After endless perusal through guidebooks and this incredibly helpful forum I have come up with a 1.5-day (yes I know its not enough) itinerary for my wife and I (two 30-something first-timers). Constructive criticism from those in the know would be most appreciated.
Sun 11th Sep
09:45 Arrive at Nice Ville Station by night train from Pisa
09:45 - 12:00 Walk to hotel and check/settle in, have a quick look around neighborhood (Hotel Roosevelt)
12:00 - 16:00 Train to Cannes, check out Vieux Port, Croisette, Rue d%26#39;Antibes, lunch somewhere?
16:00 - 17:30 Train back to Nice, freshen up at hotel
17:30 - evening Stroll Promenade de Angalis. Head to Vieux Nice for dinner %26amp; drinks - somewhere?
Mon 12th Sep
09:00 - 15:00 Train to Monte Carlo, check out Grace Kelly cathedral, Palais du Prince (change of guard at 11:55am), Casino, Stop at Café de Paris for lunch?
15:00 - 18:00 Train back to Nice, check-out of hotel, %26amp; catch bus 98 to Nice airport for flight to Paris.
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Too much logistics for my taste. I would stay put in one place. If Cannes or Nice can be debated. My own preference is Nice.
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Hi,
Excellent itinerary but a bit busy!
First, please look at the map carefully, Nice is bigger than you think, and that walk to the hotel might be a little too far unless you have extremely portable luggage.
I would leave for Cannes a little earlier and have a look around the Forville market (shuts about 12.30) and the Rue Maynardier - also relax and take a little longer for lunch - it%26#39;s customary to spend 2 hours minimum over Sunday lunch, and the restaurants are excellent but you won%26#39;t get the best out of them if you%26#39;re trying to hurry.
In Nice, concentrate on Vieux Nice and the Cours Saleya area. The Promenade is something you need to see, but you%26#39;re short of time, and there%26#39;s not actually much to do there.
Have fun!
David
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sounds fine, might you might want to consider the following. You might not be able to check into your hotel so early, some have 3pm check ins - as you are already at the station then it might be worth considering leaving your luggage at left-luggage in Nice and going straight on to Cannes, this will get you to Cannes earlier which is suggested above. As it is Sunday I would be more concerned with getting my bum on a seat for lunch at 12 noon exactly, your choices may be a bit more limited on a sunday and you could miss out if you have nowhere reserved. If you have your heart set on getting to your hotel first, then buy your ticket for Cannes on arrival so that you don%26#39;t get stuck in a queue later, use the machines and a credit card, it is fairly painless. I don%26#39;t know much about Cannes but if rue antibes is the shopping road, then it will be window shopping only, all the shops will be closed on a sunday.
Once you are back in Nice, as suggested above , the Old Town is nice to wander and try and get up the Chateau Hill for the view, if time, maybe the Grand Tour bus trip around Nice. For a meal, try Chez Juliette in the Old Town close to Place Rossetti, mid-priced, it%26#39;s my favourite place to eat or perhaps try Le Tire Bouchon on rue de la Prefecture, excellent but little bit dearer than Chez Juliette. If you want a pre-dinner drink, I%26#39;ve no idea, but for one night be a real tourist and have a drink on the Cours Saleya, but don%26#39;t eat there.
On Monday, sounds fine, the bus 100 rather than the train would drop you right at the foot of the Palace Hill by the lifts, then after changing the guard (I thought this was a it lame, but it has to be done, once) you can walk down towards the oceanographic museum and catch a local bus to whizz you to the other side of Monaco to Monte Carlo where you can get off close to the Casino and have lunch in Cafe de Paris, I had lunch there last week and quite enjoyed it, far more than I suspected, the food was fine, a bit expensive, the service was good but it was very relaxed and not at all stuffy, a nice atmosphere and lovely under the shades with fans misting water about, hope it will still be nice and warm for you when you go. I had a salad, but my 10 year old daughter had peppered steak whch came with sauteed potatoes and said it was really good, I should think so for 35 euros! My salad was about 14 euros compared to 8 - 12 euros which is the price in Nice, so not too bad.
Hope you have a super time.
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Thank you all, particularly to Lovelydave and Allaboutnice for taking the time to make such a considered response (and for the restaurant suggestions).
Your comments make sense and will be taken on board.
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Just another thought. If you decide Cannes is too much to attempt after a night on the train, then at least you would get a chance to see the flower and food market of Nice in the Cours Saleya. Sundays up to 1 pm would be your only chance to see it in its full glory and if you have never been to Nice before, I do recommend it, it is so colourful and scented. After 1 pm, the road is hosed down and tables are spread across the market from the bordering restaurants and it takes on a different atmosphere. On Monday, the market is antiques and bric a brac and imho not as pleasant as the food/flower the rest of the week, unless of course antiques are your thing, then you will be in heaven. There is one stand I like - the original vintage travel posters, they cost 100s of euros though. You could easily fill a whole day in Nice. If you get a train ticket for Monaco on Monday, you could extend it to Cannes on the return trip straight after lunch in Monte Carlo. All the shops would be ready open for you in Cannes! If you do this, I would leave your luggage at the train station in Nice after checking out of your hotel Monday morning. If time is a bit tight and there is no 99 for the airport, then you could brook the cost of a taxi from the train to the airport as an emergency. best wishes.
