Villefranche Excursions

[mrsp1030]

We are doing a Mediterranean cruise this summer and looking for advice on the excursions via Disney or private tour operators for Villefranche. We are a family of 5 with 3 DS: 11, 8, 5 so was hoping to get some feedback on something the kids would enjoy! Thank you in advance!

 

[crafty91]

Pretty much everything is sightseeing so know that going in. There is always Monaco which is pretty neat and Monte Carlo/Grand Casino to see all the exotic cars. However, our favorite at this stop was the mountain city of Eze. Narrow winding streets (walking only) on the very top of a mountain! Pretty cool! You can Google Eze and look at the 360 degree view from the top and see what I mean. Most everything you are going to see is quite a distance from port so be careful to allow PLENTY of time to return if you do book tours on your own.

 

[mrsp1030]

I have been looking at the Eze tour offered via Disney as an option. We booked other tours for Italy so maybe just going Disney route this time.

 

[crafty91]

For a sightseeing excursion that is something different, Eze is VERY neat!

 

[anricat]

I can't make recommendations from experience because we haven't been yet (in fact, we don't go until next year, but I'm overexcited so I'm planning). We're probably going to go to Nice and Eze. My DH wants to do a wine tour in Nice so we're probably all going to take the train or bus to Nice. DD and I will explore while he does his wine thing, then we'll meet up for lunch in Nice. After that we will all take the train or bus back across and over to Eze and sightsee there for the rest of the day. At least for us, we're there 7:45-5:45 so there's plenty of time. Just make sure to factor tendering time in there if you go it alone.

I made some notes of some things that kids might like in Nice:

Double decker carousel http://www.waymarking.com/waymarks/WMD980_Quai_des_tats_Unis_Carousel_Nice_France

Promenade Park https://www.tripadvisor.com/Attract...Nice_French_Riviera_Cote_d_Azur_Provence.html

Le Petit Train https://www.tripadvisor.com/Attract...Nice_French_Riviera_Cote_d_Azur_Provence.html

Also, last time we were in Italy, we used audio tours from GPS My City. Basically you get the app on your phone and then you can download the city for $5 or something and it includes a bunch of tours. I found that they have them for cities all over the world. In Nice, they have a kid specific one: https://www.gpsmycity.com/gps-tour-guides/nice-2798.html

 

[RedSox68]

Pretty much everything is sightseeing so know that going in. There is always Monaco which is pretty neat and Monte Carlo/Grand Casino to see all the exotic cars. However, our favorite at this stop was the mountain city of Eze. Narrow winding streets (walking only) on the very top of a mountain! Pretty cool! You can Google Eze and look at the 360 degree view from the top and see what I mean. Most everything you are going to see is quite a distance from port so be careful to allow PLENTY of time to return if you do book tours on your own.

We loved this excursion and my DD and DH still talk about that lovely little town! One of our favorites.

 

[linetbo]

We did Monaco, Monte Carlo and Eze and Like it. But my daughter was 14th, Eze it's beautiful. I think there is ano aquarium in Monaco and a mini train ride.

 

[IBelieveInTheMagic]

I have been looking at the Eze tour offered via Disney as an option. We booked other tours for Italy so maybe just going Disney route this time.

We must be on the same cruise together Like you we also booked all private excursions for Italy but will likely book a DCL one for Villefranche and it includes Eze. Perhaps we will see you

Heather

 

[mrsp1030]

We must be on the same cruise together Like you we also booked all private excursions for Italy but will likely book a DCL one for Villefranche and it includes Eze. Perhaps we will see you

Heather

That is funny! Are you sailing 8/12? Yes, we did a ton of research on Italy tours and I felt like that was the way to go. We are using two different providers between the 3 ports but I am so excited for it all! We've been to Rome with our oldest DS but that was 10 years ago so I am excited to see how they all react to the amazing sites in Europe. We use to live in Europe so this is our 10 year going back trip!

 

[o&smom]

We went to Monaco on our own and spent a big part of our day at the Aquarium and Oceanographic Museum. This was on our first Disney cruise when our son had just turned 7 and our daughter was 3 mos. There is a beautiful park next to it and the palace is just past the park , up the hill. We would also do the little train tour . You can catch it right in front of the aquarium and you can get off down at the casino and then catch another one back up the hill. Enjoy your cruise!

 

[3Down1Up]

We were in Villefranche in 2014. DH did the white water rafting and he thought it was a highlight of the cruise - but it has to be your thing. No sightseeing, per se - just mild adventure. My father did a Monaco/Monte Carlo highlight tour which was exactly as you would expect - brief stops at all the highlights. My kids and I did the Perfume Apprenticeship in Eze. The perfume work was kind of different but the highlight was Eze - like PPs have said, such a beautiful place. I wish we had more time there - only about 45 minutes. If I was back again, I would spend my day there - private tour probably. Rick Steves' book highlights how to get there by public transportation but it involved both trains and bus and that combo made me nervous. Have fun planning!

