Need Help with doing Villefranche/Nice On my Own!

[jcmjt]

We will be tendering into Villefranche via Brilliance of the Seas on June 4th. We have decided to take this port on our own. We want to see Monaco (briefly), Eze, Nice, and St. Paul de Vence. We are not looking to spend a great amount of time in each (we are not big shoppers) we are more there for scenery and experience. We want to use public Transportation like bus and train. Could someone please provide instructions on how to do this efficiently? Most of the initial research I have tried to do on the TAM buses have been in French and I cannot figure it out. The more specific the better!

 

Thank you

Christy

[Kathy & George]

Take the Tender to port & walkup-hill to Octroi Bus station, across the street from jardin Francois Binon, just above the TI, take Bus #100 sit on left side facing forward. The bus stop in Villefranche is about 3 blocks up the hill from the tender port--just cross the street outside the terminal, (there is a short staircase) turn right and keep going up the hill--all roads lead to the main 'highway'. There is a small park on one side of the street and a pharmacy across the road--if you wait directly across the street from the pharmacy, that's the bus stop to Eze/Monaco. If you wait in front of the pharmacy, that goes to Nice. Take Bus #100, 4p/hr to Nice-Ville 1EUR 20 min.

To return go to Bus Station at Gare Routiere 5bd Jean-Jaures Bus #100, 1EUR 20min. to Villefranche, you can continue on Bus #100 to Eze & Monaco (sit on right side facing forward)1EUR 25min. 4 p/hr, to Monte Carlo Casino; when you see the rocky outcrop of old Monaco, be ready to get off. (3rd. stop “Casino” on avenue d’Ostende below the casino in Monaco)

[hylasgirl]

We will be tendering into Villefranche via Brilliance of the Seas on June 4th. We have decided to take this port on our own. We want to see Monaco (briefly), Eze, Nice, and St. Paul de Vence. We are not looking to spend a great amount of time in each (we are not big shoppers) we are more there for scenery and experience. We want to use public Transportation like bus and train. Could someone please provide instructions on how to do this efficiently? Most of the initial research I have tried to do on the TAM buses have been in French and I cannot figure it out. The more specific the better!

 

Thank you

Christy

 

I LOVE the Brilliance! I have taken that cruise twice. I love the town of Villefranche sur mer! I think you are being a bit ambitious to try to see Eze and St Paul de Vence... Nice and Monaco. One set of places is one way... and another set, another way. I would personally stick with Monaco and Eze and then some time in Villefranche. You COULD see all those places, if you hired a private driver (and there are some good ones for this stop) but you would really only see each place for minutes. If you are trying to see all of these sites by bus and trains... It will take WAY too much time.

 

Example... you can take the train into Monaco (we did this) wander around and then figure out the train to come home (MUCH more difficult that going there) and then you would have to stop at Eze sur Mer (different than EZE) and wait for the bus to take you up to Eze (we wasted an hour + doing this... I would spring for a cab) Then you would have to wait for the bus to come down for Eze, back to Eze Sur Mer and then either transfer to the train, or make sure you are on the right bus to Nice. Bus to Nice takes FOREVER... Train to Nice is quicker, but you have to wait in the little town of Eze sur Mer to get on that. Then from Nice you would have to arrange transport to St. Paul de Vence. Then do it all over again coming back into Villefranche.

 

Personally... I would pick a direction and go with that for the day. If you want to see Nice more than Monaco, go there and to St. Paul de Vence. If you prefer to see Monaco, see Eze with Monaco. And remember... the language barrier is bigger than people let on. NO, they don't all know English. This is one of my favorite port stops. BUT, we have wasted many hours with public transport. When I go back here, I am just going to pay the money for a taxi. It is a gorgeous area, but I just don't see how you will see all these sites by taking public transportation.

[Seabee]

I agree that trying to see it all in one day is a bit much unless you rent a car. Even then it would be difficult unless you are very experienced in the area. We tookm the train to Monaco; spent about three hours there, then caught the bus to Eze. Spent a couple of hours there and caught the bus to Nice. Walked to the train station (quite a haul) and took train back to VF. Some of the crew were on the bus from Eze and they got off somewhere above VF and walked down the hill. That is what we should have done. The Nice thing didn;t work out as we were starting to run late.

