Throwback Thursday: Menton and the South of France, May 2014

When Mum and I were planning our next family getaway back in May, the original plan was to spend the long weekend at Park Europa. I suggested the South of France instead. Late May/early June is right before the high tourist season picks up for Summer, so we thought it would be a good time to experience the Côte d'Azure. 

When booking hotels we usually use Hotels.com and this trip was no exception. We booked a couple of nights at the Hotel Napolean Menton, a beachside resort with it's own private plage. Menton is a small town situated on the border between France and Italy. About an hour east of Nice, it is the perfect place to relax away from the tourist madness of the other large towns in the area. Menton has no airport, like everywhere else in the area relying on Nice. There are inter regional trains and buses however. We drove from Geneva so transport was not an issue. The hotel's prebooked parking was full but they informed us that street parking was free and there was plenty available. We also had our dog with us and the hotel was incredibly accommodating.

Menton has a beautiful old town. Though busy it had nothing on the craziness in downtown Nice. There was a plethora of restaurants to choose from, seafood on every menu. Limoncello was offered after every meal. There were lots of quaint little shops selling locally made products. 

From Menton we took day trips to Monaco, Nice and Cannes. I was underwhelmed by Cannes, we were there just after the film festival and to be honest the place reminded me of a slightly less dirty Los Angeles. Nice was crazy busy and we struggled to find a restaurant that wasn't full. 

Monaco was my favourite excursion by far. The city itself is incredible, high rise buildings and super yachts dotted the coastline, luxury cars everywhere. The racing had just finished before we arrived so we even drove along the track, which was still set up. My favourite part of visiting Monaco was the old town and walking in the footsteps of modern royalty. My labradoodle was pretty impressed with the palace too.

Happy wandering,

Ally x