France, Nice/Monaco area

[MattyK]

Hi, I'm on holiday at the moment in the south of France. Staying in Villefranche right next to Nice.

We (wife and I) have looked at renting some road bikes and going for a spin. Brought some gear just in case. Any recommended routes? Maybe 50-80km rides, maybe a hill or two if she can handle it. The trip was sprung as a surprise on me so I didn't have time to prepare/plan.

Will probably get some bikes from a shop in Beaulieu sur Mer a short walk away, they have some Trek Emonda S6es for rent.

[toolonglegs]

Ride over to Italy via the coast... lovely ride. Bit busy in parts but not dangerous.
Here is the route via I took from Menton to Nice return https://app.strava.com/activities/64274003" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false; and from Menton over to Italy https://app.strava.com/activities/62697744" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

[MattyK]

Looks awesome! I didn't expect the coast road to be so hilly, that would suit us fine (if I am not to drop the wife...)

[toolonglegs]

It isn't too bad... you can definitely cruise it. After Menton there is a bit of a hill if you go that far ( cross into Italy ). They are busy roads but that is to be expected there ... but they are pretty safe, single file though. If you go inland any then you definitely hit the hills proper very quickly.
There is always the alternative of getting a rental city bike in Monaco for your wife ... they are electric .

[MattyK]

Nah, we might do a bike rental around Nice but we will be in Monaco for the grand prix so no point riding. Word of warning on the bike rentals here though. We (two of us) rented Velib bikes in Paris for two separate days. We now have four lots of €150 held against our credit card that is inaccessible til they clear it, which takes 13 days! So we have to find another $1000 from outside our holiday budget in the meantime...

[MattyK]

Well the bikes are rented from the lovely folks at Cycles Camellini in Beaulieu sur Mer, all ready for some pedaling tomorrow!

[Treadle]

If the hills get too much or its getting late its always nice to know the train from Ventimiglia will get you back to Nice Ville Gare pretty quickly. Stops at Monaco, Menton etc .
trip takes about 30 minutes from memory. Had to go there one Saturday afternoon to obtain a bike pass for one leg of our trip from Nice to Rome with our bikes in tow. Got every other ticket at Nice Ville but the bike pass for a short section into Pisa and then Pisa to Rome the next day as the pass lasts 24 hours from validation so was good for the two trains.
Enjoy your ride!. Traffic just out of Nice near the Archaeology museum is pretty horrible , but settles down after that.

[MattyK]

Thanks, back home now. This is the ride we did, pretty easy going with the wife and frequent stopping along the way to take photos and check things out (eg Eze Village). Up into the hills a little bit to start with, then down to Menton and back along the coast through Monaco.

https://www.strava.com/activities/313483551" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

An absolutely beautiful part of the world.

[find_bruce]

Great ride Matt, I am jealous

[MattyK]

Doarama of the ride:
http://www.doarama.com/view/338805" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;