This Easter Bank holiday my boyfriend and I exhausted every option for a place to holiday. Everywhere however was either too expensive, the flight times just didn't suit or were just plain boring destinations. We had nearly given up resigning ourselves to a 200 euro flight price to Brussels (I know mad to think we even considered it).
That was until we came up with a more original idea - a sort of mini road trip of towns around the Cote de A'zur. We hit the hidden gems of Gourdon, Grasse, Menton, Saint Paul de Vance and Eze. Of course no trip to the French Riviera is complete without Monaco, Cannes and Nice. The beautiful thing about this trip is all the towns are so close together. Meaning any town can be replaced with another or added on at the end for a longer holiday. Some towns like Cagnes sur Mer and Villefranche sur mer are just as pretty but we simply didn't have time for them.
Where did we stay?
As we were only staying three days we needed somewhere that was central as we were short on time. Nice seemed like the best option. Monaco was only 25 minutes by train and Menton 45. We stayed in the Hotel Monsigney. We choose this hotel mainly for its convenience factor. It's on the main street in Nice. Nice's answer to the Luas (the tram in Dublin) runs right past it and is only a 5 minute walk to the train station. Additionally, it was also the best value for money at 100 euro a night in a city that is accustomed to charging much higher prices.
This hotel also offers a rooftop bar with a hot tub (but only from May) as well as a lovely restaurant. The only negative some people seem to say it has in the reviews is that the rooms are a little small. But honestly we've stayed in smaller. If you're not willing to pay more you can't expect more. It was clean, the bed was comfortable, the staff were friendly and the shower was great.
Pro tip: Stay in one of the small towns either side of Nice like Villafranche sur mer. Nice was lovely to stay in. But I feel there are much nicer places to stay and would be cheaper. The train seems to go by every town every half an hour. I grew up in the countryside and live in the city though so I'm a sucker for a small quiet town.
What was our route?
I took a very simple approach when planning our mini road trip. We did not arrive in Nice until 3pm on Saturday evening. This meant we had limited time so we just spent the first day exploring Nice. For the second and third day we split the places we wanted to go into two categories. Places to the right of Nice and places to the left of Nice - very simple like I said. So that meant that to the right we had the beautiful town of Eze, Monaco, Menton and Cap d'Ali for Mala beach. On the other side we had Cannes, Grasse, Gourdon and Saint Paul de Vence.
How did we travel?
Now I know not everyone can drive. If you are one of those people who were lucky enough to grow up in a city with a working bus route, fair play. Luckily for you Nice has the same thing. Every single one of these towns apart from Gourdon can be reached by a regular train or bus. However, if you can drive there are definitely a few places that are much easier to reach by car. These towns would include Gourdon, Eze and Saint Paul de Vence.
We got the train the second day simply because Menton, Mala beach and Monaco are easily reached that way. Eze required a bus from the train station that wasn't too bad but did mean we had to wait half an hour till one arrived.
The third day we rented a car with AVIS for 100 euro. Our thought process was the opposite to the day before. Every town we wanted to visit was easier to get to by Car. One thing I would like to note though is all these towns are small and not built for cars. This means parking structures are built on the outskirts. We arrived early to avoid not finding a space and I would advise you to do the same.
What towns should you visit?
I have briefly mentioned above the towns we visited while on this trip. We found pros and Cons to most of them. In this next section I will also include towns we did not visit. It was simply for a lack of time we did not go to them. Although I would not recommend going to them all. Pick whatever one's sound like a bit of you. Otherwise you will just end up with French Village overload. I have given a brief overview of each town for more in depth ideas on things to do please subscribe for my next posts. Theres a section for distance from nice, how to get there and a rating out of ten for each town.
Nice
Rating: 9/10
As I mentioned above Nice is where we choose to stay. It has a lively restaurant scene and multiple places to choose to stay in. There are also a variety of things to do in Nice such as the old town and Promenade des Anglais. On our first night in Nice we climbed to the top of Castle Hill Park to get a spectacular view of the city (as pictured above). If you're in the city between 10 am and 2pm don't miss out on the beautiful flower market. A little out of the city is the Matisse Museum that is connected by the tram line.
