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10 Days on the French Riviera

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Cityscapes

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Beaches

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Coastal Villages

Day One: Marseille

  • Land in Marseille

  • Enjoy the sites around the city:

    • Old Port of Marseilles

    • Le Panier Neighborhood

      • 10-minute walk from old port Marseilles

    • Palais Longchamp

      • Free

      • If you can arrive before 9:00 AM, you will likely have the entire place to yourself.

    • Notre Dame

      • There is a bus stop right outside the hotel that will you take you here. You can also take an uber or taxi up to the church. It is located on top of a large hill in the city, so I don't recommend walking.​

    • There are plenty of sailing excursions to the Clanques that depart from Marseille. We regretted not doing one of the sunset cruises, so I'm linking a few here.​

Day Two: Marseille-Cassis

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  • Morning Tour: Chateau d'lf

    • Visit the island via a ferry​. If you're familiar with the movie Count of the Monte Cristo, the storyline is based in Marseille & the prison on this island.

  • Quick lunch in town.​

  • Pick Up rental car at the airport​

    • Walk about 25 minutes to the train & bus station. Take a bus to the airport​.

    • You can also uber directly to the airport.

  • Drive from the airport to Cassis (55-minute drive)

    • Note: We didn't get to stay in Cassis because the hotels were all booked up, so make sure to book your reservation ​early

    • We stayed in La Ciotat: Best Western Premier Hotel Vieux Port

      • This is a great option if you can't stay in Cassis. The hotel is located in a beautiful small village just outside the national park. Similar to the Marseille hotel, the Best Western Premier is also located directly on a port. ​

      • The hotel has on-site parking. The parking garage has VERY tight parking spots, so renting a small car is definitely the best option.

    • We walked around the town and enjoyed our rooftop pool ​before having our absolute best meal in France!

  • La Ciotat Dinner:
     

Day Three: Calanques National Park

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  • We spent the morning repelling, climbing, & hiking with a local guide. The guide was incredibly knowledgeable, reasonably priced, and gave us the most incredible views. This excursion may not be suited for people with a fear of heights.

  • After the excursion, we did an easy hike around the different ports.

    • You will have to find street parking, which can be pretty challenging if you don't go early. ​

    • Sadly, we didn't get to do the entire hike because we ran into some bad weather.

    • There are plenty of spots to jump in the water, so if you have good weather, don't hesitate to bring a suit!

  • If you decide to opt out of the repelling excursion, this longer hike may also be a good option.
    ​

  • If you're not interested in hiking, you can also turn this day into a beach day.

Day Four: Calanques National Park

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  • Take a small boat tour around the national park.

    • We had to book through our hotel because the majority of tours online only depart from Marseille. 

      • We shockingly didn't take any pictures during our tour, but the scenery is gorgeous!​

  • We decided to spend the rest of the day relaxing at the beach, walking around La Ciotat, and watching the concert performances- there was a giant festival going on during our stay.​​

Day Five: Eze

  • ​If there is only one place you go on this itinerary, it has to be Eze!

    • About a 2-hour drive from La Ciotat- leave early so you can maximize your time in Eze.​

  • We stayed at Les Terrasses D'Eze, and I can't recommend it enough.​

    • Gorgeous views!​ Relaxing spa (at an additional cost but well worth it!) delicious food, and excellent service!

      • Pay for the breakfast ahead of time- we ended up eating their breakfast every day.​

    • The hotel is about a 5-minute drive from the town of Eze. They offer a shuttle to/ from the hotel or you can uber from the hotel. I wouldn't recommend driving because parking would be challenging.

  • We debated staying at Chateau de la Chevre d'Or, and I'm sure it would be a dream, but it wasn't in our budget.​

    • If you're in the same position, you can (and should!) make a dinner reservation at their restaurant. ​

      • The restaurant is pricey, but I think the experience is worth the cost.​

      • I'd recommend doing their tasting menu seeing as the portions are quite small.
         

