefranche on a Sunday? Is everything closed? I’m assuming the train schedules to Monaco and Monte Carlo are different (their website says it is too early to get precise schedule information.) Will I be able to get into the Grand Casino on a Sunday? All comments are appreciated, thanks!

 

[lucyjohnz]

I don't know if the casino is closed on Sunday or not. But, you can find an information site about it online - just search under Google or Yahoo for "Monte Carlo Casino Monaco" and you can get info there. We were there on a Monday and I do know that the table games in the casino do not open until either 4 or 5pm. And, you have to pay 10E each to get in - you'll need a passport. There's a small slot machine room at the front of the casino that I believe opens up around 10am and stays open all day - they take Euro coins there and seemed pretty tight with .20, .50 and 1 Euro machines.

 

I'm glad we went to the inside of the casino but there was a 5E minimum Roulette table there and more higher limit tables. The minimum Blackjack table was 25E and those went up after that. And, when I say 5E minimum, I mean that's the minimum bet ANYWHERE on the roulette table - inside and outside. Also, my daughter bought a Gin and Tonic inside the casino - it cost 13E. So, all in all for me, pretty pricey, worth seeing once, but probably not again.

[uk1]

Either paging down and reading entries for Villefranche or doing a basic search will illicit lots of info on Villefranche eg

 

Some examples:

 

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/show...ht=villefranche

 

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=168477

 

The ask specifics.

 

 

Jeff

[ahoymatey3]

Thanks for the link to the Monte Carlo Casino. It is open Sunday. Those drink prices and betting minimums are steep :eek: I mainly want to take in the architecture.

 

Actually I have read those other threads, thanks. They didn't address Sundays, specifically. I've read on other boards, about how things in Europe close down on Sunday, and the train schedules are radically different. Being there on a Sunday in the 'low' season i'm probably SOL, and will stick with the ship's tours.

[lucyjohnz]

One of the board listings out there has a link to the train schedules for that area - I think the trains are called the SNC or something. You can find the site by search for "Villefranche Trains". See about the train schedule because I looked at it and I believe you put in the date and the start and end points and it will give you a day's schedule. The trains were VERY cheap and VERY easy IF you knew the schedule ahead of time. If not, you might wait an hour for the next train which wastes a lot of time. And, make sure your train actually stops in Villefranche - about every other train skips it. However, the cost is minimal - 3.5 Euros each for round-trip tickets to Nice. Even less to Monte Carlo. What you might find on a Sunday though, you'd have to use the automated ticket machines to buy tickets.

 

I might mention that they never took our tickets on the train on the 3 trips we took - Villefranche-Nice, Nice-Monte Carlo and Monte Carlo-Villefranche. So, if you want to live dangerously (and you can't find anyone at the ticket counter or figure out the machines), you could just hop on and risk a 50E fine if caught.

 

Finally, Villefranche is between Monte Carlo and Nice so train rides to one or the other go in opposite directions. It typically shows the end of the line on the train and at the station. If you go to Nice, get off at the 2nd stop in Nice - it's closer to city center. The Villefranche station has train schedules there and the station is about a 10-minute walk from the tender drop-off by the ocean - train station will be up the hill on your left.

[uk1]

The express bus runs to Nice or Monaco every 20 minutes even on Sunday from the top of the town. Sunday is a busy day - not a dead day in the whole area as Nice is a working town more than a tourist resort and the Nicoise play over the weekends like the rest off us.

 

The links I posted suggest some great walks and places to visist and places to eat from the ship. In my view this is a better option than getting trains or buses - but it's all a matter of personal choice.

 

Jeff

[Andym]

Of all the times I have travelled the train, I have only had my ticket checked once. You need to validate your ticket at the machine on the platform BEFORE you travel. They class you as trying to skip the fare if your ticket isn't validated and you will get a hefty fine.

 

Andy