We are flying into Marseille Monday afternoon (NYC-CDG-MRS), picking up our rental car booked through AutoEurope at the airport, then driving an hour to our first home exchange in Sanary-sur-Mer. We will stay there for 10 days, and though DH will be working virtually most weekdays, we will use early mornings and weekends to explore nearby regions by car. I have read Stu's itinerary for Provence as well as several threads and trip reports to help narrow down our choices of places to visit.

After our 10-day stay in Sanary, we will drive to Beaulieu-sur-Mer for the second leg of our trip. Based on what I've read in these forums, am I correct in thinking that we can do without a car in the Beaulieu area? Our plan is to return the car in Nice the day after we get to Beaulieu, explore as much as the area as possible on foot (Villa de Rothschild Villefranche), but use public transport to visit places like Cannes and Nice.

Though it might be nice to keep the car longer in case we wanted to venture out further, I'm thinking that we'd rather not pay the extra on the many days we won't use it (days DH works), or have to deal with traffic, parking, especially if things are busier during the Cannes Film Festival.

We envision the Beaulieu part of the trip to be more low-key than the western part, content with strolling through town squares, along promenades, and sitting at cafes.

Thoughts?

Boots

Yes trains and buses go everywhere you will want probably - with limited time to travel. Commuter trains ply the coast constantly and buses go up to hill towns. For more on Riviera trains check www.oui.sncf (French Railways site for schedules - no need to pre-book as those trains don't take reservations anyway; www.seat61.com; BETS-European Rail Experts and www.ricksteves.com. You can easily go over to Italy too by chaning trains at Ventimiglia.

You can depend on public transportation from Beaulieu, bus and train. It is a beautiful area; you have made a very good choice . Don’t miss visiting Villa Kerylos in addition to Villa Ephrussi. We spent two weeks in Nice and Beaulieu was a favorite of ours. Enjoy.

We were in Nice during both the Cannes Dilm Festival and Monaco Gran Prix . Nice was packed, hard to get into restaurants. Stay in Beaulieu until those crowds are gone on those dates

Hi boots08,

Yes, I did, several years ago. I did a lot of walking in the glorious countryside, to St Jean, and took transport to Villefranche.

Have fun as you plan!

s

Have stayed in Beaulieu on a number of occasions and found public transport more than adequate for exploring the surrounding area.
The train provides a very convenient link to places like Ventimiglia (big Friday market), Cap d'Ail (sentier walk to Monaco) and Antibes ( Cap d'Antibes walk). Nice is just a short hop away by train where you can take day trips by bus to Vence and St Paul du Vence or the Train de Merveilles to Tende, stopping off in Sospel on the way back.
On foot from Beaulieu, you can walk around Cap de Ferrat peninsula or wander to Villefranche for lunch.

You can definitely get around easily by foot and public transit. Be sure to verify where your villa is in relation to the main train station (for convenience and capacity) and the bus stops, as it is a bit spread across the coast. Plenty of places to relax and hangout out, especially in nearby VilleFranche-sur-Mer and St. Jean/Cap Ferrat.

I would make sure to plan around the Grand Prix especially. You will find that the Bus 100 line (a main one you'll need to know that goes between Nice Port and Menton) fills up quite rapidly during peak times.

the Train de Merveilles to Tende, stopping off in Sospel on the way back.>

Or from Nice Train des Pignes - narrow-gauge train into heart of rural Provence - like to Annot - popular with hikers - walk from one station to another. Not a tourist train but a local train - nothing deluxe about it. But a great adventure if you have lots of time.

also from Nice is the Train des Pignes - a narrow-gague train that goes into the hinterlands of Provence - a local train not glitzy - many folks use to get to hiking venues from one station to another.

Le Train des Pignes