 

[RedSox68]

We did Monaco, Monte Carlo and Eze and Like it. But my daughter was 14th, Eze it's beautiful. I think there is ano aquarium in Monaco and a mini train ride.

We got to tour the palace in Monaco and the casino in Monte Carlo. BOY do they have some amazing looking cars parked around that area. My favorite was a chocolate brown Lamborghini convertible with orange interior -- as we watched kid after kid throw themselves on the hood for pictures and scratch the heck out of it. I can only imagine what it costs just to have a scratch removed. Surprised there wasn't outdoor security to keep the curious away.

 

[linetbo]

We got to tour the palace in Monaco and the casino in Monte Carlo. BOY do they have some amazing looking cars parked around that area. My favorite was a chocolate brown Lamborghini convertible with orange interior -- as we watched kid after kid throw themselves on the hood for pictures and scratch the heck out of it. I can only imagine what it costs just to have a scratch removed. Surprised there wasn't outdoor security to keep the curious away.

We saw the cars too, right in front of the Hotel Paris.

 

[RedSox68]

We saw the cars too, right in front of the Hotel Paris.

Oh, and too funny -- we walked through the side doors of that hotel to look around and a security guard followed us until we left. Guess we looked like cheap tourists who could never afford to stay there LOL

 

[crafty91]

Just to put it out there for people reading this thread as an option, we did the Adventures by Disney add-on for our Med cruise and though it is pretty expensive it was by far the BEST trip i have ever done! They take care of literally EVERYTHING! Food, tours, tickets, front of the line at Vatican, etc. If you ever splurge on anything I would highly suggest it! (Others in our group did the pre-cruise ABD add-on and enjoyed that as well. It is separate from the cruise experience.)

 

[RedSox68]

Just to put it out there for people reading this thread as an option, we did the Adventures by Disney add-on for our Med cruise and though it is pretty expensive it was by far the BEST trip i have ever done! They take care of literally EVERYTHING! Food, tours, tickets, front of the line at Vatican, etc. If you ever splurge on anything I would highly suggest it! (Others in our group did the pre-cruise ABD add-on and enjoyed that as well. It is separate from the cruise experience.)

Every one I know that has done trips or excursions with ABD rave about them and say there is no other way to do it. For us, unfortunately, it is way outside our comfort zone financially.

 

[IBelieveInTheMagic]

That is funny! Are you sailing 8/12? Yes, we did a ton of research on Italy tours and I felt like that was the way to go. We are using two different providers between the 3 ports but I am so excited for it all! We've been to Rome with our oldest DS but that was 10 years ago so I am excited to see how they all react to the amazing sites in Europe. We use to live in Europe so this is our 10 year going back trip!

Ha ha! Now we have even more in common Yes, on the 8/12 sailing and also did a ton of research too. I actually lived in Europe as well (and graduated high school in Vicenza, Italy) but DH and DS have not visited the countries we are visiting however DH did go with me to Germany prior to DS being born and we are spending time in Germany/Austria prior to the cruise. I've been to the all the countries, but not all the sites so I'm excited too! Nice to meet you and I hope you guys have an amazing time!

Heather

 

[Sp8e Magic]

We have done Villefranche with Disney last year and the year before.

The first time we did Monaco, Monte Carlo and Eze which was a full day excursion with a guide. There was a ton of walking which was tough on my youngest (5) in the heat. Both children were bored and uncomfortable and even I have to admit the guide was pretty dull some of the time. It was a very long day. We got entrance into the palace and spent time outside the casino but did not see the harbour.

The year after we went with my parents who wanted to visit Monaco again. Me and my husband weren't excited about it but decided to book a half day excursion called Monaco, Monte Carlo and the little train. It was brilliant trip. In Monaco we picked up a land train that took us around all the major sites including the palace, the harbour and the casino with time to browse at the harbour and the palace. A drink at the harbour was included on the tour cost and it was much more relaxing way to see the place. The kids loved the train and seeing all the yachts close up and the cool cars. We were back on the ship for lunchtime having had a fun filled morning. Much better excursion with young children although if the children can cope then Eze is very nice to see

 

[jdg308]

Last summer we did the Disney excursion that included Monaco and Eze. This was the only Disney excursion we did, the rest we had arranged for private guides. At the end of the day wished we would have just taken cabs to both Monaco and Eze. The tour guide really did not add anything to the day other than hand out tickets and let us know what time to be back at the bus.

 

[GPaLarry]

We were on the last DCL Med. cruise in Sept. of last year (first leg of B2B WBTA). Because the water was too rough for tendering, we did not stop at Villefranche...that became an "at sea" day. The next day we docked at Marseilles, instead. Everything was smooth sailing until that one morning and the captain said it was a "no go." DCL, in a matter or 3-4 hours got permission to dock in Marseilles, arranged "at sea" activities for the current day, scheduled a dozen excursions for Marseilles and got the word out to everyone on board about all of the above. Just in case the tendering does not work out, look at other options. We took DCL's Avignon and wine tasting tour and loved it. Just a "heads up."
PS: A DCL officer told us later that they have plan B for almost every occasion...bet they have plans C & D as well.