  • Once we arrived at our hotel, we relaxed by the pool, enjoyed the spa at the hotel, and had a delicious dinner on the balcony.​​

Day Six: Eze & Dinner at the Chateau

  • In the morning, we relaxed at the hotel for a bit.

  • After lunch, we headed into town and could have spent countless hours wandering through the cobblestone canal streets. Don't hesitate to spend the entire day exploring the shops and taking in this ancient town's beauty.

    • We took the hotel shuttle to town and then Ubered back so we didn't have to commit to their shuttle hours.​

  • While wandering around town, make sure to check out the exotic garden of Eze.​

    • There is a machine at the bottom of the stairs that sells tickets​

      • About 6 Euros/ ticket​

    • Gorgeous views overlooking the town and water​

  • We managed to secure a dinner reservation at the Chateau de la Chevre d'or during sunset.​

    • Again, the restaurant is pricey, but if it's feasible, order the tasting menu.

    • Be sure to follow the dress code for the restaurant.

  • I highly recommend looking up the sunset time and scheduling your dinner accordingly. ​

Day Seven: Day Trip to Monaco

  • Enjoy a wonderful breakfast on the balcony of the hotel, and then get ready for your day in Monaco!​

  • Monaco was only a 25-minute drive from our hotel. 

    • I was surprised to find that driving and parking in Monaco were incredibly easy! The roads are marked well and the streets were not too busy. There are also countless parking garages around the city.​

      • The parking garages have a cap of 20-30 Euros for the day.​

      • The city is very walkable.

  • We just walked around and took in the beautiful city, but some must-visit spots are:​​

    • Old Town:​

      • Prince's Palace (in the center of Old Town)

        • Entrance fee: 10 Euros​

      • St. Nicholas Cathedral

        • Free​

      • ​Jardins de Saint-Martin

        • ​Port de Fontvieille Viewpoint

    • Monte Carlo Casino​​

    • Japanese Garden

    • Sunset at Tête de Chien

      • You'll have to pick up your car from the parking garage and drive up to the parking lot by the viewpoint.​

      • It takes about 25 minutes to reach the parking lot near the viewpoint from Monaco. Just put Tête de Chien in your Google Maps and you will easily get there!

      • From the parking lot, you need to do a short but relatively steep hike and in 10-15 minutes you will reach the viewpoint.

  • Drive back to your hotel and enjoy your last night in Eze.​​

Day Eight: Menton

  • After breakfast, we checked out of our hotel and made our way to Menton, the most aesthetically pleasing city I've ever seen.

    • About a 30-minute drive from our Eze hotel.​

  • Menton hotels were also almost completely booked before we booked our stay.

    • We stayed at Best Western Plus Hotel Prince De Galles​

      • This hotel was very nice and near a private beach club with day beds. You did have to pay for the bed, but the hotel gave you a discounted price. However, this hotel was about a mile walk from the downtown area, so I would recommend booking VERY early and looking for a hotel closer to town. However, the walk is not bad- there's a sidewalk along the water the entire way.​

      • Look for a hotel near Plage Des Sablettes

  • After we arrived, we soaked up the sun at the private beach 0.1 km from our hotel. We rented a day bed, swam, and ate at their restaurant. ​​

  • After an early dinner, we walked about 30 minutes into town to watch the sunset.

Day Nine: Menton

  • We spent the early morning getting lost in the canal streets of Menton. Some of our favorite sites:

    • ​Saint-Michel Archangel Basilica

    • The Chapel of Pénitents Blancs

    • The Vieux Chateau Cemetery

  • We relaxed at the ​Plage Des Sablettes

    • What I loved about this beach is that you can swim out into the water and have the beautiful city as your backdrop. ​

  • We headed back to our hotel and got ready for our last dinner in France.​

Day Ten: Fly Home

  • We enjoyed one last relaxing morning eating breakfast by the beach.

  • We flew out of Nice

    • About a 45-minute drive from our Menton hotel.​

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About Me

I'm a teacher and a travel addict! I'm just trying to make my way around the world, one plane ticket at a time. 
 

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