 

Buses in Eze are often full so it can be difficult to catch one. If you are in good shape...I mean really good shape, the Niztche Trail goes between Eze sur Mer and Eze. That way you can avoid the bus altogether and use only trains.

 

Wow...that is confusing!

[Casey2]

If you want to see all of the places, you should consider a private tour.

[hylasgirl]

If you want to see all of the places, you should consider a private tour.

 

Definitely.

[dlhoward]

I was planning on doing Eze and Nice. I heard Monaco was very expensive and the castle isn't like a real castle. Is it possible to do both these places even though one is one way and the other the other way? We will also be docking in Villefranche. We would like to go to the perfume factory (my 26 & 17 yr old daughters). I heard Eze was a great place to go. What is your opinion. We will be tendered and won't get on land until probably 9:00 and the boat leaves at 7:00.

[Hlitner]

Take the Tender to port & walkup-hill to Octroi Bus station, across the street from jardin Francois Binon, just above the TI, take Bus #100 sit on left side facing forward. The bus stop in Villefranche is about 3 blocks up the hill from the tender port--just cross the street outside the terminal, (there is a short staircase) turn right and keep going up the hill--all roads lead to the main 'highway'. There is a small park on one side of the street and a pharmacy across the road--if you wait directly across the street from the pharmacy, that's the bus stop to Eze/Monaco. If you wait in front of the pharmacy, that goes to Nice. Take Bus #100, 4p/hr to Nice-Ville 1EUR 20 min.

To return go to Bus Station at Gare Routiere 5bd Jean-Jaures Bus #100, 1EUR 20min. to Villefranche, you can continue on Bus #100 to Eze & Monaco (sit on right side facing forward)1EUR 25min. 4 p/hr, to Monte Carlo Casino; when you see the rocky outcrop of old Monaco, be ready to get off. (3rd. stop “Casino” on avenue d’Ostende below the casino in Monaco)

 

This is a very informative post, but I do think there is an error regarding the bus routes. As I recall, bus #100 runs between Nice and Menton (with interim stops at Villefrance and Monte Carlo) but it does not stop at the village of Eze. It does stop at the Eze train station (Eze/Bord sur Mer) but that still leaves you another bus ride or a taxi away from Eze. To get to Eze on the bus you need to use the #112 which you can get from either Nice or Monte Carlo. The village of Eze actually lies on the middle corniche road (Moyene Corniche) which runs up in the hills above the coast and is served by the 112. The 100 runs along the lower corniche (or coastal road). For us, its a lot easier when we have a rental car since Eze has a convenient parking lot right at the village entrance :)

 

Hank

[truffles68]

This is a very informative post, but I do think there is an error regarding the bus routes. As I recall, bus #100 runs between Nice and Menton (with interim stops at Villefrance and Monte Carlo) but it does not stop at the village of Eze. It does stop at the Eze train station (Eze/Bord sur Mer) but that still leaves you another bus ride or a taxi away from Eze. To get to Eze on the bus you need to use the #112 which you can get from either Nice or Monte Carlo. The village of Eze actually lies on the middle corniche road (Moyene Corniche) which runs up in the hills above the coast and is served by the 112. The 100 runs along the lower corniche (or coastal road). For us, its a lot easier when we have a rental car since Eze has a convenient parking lot right at the village entrance :)

 

Hank

 

Hank,

I had just planned on visiting Monte Carlo but after reading your post I think I will visit Eze. Where can I catch bus #112 in Monte Carlo ? How long will the bus ride to Eze ? How often does bus #112 run ?Where do I get off the bus (Moyene Corniche ?) in Eze ? If I take bus #112, will I actually get to the village of Eze where the majority of the people do sightseeing ?Where do I catch the return bus to Monte Carlo ? Will that also be bus #112 ? Do I get off where I got on earlier for the start of the trip?

