schnookies

We will be down in Nice, Cannes and Monaco. We're thinking about going into San Remo. What's the distance and should we rent a car? What do you think of San Remo? Anything worth seeing and doing there?

zeppole

The distance from Monaco is about an hour by car, and perhaps shorter by train, and culturally it could not be more different from Monaco. San Remo at the sea is a somewhat decadent town, with a crumbling old casino and delicious Italian seafood. It used to be the summer residence of Russian royalty -- so it's been in a decline for a long time, and like a lot of port towns on that side of Mediterranean, from Genova to Marseilles to Valenica, San Remo has an underbelly of vice. In the hills, San Remo is still an important producer of cut flowers, so the hillsides are covered with commercial greenhouses.

If you enjoy relaxed Italy, Italians and Italian food, San Remo has its faded charms and good food. But I think it is actually more interesting to cross the border and go to the hilltowns just inland from San Remo, in particular Apricale, as well as Dolceaqua or Triora (depending on how far you want to go). Throughout the hills, you'll find fascinating small villages with beautiful rustic houses, charming people and delicious food.

To tour the hills, you'll need a car and be prepared for steep, winding roads. If you take the train, be aware that the San Remo station is slightly outside the historic center of town, and a bit far to walk, so grab a cab.

There is a lot of information online about the Riviera Ponente and San Remo, so you might want to peruse it before you go to see what would interest you.

schnookies

Thanks for some great information!
If we will be down in Monaco and Nice, I will definitely want to go into San Remo. It sounds wonderful the way you describe it. And really no distance;-)

bobthenavigator

I would skip San Remo in favor of Menton---a town on the border with much more charm than SR and a decided Italian flavor.

danon

SR and the Italian side is much different than the French - lees polished, not as posh .
Menton is lovely, make a stop if you cam. One place near SR worth a look is Bussana Vecchia but tho road is so narrow, we had to leave the ( big) car we had ,and walk up.

StCirq

Apart from the food, I found little of interest in San Remo. It was quite a let-down after the French side of the riviera (and that's not even my favorite part of France by a long stretch). It was more than "faded," IMO, it was downright skanky in many places.

I agree the hill towns above it are worth exploring. if you have a car and aren't afraid of really steep, winding roads, there's much to be discovered there.

poodle13905

Agreed that San Remo is definitely a "faded glory" type of place. We were staying in Monaco a few years back, and we actually drove to San Remo just to get a decent meal that did not cost hundreds of dollars! So it was a nice, relatively reasonable, slow-paced place to get a little respite from the crazy, go-go, over-the-top fabulous French Riviera, I would say.

ferryann

We stayed for 3 weeks in 2006 in a little hill village just 13 kilometres from San Remo called Ceriana. I have to say I found San Remo quite jaded and over rated. The hill top villages in the area were quaint but do take a lot of getting to as the roads are narrow, near the cliff edge and can be quite nervy to drive (hairpin bends.) If you just want a taste of Italy for a day San Remo is fine but I was relieved to get back over the border to France again. I found the food, the scenery, the road systems and peoples manners far more civilised in France.

danon

I would agree with the comment about the roads , but we found Italians helpful and most friendly.
One of the nicest moments was a dinner in a local hotel in Arma di taggia - no one spoke English, the menu was in Italian only ,and the place was full of locals families .
Yes, the Italian side is different from the fabulous Cote but
it felt more welcoming and simpler (in a good way).

flirtinfilly

You might want to try Bordighera instead of San Remo. Villa Elisa is wonderful... I would find a little Italian store and pack a picnic lunch with a bottle of wine and off I go for the day to explore!