Cannes
 

My husband and I are visiting Cannes in April. We were in Europe over 20 years ago and not familiar with best transportation/lodging. What city should we fly into from NYC and how do we get to Cannes from major European city? Also, best lodging? 3 to4 star U.S. equivalent.

Nice's international airport is a short airport shuttle ride from Cannes.

If landing in Paris fly to Nice

or face a several hour rail transfer - Cannes is served by TGV trains from Paris, Lyon, Marseilles, etc.

You'd want to fly into Nice via Paris or directly from NYC if you can.

The hotels along the front are generally pricey but often have deals--I loved the Hotel Martinez, particularly because I was attending a business conference so wasn't footing the bill.

The hotel Grey or Gray d'Albion is close to the front--good location. There might be interesting places up in Vieux Cannes but I've not stayed there.

Is there a reason for Cannes? It wouldn't be my first choice on the Riviera--I'd opt for Nice or Antibes first. Still, off season, Cannes will be very laid back and once off the seafront there are all sorts of reasonable restaurants and shops and it's close to Mougins and its restaurants and to many interesting towns/villages in the hills and along the coasts.

magellan,

Cannes was really the only places I've visited so far that I didn't care for. Just too much high rise condos, hotels and high end shops. If I wanted that, I could have stayed home in Newport Beach, CA. The old historical part of town was nice, but very small.

We did day trips out of Cannes and we loved everywhere else we went - Grasse, St. Tropez, Vence, St Paul du Vence, Arles, Aix en Provance.

I agree - the old world charm that France is famous for and which is etched in our minds' eyes is nearly lacking in modern Cannes - Antibes, between Cannes and Nice is OTOH a neat old romantic town with beaches about as fine as Cannes.

My daughter is studying abroad in Cannes and my husband and I are visiting . I felt like we needed to be close , but open to suggestions. We have a week in the area surrounding Cannes. Is it possible to take a day trip to Italy from this location??

Milan is about 3-1/2 hours by car. There are many other closer Italian locations on the coast. So, yes, you can go to Italy for the day.

Yes that is a good reason to located in Cannes

and perhaps with your daughter explore old-world looking places like Grasse near Cannes (perfrume factory tours plus quintessential old Provencal town - frequent trains and buses there from Cannes.

The coastal train route 'The Cote d'Azur Metro' plies the coast constantly so it is easy to day trip to nearby gems like Antibes and also to Nice, Monte Carlo, etc

Or take buses and head for the cute hilltowns like St Paul and St Paul-de-Vence, etc. (Or if you have a car... but you don't need one here to get around at all.)

Italy is an easy daya trip from Cannes - hop on a TGV train at Cannes station and take it to Ventimiglia, Italy (some direct but may have to change to the regional trains at Nice - no problem) - Ventimiglia is the border town and is thoroughly Italian - some days there is a huge market there. Lots of nice places to eat, etc - seaside town with character.

Or you can rail a bit farther to San Remo.

magellan,

We drove all over and found it very easy. Parking now, was another story. I've never been in a parking structure with such tight spaces!!! If I had weighed one single ounce more, I would not have been able to squeeze out of the car.

We did the Fragonard perfume tour in Grasse and really enjoyed it. Yes, we bought some things in the gift shop afterwards.

Some Fodorites appear to hate Cannes for some unknown reason.

The Guide Michelin gives Cannes 3 resort stars and Antibes 2 stars.

BTW, the distance between the centers of both towns is 7 miles.

I don't hate it, I just don't like it as well as Nice or Antibes. Could be I had to go to one too many user group meetings in the palais.

From Cannes, Antibes or Nice, access to anything along the coast or up in the hills is about the same.

Magellan,

I used Nice International Airport and took a cab to Cannes. I had rented a car, but returned it because of my extreme fear of driving in that area. I stayed at Hotel Carlton. It was the hotel in Alfred Hitchcock's movie "To Catch a Thief", which starred Cary Grant and Grace Kelly.

Have a great trip!