Menton
Distance from Nice: 45 minutes
Direction train: Yes
Rating: 10/10
Menton is a gorgeous colourful town 45 minutes away from Nice on the train and the last stop before Italy. We went there first on our second day. We sat on the pier and ate our breakfast - an almond croissant and a cappuccino from atelier boulangerie. We walked along the rocks to get a perfect view of the town. Then walked up the famous yellow steps to get a spectacular view of the sea. Venturing further into the old town to explore before we headed back to the train station for our next destination.
Eze
Distance from Nice: 1 hour
Direct Train: No - train and bus/walk
Rating: 7/10
Now don't get me wrong, Eze was a beautiful town high up in the mountain on a cliff side. The bus ride up to it was also gorgeous. If you are a hiking enthusiast you can even take a 50 minute walk up the cliff. I am told it is not for the faint hearted however. My biggest impression of Eze was busy. The main tourist attraction, the exotic gardens, had a massive line that didn't seem worth waiting for. This was early in the day during April as well. After visiting quite a few towns in this area if I was to go again I'm not sure Eze would be on my list. I would definitely choose Gourdon over Eze as they are similar.
Cap D'Ali
Distance from Nice: 40 minutes
Direct Train: Yes
Rating: 10/10
We came to this town for one reason: to go to the secret beach. Mala beach is a 15 minute walk from the train station. But don't let that put you off. The walk takes you along a seaside path back out onto the road, down a set of stairs and along a cliffside walkway. Pretty picturesque. Once we got there we had a drink in one of the two private beach clubs, swam and sunbathed. The only problem is we wished we could have stayed longer.
Monaco
Distance from Nice: 25 minutes
Direct train: Yes
Rating: 8/10
Not much needs to be said about Monaco. It's famous enough on its own. But on the off chance you have not heard of it. Monaco is a tiny country (yes country) surrounded by France with a population of 39,244. It was probably made most famous by the Grand prix and Grace Kelly. We went in April which meant the F1 track was being built. We walked the track seeing most of the sights and sounds of Monaco from fast cars to beautiful views and people. Next we walked up towards the palace. The palace sits on a hill above Monaco. From the hill there are great views of both main harbours.
Gourdon
Distance from Nice: 50 minutes
Direct train: No
Rating: 9/10
Gourdon was like being in a fairytale. Gourdon (not to be confused with the other one in France) is perched atop a mountain 750 m above sea level. Similar to Eze but even smaller again. We went early to avoid the crowds and it was so peaceful. From Gourdon on a clear day you can see all the way to Nice. There is not much to do here. However, simply walking around and taking in the views is enough. The camera does not do it justice.
Grasse
Distance from Nice: 56 minutes
Direct train: Yes
Rating: 8/10
Grasse is up the road from Gourdon. It's made most famous for its perfumes and most attractions in the town are centred around this. The main attraction being the perfume museum. This is free to enter. There is also a guided tour available which takes about 30 minutes and involves a train ride. There are also businesses that allow you to make your own perfume. If you're lucky to be here at the right time of year (we weren't) there are even lavender fields to see on the outskirts of the town.
San Paul de Vence
Distance from Nice: 50 minutes
Direct train: No
Rating: 10/10
Saint Paul de Vence is similar to Eze and Goudon. It's got the classic stone walls and the views of the french countryside. There is something more unique about this town however. It might be the fact that it is a little bigger and so it has more to do. Personally I think it is down to the fact the entire town is surrounded by a high stone wall. We walked the circumference of the town atop this wall. Beautiful views welcomed us from all angles.
Cannes
Distance from Nice: 30 minutes
Direct train: Yes
Rating: 8/10
Cannes is another town I found hard to fault. The only problem with the time we went was there was construction going on everywhere. I don't know if it was for the film festival or simply just for the city. However, it meant it was next to impossible to find your way around. The whole town just felt very chaotic. Having said that when we did settle in at a beach club with our drinks it was very much a vibe. We didn't get that long in Cannes but I would recommend a visit to that beach club alone.
Villefranche sur Mer
Distance from Nice: 15 minutes
Direct Train: Yes
This is a town we unfortunately had to miss. I do wish we had time to go. Villefranche sur mer is the next town over from nice. It's filled with colourful houses and beautiful views. If I was to go again I had thought this would be a nice town to stay in. It's close to nice and the train and possibly cheaper.
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