Toulon help

[AVAD]

Anyone been to the surrounding towns of Toulon on DIY? We visited Toulon already and would like to visit Aix or Le Castelette but don’t know if we can do it on our own. 

Thanks

[dronnygirl]

Sorry can't help but we are going to Toulon. Do you have any advice for this port?

[edinburgher]

You could go by bus to Le Castellet, but there are very very few each day and some require a change.

 

La Cadiere d'Azur is also tricky, in fact anywhere inland is as most are only served by infrequent buses.

 

We know the area fairly well as we do land trips there to stay with friends and a car is useful. Without one, nicest and easiest I could suggest is Bandol. Frequent trains and only 15 or 20 minutes each way.  The train station is probably less than a mile from the sea front.  Pretty little town, home of some of the best reds and rose in the area, many vineyards behind it. You may be able to find short tours or wine tastings there if you search.

 

It isn't a "wow" destination, but you could spend a very pleasant few hours there and is the closest and easiest I can suggest. Info online.

 

Otherwise, look at a map of the area and choose a coastal location as most will have a train station. If you choose La Ciotat, be aware that the train station is not central, in fact you would need a bus or taxi to get into town.

 

A very good website is rome2rio. Input your A and B and the site gives you the different travel options and the operators.

Edited July 26, 2019 by edinburgher

[dronnygirl]

Thanks edinburgher, have already visited La Ciotat and Cassis on a land holiday.  We usually drive but cruising gives hubby a change. I will look into Bandol but wondered if Toulon is okay to spend a day? We love local markets and may treat ourselves to a nice lunch. Have you been to Mont Faron? Wondered if that us worth a visit?

[edinburgher]

There are many small towns both inland and on the coast which are pleasant to visit and a lot less touristy than Aix/Nice/Cannes etc.

 

Difficulty for cruise pax is that you could dock in either Toulon itself or at La Seyne sur Mer.  Both offer different sightseeing options and both have transport to nearby towns.  You might have to contact the port authorities to check which of the two would apply to your ship if you are planning independent sightseeing.

 

There are some excellent websites with info for both, including public transport, sightseeing etc. either through links or PDF's

 

I suggest you look at "whatsinport", "varprovence-cruise.com", and "marvelousprovence toulon cruise ship ports" first  All three would give you a good start, thereafter you could browse tripadvisor and others. There are of course many other good sites but too many to list here.

 

And try using the SEARCH facility on this France Ports Board.  There could be helpful info in the results.

 

Biggest and best market in the area is probably Saint Cyr, but only  the one on Sunday mornings, not the ones on other days.  We have visited there a few times, and people come from all around. They sell all sorts,  food and drink and a variety of non-food goods. We go by car so I don't know about public transport.

 

Hope some of this useful to anyone visiting the area.

 

A

[dronnygirl]

That's a great help, thanks. I will do some digging around, I quite enjoy the  research.

[daisy-mae]

When our ship docked at La Seyne sur Mer a few years ago, we rented bicycles from a merchant on the pier;  we toured La Seyne and Toulon, returning to the pier via a local ferry. The rental was for an entire day, and we were able to leave the bikes with the rental folks for an hour while we re-boarded the ship to change into our bathing suits before continuing our cycling to the beach and surrounding communities in the afternoon.

[rdt10]

On 7/24/2019 at 4:01 PM, dronnygirl said:

Sorry can't help but we are going to Toulon. Do you have any advice for this port?

We were in Toulon (LA Seyne Sur Mer) in June on the Celebrity Constellation. Celebrity wanted $25pp for a shuttle boat leaving from next to the ship, but only left once an hour. We walked a little over a mile to the public ferry and went for around  2 Euro pp. We spent an hour looking for something interesting and found nothing. Many of the shops were empty. We caught the public ferry back and spent the rest of the day onboard. Several other passengers we spoke to also disliked Toulon. My recommendation would be to find a tour that takes you outside Toulon. Aix is nice but not close. Cassis is pretty, but small, and you could take a boat ride along the calanques.

Edited August 4, 2019 by rdt10

[dronnygirl]

Daisy Mae and Rdt10 thanks for your input. I think we will look at several options and decide on the day.  We've already seen much of Provence on land holidays and really loved it but wanted to see/do something different. Think we may try Mont Faron as there is a museum at the top that my DH may be interested in.