Nice from Villefranche

[travellgirl]

We will be on Navigator of the Seas in May. We have been on a previous cruise that docked in Villefranche and did the Nice and Monaco on your own. We really enjoyed walking around Nice and would like to spend the day there this time. I can't seem to remember if there were taxis at the pier when you got off the tender. Does anyone know? I know you can do it by train or bus, but we prefer not to.

Also, we will be docked until 10:00 pm. Is it worth staying on shore right in Villefranche for dinner?

Thanks for any information.

[lucyjohnz]

We did the train to Nice from Villefranche and it was incredibly easy and cheap - 4E each for roundtrip tickets. However, you will want to look at the train schedules online beforehand. From what I've heard, taxi rides can cost 50-100E each way (at least to Monaco) and take longer than the train. From what I remember, the train ride took 15 minutes (another 30 minutes to go on to Cannes). However, trains leave every hour to hour and a half for Nice from Villefranche. The train schedule on the way back (with Monaco as the end-point) also leaves every hour to hour and a half. Check the schedule carefully as not all trains stop in Villefranche. You can look at schedules online with a friendly interface - look for the address here on other posts.

 

As for Villefranche, we walked along the beach to the right of the tender area for about 1/2 mile to the train station up the side of the hill. On the walk, we saw several nice restaurants across the street with a view of the ocean. Our day consisted of: walk to train station around 10:15 without knowing the train schedule. Find out we missed the 10am train to Nice and wait for the 11:15 train instead. Arrive in Nice around 11:30 and figure out the train schedule from the French pamphlet available from the train station. In Nice, we determined there were 3pm and 4pm trains to Monte Carlo. So, we walked from the train station to the water and stopped in shops and an internet cafe on the walk. We ended up back at the train station for the 4pm train which took us to Monte Carlo around 4:30. We then had a nice lady in a convenience store call us a tax and for 10E, took us to the casino. We then surrendered our passports and paid 10E each to visit the real casino (not just slot machines) which opened at 5pm, where we played a bit of Roulette and then left. We then took another taxi back to train station and just missed the 6pm train back to Villefranche and waited for the 7pm train (there was a 6:30 train but it didn't stop at Villefranche). We arrived back at Villefranche and were on the ship by 8pm.

 

We did not like Nice much - it was very big and noisy and seemed to have construction going on at every corner. Monte Carlo was very pretty and I would have like to have spent more time there. We were just in Cannes on our past Med cruise and it is a very pretty city which we enjoyed much more than Nice.

[NeoJava]

When exiting the tender pier, instead of walking along the water's edge toward the train station, you need to start walking up the hill from the pier. There were taxis along the main road above.

[bubbadog]

we hired a private guide(driver in rome )i believe,and loved nice he took us way up on the hill to some historical sites and really cool little shops,then to monaco and all over,but i dont remember any cabs right there where you get off the tender,there were a couple places to eat there that looked out on the water,so yes to dinner,hope this helps you:));) :p have a great cruise;)