 

Thanks in advance

[Hlitner]

Regarding the last question my short answer is "I have no clue." We do not know the current bus stops within Nice for the 112 and its probably a good idea to check with the local tourist folks once you arrive. The other issue is that the 112 used to not run very often (I am hedging because things always change) and I recall it was about one bus every 90 minutes. As to where you get off the 112 at Eze, the bus does stop right at the entrance to the village (very hard to miss it) but you can do what we all do on buses and ask the driver (or other passengers) for help on pointing out the right stop. If those buses are still running every 90 minutes you need to do some planning once you find out the current schedule. 90 minutes in Eze might be enough for many, if you do not use the village for lunch. To be honest, although we have helped lots of folks with public transit, we personally prefer to have a rental car. The last time we were in Monte Carlo we picked up a rental car early in the morning, drove straight to St Paul de Vence, than down to Antibes ro lunch, back to Nice for a walk, than over to Eze for some shopping and a beer, and than finally back to MC to drop the car. It would have been impossible to do this using public transit, and all the time saved waiting for trains and buses allows us to do a lot more in a day without really rushing. To put this in terms that cruise passengers understand, if we have 4 in our car we can do a full-day "tour" for about $25 per person. On the other hand, the local/regional buses generally charge 1 Euro which is quite a bargain.

 

Hank

[CruisingGoddess]

If you want to see all of the places, you should consider a private tour.

 

Can anyone recommend a private tour to do these things?

 

Thanks in advance!

[rsquare]

Hank,

I had just planned on visiting Monte Carlo but after reading your post I think I will visit Eze. Where can I catch bus #112 in Monte Carlo ? How long will the bus ride to Eze ? How often does bus #112 run ?Where do I get off the bus (Moyene Corniche ?) in Eze ? If I take bus #112, will I actually get to the village of Eze where the majority of the people do sightseeing ?Where do I catch the return bus to Monte Carlo ? Will that also be bus #112 ? Do I get off where I got on earlier for the start of the trip?

 

Thanks in advance

The bus schedule for the 112 can be found at http://www.cg06.fr/transport/lignes-tam/112.pdf; you don't need to know French to see that the current schedule is for only seven busses a day; with some French, you would also see that the bus does not run on Sunday. The map shows a stop called Eze-Village, which is the pretty part. Since the Village is sustained by tourism, it shouldn't be too difficult to find out where the stop in the opposite direction is located. But with only seven busses a day, I wouldn't do this by bus.

 

If you want to get the 112 (or the 100, schedule at http://www.cg06.fr/transport/lignes-tam/100.pdf) from Nice, the easiest place to pick it up is where the lines start, at the Gare Routiere (Bus Station) which is between Boulevard Jean-Jaures and Avenue Felix Faure about where rue Desire Niel intersects the latter. Any cabby will know it.

[Susan-M]

As I recall, bus #100 runs between Nice and Menton (with interim stops at Villefrance and Monte Carlo) but it does not stop at the village of Eze. It does stop at the Eze train station (Eze/Bord sur Mer) but that still leaves you another bus ride or a taxi away from Eze.

 

If you take #100 to Eze Bord de Mer train station, you can catch Bus #83 up to Eze Village. http://www.eze-riviera.com/emotions/deplacement/ang/bus.htm

[Susan-M]

But with only seven busses a day, I wouldn't do this by bus.

 

 

We took #83 up to Eze Village (transferred from #100). #83 only runs 8 times/day, but we found it to be very prompt. I carried schedules with me and planned our route so that we didn't have to wait any more than 5 or 10 minutes for buses.

[rsquare]

I may have misled you on the location of the Gare Routiere in Nice. My source was a Hammond map. Google Maps puts the Gare Routiere a few blocks south on Jean-Jaures, near rue Gubernatis. And several wbsites refer to a Gare Routiere at or just north of Place Massena, a further few blocks south on Jean-Jaures (these places are all within five or six blocks of each other).

 

If you are planning to use public transport, take a look at http://www.allaboutnice.com/buses_and_coaches_in_Nice.html which gives a lot of detail about using the busses, the various bus lines, etc.