FRANCE - Best of Europe 2014 - page 489

Getting Around the Riviera
By Train and Bus: Nice is perfectly situated for exploring the Riviera by public transport.
Monaco,Eze-le-Village,Villefranche-sur-Mer,Antibes,Vence,andSt-Paul-de-Venceareall
within about a one-hour bus or train ride. The train is pricier (fares range from €2 to nearby
Villefranche-sur-Mer to €8.50 to farther-away Grasse) than the bus (€1 for most destina-
tions), but will often save youtime. Both modes oftransportation workwell (see the map on
here for key bus locations).
All trains serving Nice arrive at and depart from the Nice-Ville Station. Most regional
buses stop near Place Masséna (look for the J.C. Bermond stop, between Boulevard Jean
Jaurès and Avenue Félix Faure), along Boulevard Jean Jaurès, or near Place Garibaldi (near
Vieux Nice; see map on here for stop locations, www.lignesdazur.com ) .
For a summary of train and bus connections, see “Nice Connections” on here .
By Boat: From June to mid-September, Trans Côte d'Azur offers scenic trips several
days a week from Nice to Monaco and Nice to St-Tropez. Boats leave in the morning and
return in the evening, giving you all day to explore your destination. Drinks and WCs are
available on board.
Boats to Monaco depart at 9:30 and 16:00, and return at 11:00 and 18:00 (€34 round-
trip, €28 if you don't get off in Monaco, 45 minutes each way, June-mid-Sept Tue, Thu, and
Sat only).
Boats to St-Tropez depart at 9:00 and return at 19:00 (€60 round-trip, 2.5 hours each
way;July-mid-SeptTue-Sun,noboatsMon;JuneandlateSeptTue,Thu,Sat,andSunonly).
Reservations are required for both boats, and tickets for St-Tropez often sell out, so
book a few days ahead (tel. [phone] or 04 92 00 42 30, www.trans-cote-azur.com ,
[e-mail] ).TheboatsleavefromNice'sport,BassindesAmiraux,just
belowCastleHill—lookfortheticketbooth (billeterie) onQuaideLunel(seemapon here ) .
The same company also runs one-hour round-trip cruises along the coast to Cap Ferrat (see
“Tours in Nice and the Riviera,” next).
Tours in Nice and the Riviera
Bus Tour
Le Grand Tour Bus provides an 11-stop, hop-on, hop-off service on an open-deck bus with
headphone commentary (2/hour, 1.5-hour loop) that includes the Promenade des Anglais,
the old port, Cap de Nice, and the Chagall and Matisse Museums on Cimiez Hill (€20/
1-day pass, €23/2-day pass, cheaper for seniors and students, €12 for last tour of the day at
about 18:00, some hotels offer small discounts, buy tickets on bus, main stop is near where
Promenade des Anglais and Quai des Etats-Unis meet, across from the Plage Beau Rivage