From Bulgaria to Cannes. Sights in Cannes.
From Bulgaria to the Cote d'Azur (French Riviera). Cannes.
Защо не посетихме Сен Тропе, какви са начините са предвижване от Ница до Кан, лазурен ли е Лазурния бряг на Френската ривиера, къде се намира прословутия червен килим и къде се провежда фестивала на фойеверките – това и още интересна информация, четете в настоящия пътепис за Ница и Кан, част от поредицата пътеписи “С деца на Лазурния бряг + Средиземноморски круиз + Амалфийско крайбрежие”.
See the route, program and cost of the entire trip here.
Day 1 - From Sofia to Nice
The big summer trip began with a morning flight from Sofia to Nice. Since we are from Plovdiv, the night before we slept in Sofia in the wonderful Cozy and Bright Apartment.
The plan was to spend 2 days exploring the popular French cities of Cannes and Nice. We briefly stopped by Monte Carlo, the capital of the Principality of Monaco, and then boarded the train in the direction of Marseille to board the long-awaited cruise ship. Unfortunately, the Tuzara resort of Saint-Tropez dropped from the list of places to visit, as there were neither trains nor buses there, but it was only possible to visit by rental car.
Our flight with Wizz Air (W6 4415) from Sofia to Nice took off on time at 6:10 and landed in Nice at 7:45.
There is a free bus between T1 and T2 at the airport in Nice, as is and at Sofia Airport.
From Nice to Cannes
There are two ways to travel by public transport from Nice Airport to Cannes (where I had booked an apartment):
1. Bus - from the airport by tram L2 (passes through Terminal 1 and 2) We go and get off at the Parc Phœnix stop (it is a natural park combining flora (plant) and fauna) (animals) and was on our list of sights to visit, but we never had time for it). From Park Phoenix we take bus 620 to Cannes Central Station. The ticket is 2.50 Euro/person, Ticketazur type and is bought by the driver. Cash or card can be paid. Bus travel can take between 1 and 2 hours, depending on traffic and traffic jams. We chose this option.
2. by train - from the airport by tram number L2 we get off at the first stop after the Grand-Arénas airport –> walking 8 minutes to the railway station Nice St-Augustin –> train to the central station of Cannes. The ticket is 6.80/adult, but since we were 4 and with children, there was some discount for a mini group and for 4 it cost 16 euros in total. The train journey can take between 30 and 50 minutes. Tickets are picked up online, from the relevant machines or from the counters with service staff at the station.
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Useful!!!
Here is the place to mention 2 useful sites that are good to look in advance if you have a trip to France coming up.
1. Information about planned strikes in France, which also often affect urban/intercity transport (buses, trains, metro). See here.
2. Map of the Kan-Nica-Monaco area with buses, trams and trains. See the map here.
Apartment
Overnight stays in the French Riviera are insanely expensive. Digging through the internet on multiple hotel accommodation sites in search of a budget, clean and good location, I ended up using Airbnb to book 2 nights in an apartment that was nothing wow, but it was located two minutes from the central railway/auto station and beach. The owner agreed to check in earlier than the time announced for check-in.
After the short noise of carrying suitcases in search of our accommodation in Cannes, and then in search of the coveted code to unlock the door, we were already inside the apartment at noon. We had at our disposal a private bedroom, a sofa bed, a modest kitchen, a private bathroom, free WiFi and a terrace. It struck me that despite the noisy boulevard just below our windows, the old French wooden windows insulated surprisingly well.
Sights in Cannes. First impressions.
Cannes Beaches
We left the luggage, had a quick bite and smoke was gone. We started the walk by first heading to the famous beach on the French Riviera. Well... The Cote d'Azur left us speechless. Literally and in the negative sense of the word. Our opinion is that the beach is even worse than those on the Bulgarian Black Sea coast. Here's what I mean: yes, the water is bluer-green, but on the shore the sand is neither white, nor fine, nor has Greek white pebbles. Rather, it is covered with gravel and large, inconvenient stones, stones. The same goes for the beach of Nice, which we visited the next day - again absolutely nothing impressive.
