Where to stay in the Riviera - Eze, St Paul or Vence?
 

Hi,

We are a family with 2 children and will be staying in the Riviera for 3 days in May. We would like to stay at a not-so-crowded/countryside kimd of place which has gorgeous views...and yet not too far away to visit Nice, Marineland, Cannes etc for a day trip. I've liked some charming resorts/BnBs in St Paul Vence, Vence and Eze but am confused about which place would be better. Pls suggest which of these 3 is the most beautiful place with best sea-view and also within the village its worth visiting. Plus travelling to Nice/Marineland/Cannes which would be easier in terms of either public transport or renting a car/cab.
Thanks!

St Paul would be my choice - if you stay in Eze, you are the "other" side of Nice from where you say you want to go - like Cannes and Marineland. Great views from St Paul.

Hi Ann-OP, thanks for your suggestion abt St Paul! Just wanted to check 1 thing since you've been to St Paul. Is there any bus or train available to/from St Paul or do I neeed a car to travel to Eze, Nice, Marineland, Canne etc for day-trips? Also have you heard of or seen a BnB called 'Le mas des amandiers' - planning to stay there if we have to...so wanted to know if you know anything about this place or whether we can get sea-views from here?

Thanks a bunch!

If you're going to stay in Vence or St Paul - I would get a car. These are very small villages (Vence has some modern sprawl), and I think you will see everything you'll need to see in about 1 1/2 hrs. Therefore, I think you'll want to get out & exlore the surrounding stuff as efficiently as possible - which would be difficult to do by bus (no trains there - these villages are on hilltops).

We've stayed at Le Hammeau near St Paul on 2 trips, and in a gite just outside of Vence for 4 weeks (2 trips).

Stu Dudley

Also look at Villefranche-sur-mer. Excellent location and cute village right on the water.

Personally we preferred Eze to St. Paul. I also think that you should get a car. The driving is easy along the coast.

Hi TPAYT,
How is this place Eze Bor De Mer or Eze Sur Mer? I think its the lowermost point in Eze next to the sea - but is it as scenic as the Eze village? There's a place called Pantarei which claims to be right next to the beach..anybody heard of it?
Thanks!

Eze-sur-Mer is not the same thing as Eze-Village - the walled, perched town you're looking for. You can take a steep, uphill climb from Eze-sur-Mer to Eze-Village but I would not recommend the walk unless you're very fit. I climbed for about 45 minutes and didn't get to the top. Eze-sur-Mer is completely different from the other 3 towns you mention and it's definitely not a "not-so-crowded/countryside" place. The coast road (lower corniche) tends to be very crowded with traffic.

Agree with adrienne about Eze - it is cedrtainly NOT a "not-so-crowded place". Lots of bus tours & day-trippers there. It is certainly not in the "countryside" either. St Paul is also quite crowded with bus tours & day-trippers. Vence is less so.

Stu Dudley

I actually would consider Vence itself. It is an accessible smallish town with "real" stores like monoprix and great walking and bus connections. It is less tourist driven than either Eze or St. Paul de Vence. It dos not have as many of the spectacular vistas as the other two villages, but it much more like staying in a real French town with about 15,000 people living there. It is easy to visit both Eze and St. Paul de Vence from there. I don't know how old your children are, but Vence is flat as opposed to the steeper villages and there are lots of boulangeries and places to buy food for picnics in the surrounding areas.

My boss was based in La Gaude so I spent lots of time in this area-you will really love it. While I love Nice, it is really fun to be up in the hills :)

We looked at Le Mas des Amandiers for last December, and it seems quite nice. But you might also look at this:

http://bastidevalmasque.com/

Biot is a good place to stay, and there are B&Bs with nice sea views.

If a great sea view is a priority, I vote for Villefranche.

I would stay in Antibes. Not as touristy, good beaches, central locale.

Thanks adrienne, jpie,Underhill and everybody else for all the suggestions!Will look out at Vence options and the hotels suggested

Vence is great. We were there a couple years ago and I'd go back again in a minute.

Hi,
After a bit more research found out a few good looking BnBs in Mougins. How is this village in terms of scenic beauty and does it too have crowds/tourists cramming the narrow alleys/roads/village in May - like maybe in Eze or St Paul or Vence? If we were to rent a car, then is Mougins a good choice of place to base oneself and visit Nice, Marineland and Eze? Any suggestions for Mougins BnBs most welcome.

I replied to this in your tripadvisor.com thread.

Just google chambres d'hote for Mougins and Mouans Sartoux and you'll find any number of possibilities.

I live in Eze bord de mer.

Pantarei is an italian restaurant situated on "lower corniche".
It has not direct access to the beach. I have no idea whether the hotel is still opened.
I can't imagine a family spending his holiday time in Pantarei.
Mougins seems to be a better choice geographically speaking.