Monaco alternatives: San Remo?

[dc2sea]

Have called at Monaco often; done Eze, St. Paul, city, casino. Any alternatives by private tours? Is San Remo an option? Thanks for your help.

[BiggiB]

Have called at Monaco often; done Eze, St. Paul, city, casino. Any alternatives by private tours? Is San Remo an option? Thanks for your help.

 

Bonjour from the sunny shores of the Med!

 

If you are looking for options to the classical tours, there's lots to do.

 

San Remo is nice, but...

 

Did you see the Old Town of Nice already? It's the largest pedestrian area we have in any town on this stretch of the coast. Emphasize on food and culinary experiences, such as the Flower and Vegetable market (every morning 8 a.m. to 2 p.m, except Monday's flea market) tasting the local products from olives to sweets. Continue to local wine sellers, shops/cafés with locally roasted coffees, try Porchetta (stuffed piglet) found in butcheries around the Old Town, or Socca, a hot chickpea pancake, eaten by hand, visit Maison Auer opposite the Opera for incredible sweets or the famous Alziari Olive Oil shop across the street from Auer.

At the far end of the Old Town, towards Place Garibaldi, you find a typical French "fast food" restaurant, where local folks line up around lunch time to get stuffed vegetables, pissaladiere (the local kind of pizza) fried shrimp and fish or socca from an open kitchen, sit on wooden benches and tables to eat and get a glass of cool Rosé from the next door bar. Very typical.

Or just head on a little further to Café de Turin for fresh oysters and all kinds of sea food, best in the cooler months of the year (they have a long counter of many different kinds of oysters and employ 3 or 4 "oyster men" to open them during the winter months, as locals love to go there for a quick gourmet lunch.

 

There's a open-roof hop on-hop off bus in Nice, too (http://www.nicelegrandtour.com)

 

Or would you like to explore the moountaineous hinterland with a rental car? The Alpes Maritimes start right behind Monaco. There is La Turbie, high above Monaco, with a huge temple ruin from Roman times in a pretty park, providing a spectacular view over this part of the coast (and on clear days in the cooler months you might even spot the mountains of Corsica). The road, leading up there, is also used every January by the cars starting for the famous Rallye Monte-Carlo. Half-way up on the Mont de Mules, there is a small conservation area off a parking lot and a short and somewhat steep hiking treck up the hills, leading to walls of a celtic fortress and also giving you a spectacular view. Nice hike for anyone wanting to burn excess calories from the gourmet meals on board.

Continue from La Turbie to Peille and Peillon, stop for a coffee in a typical bar or stroll across tiny village markets. You may opt to go across the mountains from there to Nice and stop at the vineyards and a wine tasting of Nice at Chateau Bellet or Chateau Cremat.

 

Or try the "other direction". Take the coastal road to Roquebrune, drive along scenic Cap Martin with a nice view across the bay (a good opportunity for another photo of the ship, either in port or in the bay).

Stop in Menton, park the car along the waterfront, explore the covered market hall, the pedestrian street with cute shops and restaurants ... and a marmelade factory (the whole area smells of fruit, when they cook it right there). Hike up the steep hill of the Old Town with 3 churches, and the "foreigner" cemetery from the end of the 19th century. The inventor of Rugby is actually buried up there, too.

Garden lovers find just beautiful examples of classical -and private- gardens on the outskirts of Menton. Check out their website for more information: http://www.menton.com

Continue to the perched village of St. Agnes, high above Menton (again ... the view) and old bunkers belonging to the Maginot Line from WWII. At certain times, they are open to the public, too.

Venture up and down the valley, if you still have time, and return at leisure to Monaco.

 

By the way: Menton can be reached by bus (line #100, every 10 minutes from MC) or train (every 20/30 min), too. It's about a 10 minute walk from the train station or Gare Routier bus stop to the seaside promenade. Across the street from the Casino Menton you find the Office du Tourisme for nice brochures and city maps.

 

If you feel like searching for cool mountain air and some change of scenery, a day-trip up the Col du Turini is very recommandable. It's a winding road, starting in Menton towards Sospel, climbing up to 1.800 m above sea level. Sospel is worth a stop for the baroque church ... or the tiny museum of toy trains, complete with landscapes and steam engines. Cute.

Up on the Col du Turini there is a hotel with bar and restaurant (Trois Vallées) for a nice break and even a hike over mountain meadows. Continue down the "other side" of the mountain, you will find almost non-touristic perched villages there, steep canyons, and finally you will see again the Med in the back, reaching the coast in the vicinity of Nice. Take the autoroute back to Monaco. Trip takes at least 4 hours.

 

All coastal towns and the Alpes Maritimes are well presented in the internet. Just search a little and you find valuable information. Try http://www.cotedazur-tourisme.com first. Yesterday, I posted some ideas for a different kind of Monaco sightseeing, too, if you are interested.

 

I hope, this information will give you an idea, what to see and to explore on your day on the French Riviera. Enjoy !

BiggiB

:)