But what annoyed me a lot in Cannes was that nearly 80% of the beach was literally busy with beach restaurants (which is more expensive, which type of fast food, which type of coffee shop) and if you are not a customer, you cannot step on this beach. In reality, you have some 20% free zone for mere mortals like us.
Cannes Film Festival
The festival is held at the Palace of Festivals and Congresses of Cannes. Only about half a month ago, the 76th edition of the world-famous Cannes Film Festival had ended, and on this occasion, in many places in the city, and especially around the theater where the films are screened, there were many photos and billboards of various famous living or already deceased actors of all kinds nationalities.
В подножието на театъра се намира Информационният център на Кан, в който се прожектираше историята на фестивала и имаше място тип “Be a star” за снимки с червен килим. Отвън се снимахме на стълбите, където по време на фестивала разпъват 20-метров червен килим и по който се изреждат да минават много световно известни актьори, певци, модни дизайнери и пр. Наблизо се намира и Алеята на звездите с имената на повече от 400 звезди.
–> Browse and book a budget hotel in Cannes with a discount. See here!
In addition to the film festival, other events are also organized in Cannes:
- the Riviera carnival (a parade on the streets of the city to celebrate the 21st day period to Sirni Zagovezni)
- the international festival of Games (Bridge, Backgammon Festival, Bellot, Chess, etc.)
– the international festival for acting (comedy sketches and performances are performed)
– the international exhibition of luxury travel Agencies from around the world)
– Fireworks festival (an exceptional show that takes place every summer in Cannes Bay).
The prestigious Igy Vieux-port de Cannes is located near the festival site. Being completely deluded, we wanted to walk and explore the yachts, but we were stopped at the barrier and accordingly were not allowed because we did not have our own yacht there. For the next time, we will try to be more prepared. Meanwhile, an interesting fact is that cruise ships cannot dock at the port itself, as it is too shallow and passengers have to be transferred to shore in smaller boats.
Le Suquet Hill
Продължихме разходката към близкия хълм Le Suquet, където се намират редица музеи и местната църква Нотр дам. Името на хълма буквално се превежда “улица от лабиринти”. Изкачвайки се нагоре по тесните, но китни френски улички, пред нас се откриваше все по-красива и по-красива гледка към крайбрежието на Кан. Обагрените в красиви и ярки цветя фасади на сгради и затънтените магазинчета придаваха много приятна атмосфера.
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The old city
The old part of Cannes includes both Le Suquet Hill and all the small streets between the lively Croisette Boulevard and 1Ere Division Francaise Libre. This part is home to the Central Auto and Train Station, but it also abounds in all kinds of shops for clothes, accessories, souvenirs, fast food restaurants, French snacks, etc. There is the Marché Forville market, which is open from 7:30 to 13:30, but the smell of it remains long after it closes... and of course, the Carrefour store, where you can buy budget food.
A little about the prices to mention... Well, after the high inflation in Bulgaria in 2022-2023, which increased the prices of food products by at least 30 percent, here, on the French Riviera, the prices did not seem so high to me. I mean, in supermarkets and fast food restaurants, the prices were decent and comparable to most Western European countries. Things were already different in the restaurants and there the lower limit is higher than in other places 🙂
Other attractions we don't have time for include:
The Childhood Museum
The Museum of Photography
- The Cultural Museum
Ethnographic Museum
Santa Margarita Island
In conclusion, I will say that Cannes and Nice are the first clean cities in France that we visit. Unlike the front roads when we were in Marseille and Paris and where we were outraged by the dirt that was flooding us from everywhere, the hygiene here was at a very good level. Everything was arranged, beautiful, luxurious and generally made like for people with money.
KYM SLEDVACHIA PTPETIS OT POREDITA —> Monte Carlo (Monaco) and Nice (France)
