Nice - (Fall 2024) - Day 5

Day Trip to Eze and Villefranche-sur-Mer

We headed out on another day trip and again blessed with some awesome weather. Clear blue skies and warm weather. To get to Eze, you take the bus so that it drops you off high up on the hill side so you can walk back down to the water to catch the train back to Nice.

You go to Eze for really only one reason, to go to the Le Jardin Exotique at the top of the hill where you get astounding views of the Côte d'Azur. On a clear day like this, you can see all the way to Saint-Tropez.

It’s a moderate hike up the small village to the top and then you pay a nominal fee to go into the garden. From there you get the amazing views.

Le Jardin Exotique

Nietzsche Trail

To walk back down towards the water, you can take the Nietzsche Trail to the train station. It is not that far but pretty rocky and unsteady walking. That didn’t seem to bother some locals who could just fly down that trail on training walks/runs.

The sign at the bottom of the trail saying it takes 1 hour to reach the top.

If you look closely you can see someone wrote “2x (at least)” in French next to the 1 hour

Eze Train Station

Small train station at Eze. I tried to buy a ticket but the machines were broken so we just boarded. No one was checking tickets but at least I was trying to do the right thing.

Villefranche-sur-Mer

This is about as picturesque a seaside village as you will find in France.

Unfortunately (at least in my opinion) this is a cruise ship destination so depending on the time that you are here you may be inundated with a bunch of tourists making a shore excursion.

Eliott ‘n’ Bobbie’s (Villefranche-sur-Mer)

Needing to sate the hunger from the hike down the mountain, we grabbed some excellent burgers at this spot.

Walking the Inland Alleys

Actually felt a bit like Bellagio when you walk up the hill from the water here with the narrow streets and the small shops.

Espuma (Villefranche-sur-Mer)

We had time to grab one more drink before taking the train back to Nice. This was a nice place with a great view of the harbor. France is very dog friendly and everyone seems to have a perfectly behaved medium sized dog. You could tell the dog above is a regular at this place.

Le 34 Cafe

Back in Nice, we went to get some pre-dinner drinks at this cafe. It was more tobacco shop than cafe but had a great location with outside seating on a lively street corner.

Le Socle

We sought out a proper fancy French meal and this place was also a recommendation from the bartender at Povera. The couple that ran this fine dining establishment were super friendly - especially since we were here on a slow night.

They selected some wine for us based on our preferences and we ordered from their seasonal menu. You could select items for a three course meal. Everything was delicious.