Cannes to St. Paul de Vence Small Group Tours?

[C.Butera]

I’m interested in going to St. Paul de Vence when my Wind Surf Cruise is in Cannes on May 5, 2019. Can anyone suggest a local tour operator they have used? I would prefer to avoid the high price tour offered by Windstar.

[Hlitner]

2 hours ago, C.Butera said:

I’m interested in going to St. Paul de Vence when my Wind Surf Cruise is in Cannes on May 5, 2019. Can anyone suggest a local tour operator they have used? I would prefer to avoid the high price tour offered by Windstar.

Have you considered just renting a car and driving yourself?  It is not too difficult (especially with GPS) and there is a decent paid parking garage right near the entrance to St Paul de Vence.  There is also free parking along the road (outside the walls) although you have to get lucky to snag one of those spots.

 

Hank

[C.Butera]

No, I hadn’t, since I was just considering a short trip( 4hrs.?)How economical and easy is it rent in Cannes? I had thought that maybe there would be tour offers at the port? I think I’d rather be looking out the window than driving!

[Hlitner]

On ‎4‎/‎23‎/‎2019 at 3:50 PM, C.Butera said:

No, I hadn’t, since I was just considering a short trip( 4hrs.?)How economical and easy is it rent in Cannes? I had thought that maybe there would be tour offers at the port? I think I’d rather be looking out the window than driving!

In France (and Cannes) it is unusual to find decent tour deals at the port.  However, you can certainly tour Cannes by simply taking the Petit Train (like an amusement park train that pulls a few cars along the streets).  One day car rentals vary (you have to shop around) but are usually less than 100€.  There is (or used to be) one local rental car company a few blocks from the tender pier (somebody else might have the name) and there are several major rental car agencies elsewhere in town within a 20 min walk.  

 

If you want to take a decent tour it is best to pre-book (online) before your trip.  The CC Roll Call for your cruise is a great place to join with a few other cruisers on a tour...and perhaps somebody has already organized something you would want to join.   Why do we prefer to drive?  Because DW and I generally prefer to be on our own without a group and driving is a lot more economical then hiring a private tour guide/car for the day...which can easily cost 350 - 500€.  The last time we were in St Paul de Vence we actually had lunch in a little restaurant next to a table with a couple off our ship.  They had hired their own guide who they had invited to join them for lunch.  The guide was very friendly and I remember telling DW that I would have been happy to hire her...except we were too darn cheap :).  On the other hand, we were at the same place, eating the same food, and paying a lot less.

 

Hank

[C.Butera]

Thanks for the info, Hank. I actually tried doing the roll call thing for our cruise but the site isn’t too user friendly.  I created a roll call a few months ago but it doesn’t show on the windstar roll call query. But it is there somewhere because one person has replied to it!? Needless to say, it hasn’t been too effective for contacting fellow cruisers. 

[Ashland]

We're doing a small group tour with some from our roll call in May with shoreexcursioneer......Cannes, St Paul de Vence & Antibes.

[C.Butera]

Hi Ashland! What date cruise are you on? We’re the May 1st out of Barcelona.

[Hlitner]

On ‎4‎/‎24‎/‎2019 at 8:17 PM, C.Butera said:

Thanks for the info, Hank. I actually tried doing the roll call thing for our cruise but the site isn’t too user friendly.  I created a roll call a few months ago but it doesn’t show on the windstar roll call query. But it is there somewhere because one person has replied to it!? Needless to say, it hasn’t been too effective for contacting fellow cruisers. 

I guess being on a small ship does really limit the number on Roll Calls.  We hope you have a fabulous cruise.  If St Paul de Vence is really on your personal agenda you can certainly reconsider renting a car.  One other option is to use public transit.  This involves taking the train (there are about 2 per hour) from Cannes to Cagnes sur Mer (just before Nice).  Get off at that station and have somebody direct you to the nearby bus stop where you can catch the #400 bus that goes to St Paul de Vence (that bus starts its run in Nice).  This train/bus combination does take some time, but is doable on a port day.

 

Hank

[Ashland]

On 4/30/2019 at 9:07 AM, C.Butera said:

Hi Ashland! What date cruise are you on? We’re the May 1st out of Barcelona.

Hi...We're on the May 18th out of Barcelona....Med/Greece on Vision.