By Bus in The French Riviera

Buses allow you to penetrate deeper into villages and backcountry spots not on the rail line; pick up a schedule for local and commercial excursion buses at the train station, at tourist offices, and at the local gare routière (bus station). Phocéens Santa Azur (Voyages) is the best bus service covering the Côte d'Azur region, with buses departing from Nice, Antibes, Cannes, Menton, and Mandelieu and regular minibus service between Nice, Marseille, Toulon, and some towns inland of Nice. Alpes-Maritimes Bus Services—RCA Transport (Rapides Côte d'Azur) covers the coastal area, from Menton to Villeneuve Loubet, and inland, to Peille and Aspremont; routes run between Nice and Cannes, with stops at Cagnes-sur-Mer and Juan-les-Pins and they also service Menton, Villefranche, St-Jean-Cap-Ferrat, Èze, and Monaco (plus a "rapid" airport service from Menton and/or Monaco to Nice International). SAP offers buses serving Vence, St-Paul, La Colle-sur-Loup, St-Laurent-du-Var, and Nice. Compagnie des Autobus de Monaco covers that principality. Rapides Côte d'Azur traffics the routes in and around Cannes, while SODETRAV buses head to and from St-Tropez and St-Raphaël. In addition, the national SNCF service covers more distant locales.

Bus Information

Alpes-Maritimes Bus Services—RCA Transport (Rapides Côte d'Azur) (5 bd. Jean Jaures, Nice. 04-93-85-64-44. www.rca.tm.fr). Compagnie des Autobus de Monaco (2 av. du pdt J. F. Kennedy, Monaco. 377/97-70-22-22. www.cam.mc). Phocéens Santa Azur (Voyages) (4 pl. Massena, Nice. 04-93-13-18-20.) SAP (Société Automobile de Provence) (04-93-58-37-60). SNCF (08-36-35-35-35. www.ter-sncf.com/uk/paca). SODETRAV (Société départementale de transports du Var) (0825/000650. www.sodetrav.fr).