Leisurely Canne + Pastries

[Sunkissed Mommy]

We are looking to do something leisurely when we stop in Cannes. Our cruise is port intensive, so we thought we might take it a little easier on this day. We are two couples traveling together (mid-thirties). We don't want to worry too much about clock watching, but don't mind a single trip to one of the surrounding cities as well. We just want to see beautiful scenery and try some yummy pasties, bread, desserts, etc. Walk around for a bit and not stress to see "everything". We are not interested in beaches, we live 5 minutes from the beach at home.

 

I'd love some suggestions as we're having a hard time deciding between cities to potentially visit (I'm thinking Nice or Antibes, but open to suggestions from people with experience).

 

Plus recommendations for places with great pastries, croissants, etc.

 

Thanks!

[carlmm]

There are two main, and very different Areas, for leisurely walks:

 

The old town Le Suquet is on a hill to the West of the pier and the modern part. Old quirky streets and an old chateau/castel can be found here. The castle hosts the Musée de la Castre and offers marvelous views.

 

The modern part is the on with with the glamour. Next to the beach the Boulevard de la Croisette is the place to see and to bee seen. Hotels, bars, restaurants, shops but also small parks.

[ollienbertsmum]

Cannes is a lovely "downtime" port when you are on the Epic. We have been several times.

 

Book your tender on your interactive TV early in your cruise - but if you are planning a relaxing day you can book one for about an hour after you dock. I think if you are going to Nice you need to be going out asap. I really do want to get to Nice someday - by the time we get to Cannes we are tired, my plans are usually abandoned and we stay close to the port.

 

Perhaps my notes from my April cruise will be helpful:

 

We woke in France and another prefect day weather wise. It was a tee shirt but not too hot day. Skies were a lovely "bleu".

 

 

We had a 9.05 tender ticket. (Book as soon as you get on board, it is under entertainment I think). We went down ten minutes early as suggested but found that they had not called the 8:45 yet. It seemed a bit frantic but they maybe should not encourage people to be early. When we did have to leave no one actually checked the time. They said anyone without tickets would have to wait until 11 am.

 

 

Anyway we were on the tender at about 9.20. We waited for some tours to board. Getting off in Cannes is easy. It is a lovely place in itself. We asked some French ladies where the Nice bus (the 200) went, were misguided and then redirected by some different French ladies to the train station. We had to watch a bus leave (about 10.10) because I could not reach my purse which was hidden at the bottom of my bag (I clearly had made sure that the pickpockets would not find their way into my purse). The next bus seemed to take ages and then the driver got off for a coffee. But actually we were on our way by about 10.30.

 

 

Were not sure where to get off in Antibes and missed the town centre ending up at the train station. It was an easy walk into town and at least we did now know where transport left from. We found the Provençal market. The fruit and veg looked very nice but it was really expensive. I bought some bags of herbs and some lavender bags. Antibes is lovely. I had not expected such expensive boats at the marina though. We wandered around, saw the walls, the beach and the cathedral. We got back to the train station by about 1.15 pm. The trains were not as regular as I had thought so we had to wait until two pm to catch our train. Whilst we waited, having already bought our tickets, we watched two buses leave. A quick toilet stop and coffee and eventually the train arrived. It was busy but there were plenty of seats where we got on. Mid summer I am sure it is much more hectic. It would have been better to go there and back by bus, since the bus and train station are actually right next to each other there is some deciding.

 

 

The train also went to Grasse and to Nice and Monte Carlo. Looking at the train times there would have been time for about four hours in Monte Carlo/Monaco if you use the train and leave on the earliest tender if like today the ship arrives at 8 am and leaves at 6pm ( putting the last tender at 5 pm) I suppose the question is how long does the ship tour stay in Monte Carlo. Nice is certainly doAble. I think the train went to Eze too, so consider Eze for a future cruise.

 

 

Once back in Cannes we wandered along the shopping street and bought gifts for family and a pastry from Paul Bakery. Back along la croisette, along the sea front and past the building that hosts the Cannes film festival. I looked at the handprints made by the stars. Sylvester Stallone's hands are huge!

 

 

We spent a little while logged into wifi at the port (so many others doing the same), then onto the tender and back onto the ship.

Edited June 19, 2018 by ollienbertsmum
because the pasting included gobbledygook

[teachatthebeach]

We booked a private tour with Riviera Premium Tours. It was a very relaxing day. We stopped in Nice and stopped at the market. We had the best croissants here!

Here are the pictures!

 

 

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