Transfer from Nice to Marseille

[MVPinBoynton]

Our November Oceania cruise starting in Monte Carlo, just changed to Marseille.  We are flying into Nice and spending a couple days there and plan on touring with one of my favorite guides in the area.  I still want to do that, but will need to find a way to get to Nice on the morning of the cruise.  A car service is around 500 Euros, which is not logical to use unless another couple or two on our roll call want to do the same thing.  I know that there are busses and trains that are quite reasonably priced, but is it a convenient and easy way to get there with luggage?  I haven't looked into Uber yet for the long drive, but it might be handy if there is a good airport to airport transfer and then use Uber for the short drives from my hotel and to the port from the airport.  Any assistance would be appreciated.

[bennybear]

Another option is renting a car, you could pick up at the Nice airport and drop off at Marseille airport to avoid driving in the cities.   Not sure of drop charges though.  We’ve driven in Nice and it has been fine,  and driven a lot in France.   It’s quite easy highways and they drive as we do in North America.  
 

I believe there is an airport bus also from Nice to Marseille,  and usually they accommodate luggage easily so that would also be a good option if you have too much luggage to manage on the train.  

Edited August 21, 2021 by bennybear

[MVPinBoynton]

10 minutes ago, bennybear said:

Another option is renting a car, you could pick up at the Nice airport and drop off at Marseille airport to avoid driving in the cities.   Not sure of drop charges though.  We’ve driven in Nice and it has been fine,  and driven a lot in France.   It’s quite easy highways and they drive as we do in North America.  
 

I believe there is an airport bus also from Nice to Marseille,  and usually they accommodate luggage easily so that would also be a good option if you have too much luggage to manage on the train.  

I don’t d look at car rentals.  With the current shortage, they were around $300.  I wish I knew how much luggage you can take on the train.  I will look at the airport bus. That does souplike a great option.  Thanks for the info. 

[bennybear]

3 minutes ago, MVPinBoynton said:

I don’t d look at car rentals.  With the current shortage, they were around $300.  I wish I knew how much luggage you can take on the train.  I will look at the airport bus. That does souplike a great option.  Thanks for the info. 

You are really only limited by what you can carry on.  But you have to lift it from the ground up on to the train steps and then place on overhead racks.  There May be some space at the end of the train car.  So if you have more than one each plus carryon, I think it’s a deal breaker depending on your own fitness levels.   Thankfully my DH manages, but we prefer the freedom and ease of a car.  
It’s a beautiful area to explore.  Arles, Avignon,  Aix en Provence, St Remy….

We’ve found the buses in England to be great,  hopefully they will be in France as well.  

[MVPinBoynton]

12 minutes ago, bennybear said:

You are really only limited by what you can carry on.  But you have to lift it from the ground up on to the train steps and then place on overhead racks.  There May be some space at the end of the train car.  So if you have more than one each plus carryon, I think it’s a deal breaker depending on your own fitness levels.   Thankfully my DH manages, but we prefer the freedom and ease of a car.  
It’s a beautiful area to explore.  Arles, Avignon,  Aix en Provence, St Remy….

We’ve found the buses in England to be great,  hopefully they will be in France as well.  

I’m not worried about lifting, as long as there is room.  We will be having a great tour of the area the day before, so won’t need a car for that.  It is a gorgeous place.   I also like driving in Europe, so I can stop when there is something to see.  But not this time. 

[Hlitner]

We have  ever seen luggage limitations on trains, but you would need to handle all your own luggage and hope to find enough storage space at the end of your car.  Since using trains can involve long walks and sometimes the need to lift luggage up steps it is not always a

good option for we heavy packers.  It is one reason ( among many) that we prefer to rent/lease a car when traveling in Europe.  But trains can be a great option if you simply want to get from point A to B without too much baggage.

 

Hank

[MVPinBoynton]

30 minutes ago, Hlitner said:

We have  ever seen luggage limitations on trains, but you would need to handle all your own luggage and hope to find enough storage space at the end of your car.  Since using trains can involve long walks and sometimes the need to lift luggage up steps it is not always a

good option for we heavy packers.  It is one reason ( among many) that we prefer to rent/lease a car when traveling in Europe.  But trains can be a great option if you simply want to get from point A to B without too much baggage.

 

Hank

Thanks Hank. I appreciate your advice. 

[slidergirl]

Look at those rental fees again.  I just popped on Europcar, put in a 11/11 date and all were under $200US.  The car shortage is huge in the US but may not be so bad in France as they have a good train system.