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allaboutNice, your last suggestion sounds quite appealing.
So you think Monte Carlo can be %26quot;done%26quot; in one morning plus lunch, leaving Cannes for the afternoon?
We would have to be back at Nice station ready to transfer to the airport by about 5:00-5:30.
Thanks again - you have been very helpful.
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It COULD be done but you would only get an hour in Cannes. Imho I would forget Cannes and have a relaxed lunch in Monte Carlo. Cannes is fine but not so different from Nice to merit a visit in such a tight schedule. In Cannes, apart from the film festival in May, you have a row of hotels, the prom and a sandy beach that is private. The shops are good but you will get all this in Nice - try around rue Paradis for fancy shops, but pebbles not sand. Monaco is similar too and will give you the top designer shops plus it%26#39;s a bit different to Nice. I am biased towards Nice over Cannes but I think Nice is more interesting than Cannes yet too similar to go to both. If you really want to visit somewhere else, then St Paul de Vence would give you a real contrast to Nice and Monaco. I don%26#39;t think you%26#39;ll be able to make it there this time though, unless you use a private taxi on the Sunday afternoon or take the 400 bus from Nice if you can schedule it in.
If you really must visit Cannes on the Monday, then you would have to forgo lunch in Monte Carlo and grab a panini or a sandwich in Monaco Old Town, just by the Palace, you could do this just before or after the guard changing, then get a train to Cannes. Or, forget the changing of the guards, it really isn%26#39;t much at all, and have a mid-morning coffee and a sandwich or bun in Cafe de Paris, then get the train to Cannes.
I have 2 hates, missing meals and anxiety at the thought of missing deadlines like flights! I really would forget Cannes and enjoy a leisurely lunch in Monaco before heading back to Nice for your transfer.
Sorry to throw in the spanner about St Paul, you%26#39;re probably really confused now. My husband has got involved now and is lurking about behind me - he reckons you should forget Cannes too but definitely try and squeeze in St Paul.
very best wishes and if you end up doing nothing but chill in Nice, you will have a great time.
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Even though AllAboutNice is a very wise person with whom I usually enjoy agreeing, I have to disagree with her on this one occasion, in defence of Cannes!
Don%26#39;t get me wrong, Nice is probably my favourite town in the whole world, and luckily enough my work means I spend a good deal of time there. But Cannes is completely different, and has a lot to offer, and can%26#39;t be dismissed with %26quot;you have a row of hotels, the prom and a sandy beach that is private%26quot;.
Cannes has the best *public* beaches in the area, with lovely, clean sand, and great amenities. Nice%26#39;s beaches are not much use unless large pebbles are your thing.
Cannes also has excellent shopping, in a compact area, with a much more lively, %26quot;on-holiday%26quot; feel than the shops in Nice.
Although the Croisette can%26#39;t compete with the Promenade des Anglais for scale and granduer, at least it has tourist-friendly shops and restaurants along it.
And the Marche Forville in Cannes is currently more impressive than the Cours Saleya as a fresh fruit/vegetable/flower market (I have visited both this month, so I can say this with confidence).
The general quality of restaurants in both towns is very good, but I think that you%26#39;re more likely to get good value in Cannes, especially without local knowledge.
Plus a lot of the interesting towns to visit (Antibes, Juan-les-Pins, Mougins, St Paul de Vence, Valbonne, Grasse, etc. ) are actually near Cannes rather than Nice.
I had no time for Cannes until my wife persuaded me to spend a week%26#39;s vacation there recently, and now I%26#39;m a convert!
And if you have to choose between a trip to Monte Carlo or Cannes, I would say Cannes every time.
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sorry - I really don%26#39;t know much about Cannes - it sounds lovely, must go and investigate it more thoroughly - didn%26#39;t mean to diss it in any way with my summary. But for the purpose of 1.5 days, I think I would still opt for Nice and Monaco rather than Nice and Cannes. best wishes and thanks for the insight into Cannes. :-)
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lovelydave and allaboutNice - each of you is giving me the opposite advice but you%26#39;re both making sense at the same time! From what I can tell, both Cannes and Monte Carlo are worth seeing, but its just a matter of time.
I think we will go there with a Plan A and Plan B (maybe even a Plan C) and see where our fancy takes us.
Again, your advice is very much appreciated.
PS. Good luck for the second test
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