1 day with toddler- Villefranche to Nice, Monte Carlo or somewhere else?
 

We're under two months away from our cruise this summer, where we'll be traveling with our 21 month old. The ship will spend one day in the port of Villefranche (8 AM- 7PM) and I'm having trouble deciding how we should spend the day. After reading many posts on this board, there seems to be enough to do/see in Villefranche that we'd like to spend a few hours (maybe later afternoon prior to re-boarding the boat) walking around there. But we would still like to spend a few hours somewhere else. I've eliminated Eze from consideration because I think it will be too hilly to visit with a toddler. We're considering Nice but I'm concerned that it will be too spread out to spend a few hours in. I thought that Monte Carlo might be nice and more manageable to spend a few hours in but I've heard that there really isn't much to do or see there. Keep in mind that because we are bringing our toddler along, we don't have high expectations for in depth sightseeing on this trip (no museums this time around unless she is napping!)- we'd be happy just having a quaint/interesting town or area to stroll around in with a nice lunch spot. Another poster suggested St. Paul de Vence, which looks very nice but, again, I'm not sure how much there is to do there. Any advice would be appreciated!

If you are looking for a day of "things to do", it will be hard to find it in small towns.
You might head to Nice right away.
VF. is very nice, but after several hours we moved on.

Villefranche centre ville is <u>very</u> small. Pretty harbor, dark, narrow streets, several good places for lunch, a church, but very small. Nearby is the Rothschild villa with a nice garden and tea room, an easy walk from Villefranche, though perhaps not with a stroller. Menton is larger and might have a little more of what you're looking for and there is a nice long promenade. But I agree that Nice is your best bet. Lovely long promenade above the beach and some gorgeous Belle Epoch-era buildings a little further back into town. Lots of good shops, restaurants and large market in the old section. Good place to wander, and no, it's not too spread out, you can easily confine your wanderings to as large or small an area as you're comfortable with.

Do not had for Monte Carlo - it's really for the ultra rich and in fact is quite hilly - not really great for a toddler/stroller. Agree that Nice is your best bet.

Here's a link to an article about Nice in today's <i>Daily Telegraph</i>: http://www.telegraph.co.uk/travel/ci...ity-guide.html

I'd head for Nice too, you could walk along the sea promenade and into the old town which has a nice market, not sure if it's on every day. St Paul de Vence is picturesque, very small and chock full of art galleries and pricey tourist shops. It's also mainly narrow walkways and stairs so not good for a stroller.

Kay

I vote for Nice, too. When I was in the language school in VF, I and the classmates went to Nice all the time. I loved sitting at the promenade watching people.

Ditto the vote for Nice - wonderful promenade and Old Town, perhaps with market. Great people watching, dog walkers, other families. But VF does have a nice beach - the beach in Nice is rocky / pebbly so if you want your toddler to enjoy the water, VF works better for that.