Escape the Paparazzi with these Sweet Day Trips From Cannes
With scenery like this, you can’t go wrong with a day trip to Monte Carlo. (Photo: Leica Passionara/Flickr)
If you’ve decided to visit Cannes and found the festival crowds to be overwhelming, you’re in a lot of luck, because there are plenty of quick getaways within a day’s reach on the Cote d’Azur. Both the boating culture and train accessibility in Cannes makes it the perfect base location for myriad destinations, and you’ll be back with plenty of time to participate in film-festival parties, too.
The most popular day trip is probably the excursion to Monte Carlo. Though you can also take a lengthy cruise, the fastest way to Monaco is via train. Try the commuter rail at the train station across from the Palais des Festivals to catch the hourlong ride to and from Monte Carlo. From there, you can window-shop along the Grand Prix route, wander the Oceanographic Museum, take a break at the Princess Grace Rose Garden or Monaco’s authentic Japanese Garden and enjoy a show at the Opera Monte Carlo.
The Abbaye de Lérins on Ile Saint-Honorat. (Photo: Mark Fischer/Flickr)
Not quite as glamorous but a contender for most relaxing day trip is Ile Saint-Honorat, an island about one mile from the shores of Cannes, whose claim to fame is a monastery of the Cistercian Congregation of the Immaculate Conception. Today, after years of strife and ownership battles, there remain only 25 monks on the island and the modern monastery is not open for public view. But they’ve kept busy making red and white varieties of wine on the eight-hectare vineyard of the Abbaye de Lérins. You can sample those wines at La Tonnelle, the only restaurant on the island.
(Photo: steve lorillere/Flickr)
If you can stand a 1 1/2-hour journey and have access to a car, you’ll be handsomely rewarded with a day trip to Saint-Tropez (above). Of course, if you’re not excited about the possibility of spending hours in traffic, particularly during film festival and yacht season, then find a local tour operator who will be more than happy to ferry you for the day. Once there, you can shop at the high-end boutiques that put the resort town on the map. Or enjoy the small local food shops and winding roads of the fishing village that attracted artists like Matisse and Picasso. If you’re in town on a Saturday, do not miss Place des Lices, an open-air market dating back to the 1800s, where you’ll be able to bag up fresh produce or a locally crafted souvenir.
(Courtesy: Hotel du Cap-Eden-Roc)
The hidden gem of the Mediterranean, though, may be Cap D’Antibes, home to the amazingly luxurious Hotel du Cap-Eden-Roc, a 100-year-old resort complete with villas, Michelin-rated chefs, and La Prarie spa cabanas overlooking the Mediterranean Sea. But just because this amazing hotel is home to the Vanity Fair Cannes Film Festival party year after year, don’t spend your entire time inside; pack some comfortable walking shoes. The wild natural beauty of Cap D’Antibes has claimed, in the past, the hearts of writers and artists such as Ernest Hemingway and F. Scott FItzgerald.
Ventimiglia is the first town you’ll meet as you venture into Italy and is well worth the 1 1/2-hour train trip to cross the border. It’s as quiet and restrained as other Medieval villages in the Mediterranean but features a very popular open-air market on Fridays, packed with homemade Italian pasta, leather handbags, and everything between. Before you leave, pay a visit to the Biblioteca Civica Aprosiana, one of the oldest libraries in Italy, dating back to 1648 with a large collection of original manuscripts. If you have a rental car and don’t mind gambling against traffic, you can drive to Ventimiglia in about an hour from Cannes.
If the atmosphere of Menton feels like a mix of all the other day trips you’ve taken from Cannes, there’s good reason. This border town belonged to the Republic of Genoa and then Monaco before being turned over to France in the late 1800s. You can still feel the influence today in restaurants like two-Michelin-starred Mirazur, a frequent contender of worldwide top restaurant lists. But the city is primarily known for its surplus of fragrant lemons and oranges, and it holds a Fete du Citron in their honor annually. A train trip will cost an hour and twenty minutes of your time, but sans traffic, you can drive to Menton in about 55 minutes.
Leaving the French Riviera smelling like citrus fruits is fantastic, but taking perfume back with you is even better. Grasse is the perfume capital of France, with the centerpiece International Perfume Museum and Gardens, five acclaimed perfumeries, and several idyllic flower farms and public gardens. One of them is Princess Pauline’s Garden, where Napoleon’s sister liked to hang out. You can drive here from Cannes, or take the 30-minute train ride to Gare du Grasse instead.
