Day 1: Carcassonne to Nice
We had minor excitement when our train was a few minutes late getting into Marseilles, leaving us with 15 minutes to connect. We made it easily though anxiously. The only seats we found were facing another passenger so we had no room for our feet. The woman behind us got off at the first stop though so we switched and could stretch our legs out. Those facing seats only work well for people traveling together.
We passed some castles today on the train, like Beziers.
As we got closer to the Mediterranean we went through the Camargue, a wetlands area famous for flamingos and horses. This photo reminds me of Impressionist art. Funny thing is, it turned out this way because the windows on the train were filthy and yellow.
This area was an option for a day trip from Arles. We ended up not taking it.
Our first real view of the Mediterranean Sea. From France anyway. We’ve seen it from Italy and Spain.
Once in Nice it was almost a straight shot down the street to our hotel. And it was downhill most of the way, which means it won’t be fun going back. We got a coconut rum and orange juice welcome drink at the Windsor that was indeed welcome. We tried out our tiny picturesque balcony that gave me vertigo. I get queasy just looking at that photo. We had dinner at the hotel restaurant.
Day 2: Promenade and Car Show
Nice seemed to have lots of walking opportunities. We chose to start along the promenade. The beach is huge, though pebbly. As you can probably tell from the jackets and clouds it wasn’t exactly beach weather but some brave (desperate?) souls were out there.
We were not the only ones out for a walk. After a while we cut over into town and walked to the Place Massena.
They happened to be having a classic and custom car and motorcycle show that was free so we went in. Lots of interesting things to look at. We had to go through security to get into the show. France takes security very seriously.
After the car show we walked through part of the flower market and turned around. (The market theme changes with the day. Today it happened to be flowers.) We stocked up at the supermarket, then headed to Delizi for pizza at 16:30. Except that Google and their website are wrong; they were closed until 18:30. So we went back to the supermarket for dinner.
Event the parts of Nice that aren’t “old” Nice are still nice to look at. It seems like a very livable city.
Day 3: Castle Hill and Vieux Nice
Today we ventured further along the promenade and took the convenient elevator up to Castle Hill. It has good views over town and garden areas to wander.
We then walked down the opposite side into Vieux Nice and walked around a bit. There’s a cascade on the side of Castle Hill that’s visible from the town below. Today’s market was antiques.
We timed our walk poorly and the main cathedral was closed for midday when we got there. (France takes siesta seriously too.) The Église Saint-Jacques le Majeur (also known as Église du Gesù) was open, so we checked it out. We had an excellent meal down the street from our hotel at L’Antica.
Day 4: Villefranche-sur-Mer
Today we took the 10 minute train ride to Villefranche-sur-Mer and walked around town and around the base of the castle. Cute town. It was sunny; we got lucky since it was supposed to rain. We got sprinkled on a little on the way home.
Our goal for dinner is to finish up the stinky Camembert we bought the other day — it’s tasty cheese but it’s stinking up the room even while in the fridge — so we got some ham and wine, plus a baguette and pain au chocolat (plus some with almonds) at the local bakery.
Our hotel has bits of art scattered around. The fake fireplace is in the dining room. The flying elephant and bottles are in the bar. Mickey is on the stairs and the little island box is in our room. Cute, but Steve keeps banging his head on it.
Day 5: Chagall Museum
It rained most of the day today, so like everyone else in town we decided to go to the Chagall museum. We waited in line for an hour and a quarter, getting in just in time at 4:00PM. It’s not a large museum so we still had time to see everything before closing. There was a mix of painting, stained glass, and mosaics.
We had dinner at our hotel again to avoid going out in the rain.
Day 6: Russian Cathedral and Monte Carlo
We had a dramatic sunrise this morning. We’re positioned for both sunrise and sunset views.
Our first stop was the Saint-Nicolas Russian cathedral, a beautiful little place.
Then we hopped on a train to Monte Carlo. We went to the casino first.
It was pouring rain when we came out so we headed straight for the train. Even with the rain we saw nice scenery on the coast.
We finally made it to Delizi for pizza. The bakery staff recognized us in the restaurant. I guess we’re locals now.
Day 7: Antibes
We saved Antibes for our last day, when we had the best weather forecast. And the forecast held for us!
We made sandwiches for dinner to keep things simple. And got carrot cake for breakfast because why not? Here’s one last (sunny) view from our balcony.
Essentials
Lodging
We had a small but cozy room with a tiny balcony at The Windsor Jungle Art Hôtel. They managed to fit two chairs plus a desk and footstool inside. We were on the top floor, so we had nice views. Despite being in the middle of town there’s a little garden and pool area with a huge tree. It looked like a good place to hang out in better weather. The hotel isn’t in Vieux Nice but it is near the train station and the promenade in a quiet neighborhood.
Dining
There are loads of restaurants in Nice. Most of the better known ones are in Vieux Nice, which was quite a hike from our hotel. We did find great options nearby though. We had dinner twice at our hotel restaurant. The menu changes daily. The first night it was a little bland but tasty. Good mushroom starter, followed by salmon and pork, with apple crumble for dessert. The second night was better, with lentils and leeks to start, followed by monkfish and duck with cherry sauce, with apple crumble and ice cream for dessert. The hotel breakfast was plentiful and tasty for €18 each.
We also had a great meal at L’Antica. We shared a mixed grill (steak, sausage, chicken) cooked over an open fire, with fries, bread, and wine. We chose pepper sauce for our meat. No nonsense great food with efficient service. Not trendy or refined. Just what we like.
At Delizi right down the block we had the best pizza we had in France. Very tomato-y sauce and spicy salami, plus a calzone with ham, mushroom, and egg. We were the only ones there. We shouldn’t have been. They have Corsican pizza so there are flavor combinations we haven’t seen before.
Transportation
Trains are frequent and quick along the Cote d’Azur so it was easy to base ourselves in Nice and reach pretty much anywhere on the coast. It would be just as easy from a smaller location like Antibes or Villefranche-sur-Mer too.