Villefranche just a Stopping off Point?

[scotslizzy]

Hi

 

Will be tendering off the NOS in October at Villfranche and wondered if there is enought to keep you occuppied for a couple of hours and still include a visit to Eze.

 

Each thread I read never really tells you much about Villefranche itself only how quickly you can get out to visit Nice ,Monaco or Cannes .

 

I have looked at the pictures of Villefranche and it certainly looks appealing .Just wondered what other peoples views of this place are .

 

Cheers

Scotslizzy

[Missus Makkem]

Hi

 

Will be tendering off the NOS in October at Villfranche and wondered if there is enought to keep you occuppied for a couple of hours and still include a visit to Eze.

 

Each thread I read never really tells you much about Villefranche itself only how quickly you can get out to visit Nice ,Monaco or Cannes .

 

I have looked at the pictures of Villefranche and it certainly looks appealing .Just wondered what other peoples views of this place are .

 

Cheers

Scotslizzy

 

Villafranche is a beautiful town, lots of bars restaurants quaint shops and a beach, no need to go any further.

[Morgans]

It's a delightful small town with much to recommend it, especially when you explore the back streets.The walk along the sea front is delightful too. Note the hotel Welcome which is right on the front - quite wellknown in the area. There is also a lovely if small beach although it may be too chilly in October for actual swimming. We generally stay in the town when it's a port of call although we have done the trip to Eze too and found there is plenty of time for both. There is no necessity to go to Monaco etc unless of course it is a priority for you. Villefranche is a stop where you can wander and recharge the batteries quite easily without going too far. There are some delightful restaurants and quite a bit of easy exploring to be done.

[scotslizzy]

Thanks for the replies. We have visited Monaco on a previous cruise (would not return) but thought Eze sounded lovley . We are having a busy couple of days in Rome pre -cruise so do not want to go haring round ticking off lists of places to visit and just want a nice couple of hours doing not a lot.

 

Cheers

 

Scotslizzy

[Ardy53]

We spent several hours in Villefranche last September after returning from Monaco and found it delightful.

 

The beach was very pleasant (we were astounded to find a pickpocket operating there) but I am not sure how great it will be in October.

 

The girls went shopping - Val bought a lovely pair of red shoes - while two or three of us relaxed with a beer and then wandered through the quaint streets.

 

After we all met up, we had some snacks and happy hour drinks before taking a leasurely stroll back to our tender.

 

There are some photos in my lengthy review below.

 

Roy

[mikaula]

I loved my day in Villafranche. It was a quaint town with lots of personality. Enjoyed having lunch overlooking the sea. It was nice to have a slow paced day on such a port intensive trip. I would like to go back and do a land vacation and have our home base be Villafranche...I liked it that much!

[jstducky]

Here are a couple of pictures taken when my cruise stopped in Villefranche.

 

I spent most of my day in Eze and then Monaco/Monte Carlo. However, on the return, I did spend a little bit of time in Villefranche. It was a perfectly lovely town. The views are gorgeous! You could definitely spend a couple of hours here just relaxing, walking around the town, doing nothing!

[kruzseeka]

Villefranche is lovely - waterfront cafes, beach, quaint streets, little train to visit Beauville and the stunning Villa Ephrussi within walking distance of the town. It's one of the gems of the Med. Have a look at the link - glorious gardens, breath-taking views - just lovely!

 

http://www.villa-ephrussi.com/en/ephrussi/

[HeinBloed]

 

Regards,

HeinBloed

[janoma]

kruzseeka - Thanks for the recommendation for the Villa - I'm trying to choose between a relatively lazy day and just going there, or bolting for SPDV, which I know will be a long day with bus travel. Did you walk there...I saw on a board it's about 45 mins? or take a cab? My one concern with it is that the day we will be there they are having a "Heritage Day" with "special admission rates"...don't know if that means it will be a zoo...anyone know anything about this event?

[kruzseeka]

kruzseeka - Thanks for the recommendation for the Villa - I'm trying to choose between a relatively lazy day and just going there, or bolting for SPDV, which I know will be a long day with bus travel. Did you walk there...I saw on a board it's about 45 mins? or take a cab? My one concern with it is that the day we will be there they are having a "Heritage Day" with "special admission rates"...don't know if that means it will be a zoo...anyone know anything about this event?

 

Yes, we walked there and it was about 45 minutes - taking it pretty steadily - and less coming back (downhill). I emailed the tourist information office in Villefranche before we went asking about local buses and there is one, but not too frequent. I wouldn't think a taxi would be too expensive - it really isn't that far - less than a couple of miles I'd say. Perhaps you could email the tourist office to see if they know about these special Heritage Days or perhaps you could contact the Villa directly to enquire. (All the tourist offices I've written to seem really good responding to correspondence in English - I know it's presumptious of us to assume we can write in English and get a reply - but I always do because of my poor/limited language skills - and they are usually extremely helpful.) There is a good tourist information office at the quayside where the tenders berth so you can always get more info there - although I know that doesn't help if you are thinking of an excursion which you would have to book in advance - but they would tell you where to get the bus though and you can always have a coffee on the waterfront whilst you wait for one! :)

 

It really wasn't very busy at all when we went (can't remember whether it was in Sept or June) but I get the feeling most tourists head off for Nice, Monaco etc. so that both Villefranche and the Villa are almost overlooked and therefore relatively quiet.

[janoma]

Thanks...very helpful. I have a co-worker who has vacationed in Nice every summer (!)(she's there now) and, although she had heard of the Villa, she's never been able to convince her DH to give up a beach day to go....perhaps if she had a off day this time, she'll get the chance...I'll know next week. I definitely am not planning any "booked" excursions for here...if we do SPDV, we'll do it on our own, but I know that's going to make for a long day...probably depends on how well we've recovered from the jet lag coming over to Barcelona. Thanks again for the info. I'll check in with the touris office.

[kruzseeka]

Hi janoma,

 

I've just tried the Villa site and it's possible to book in advance (NOT that you need to do that of course, you can go on the day if you decide to). Although it's in French, you only need to be able to read the calendar and can then go through a 'mock' booking process by choosing a day - i.e the one you'll be there and it shows you what the prices are. Presumably that would throw up if there was anything special going as I guess the prices would be inflated, or it may not even be open. Perhaps worth having a look to give you an idea if it looks like an ordinary day there when they are accepting pre-bookings at the normal price. :)

[janoma]

Thanks - all the times I was on the site and never even noticed that. Thanks.