Your ship anchors in the bay. A tender brings you ashore to boulevard Jean Hibert on the lower harbour. We are waiting at the landing — name board, Mercedes V-Class, no fuss. The excursion goes west and then inland: along the coast to the Cap d'Antibes peninsula, into the old town of Antibes, then up into the hills behind the coast to Saint-Paul-de-Vence. Three very different places in five hours. No commentary, no group, no fixed pace.
The route.
Three stops, one day.
We start in Le Suquet, the old town on the hill above the port. From up here you see Cannes as it actually is: the Croisette curved below like a parenthesis, the Îles de Lérins offshore. At the foot of the hill, the marché Forville — a covered market, open every morning, the kind of place where the restaurants still shop. We walk down through it. Below and to the west, half-hidden among the trees: the Villa Rothschild, built in 1881 by Élisabeth de Rothschild. The park is formal and contained — terraces, Mediterranean plantings, the Belle Époque villa above it — and tucked behind the port hill, away from the bay. The Palais des Festivals next — not a beautiful building, which is part of its honesty. What you come for is the Allée des Étoiles: the handprints and signatures of the film world set in the pavement outside, and the specific quality of red carpet underfoot. Then the Croisette. Five palace hotels in succession — Le Splendid, the Majestic, the Carlton, the Martinez, JW Marriott — each from a different decade, each a different idea of what luxury looked like at the time. Even the names sound expensive. A coffee on the Carlton terrace, facing the sea, is not obligatory. It is, however, correct.
We drive east along the coast, passing through Juan-les-Pins — the jazz festival town, very different in feel from Cannes, flat and relaxed where Cannes is vertical and performative. Then the Cap d'Antibes. The road circles the peninsula under umbrella pines and past the gates of estates that are never photographed: this is where the serious money has always been private. The south side of the cap brings you to Port de l'Olivette — a small bay, fishing boats in faded primary colours pulled up against the stone wall. No beach bar, no organised views, nobody selling anything. The kind of place that painters found before anyone else did, and that still looks exactly as it did then.
From Antibes we leave the coast and climb into the hills of the arrière-pays. Saint-Paul-de-Vence is a medieval village on a ridge at 180 metres, surrounded by ramparts that have changed very little since the sixteenth century. We leave you at the main gate; the car waits below. Inside: a single main street, stone fountains, a twelfth-century church, and the cemetery where Chagall is buried. The village is pedestrian and small enough to walk end-to-end in twenty minutes, which means the sixty you have here is for looking rather than moving. The Fondation Maeght is ten minutes’ walk outside the walls — one of the best modern art collections in France, housed in a building by Josep Lluís Sert (€22, allow an hour). If you go there, do it first.
What's included
Pricing.
One price. Per vehicle.
| Route | Duration | Group size | Price |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cannes · Antibes · Saint-Paul | From 5 hrs | Up to 7 | €800 |
| Antibes & Saint-Paul only | From 4 hrs | Up to 7 | €800 |
| Antibes only | From 3 hrs | Up to 7 | €800 |
| Custom itinerary | Your schedule | Up to 7 | €800 |
Per person: 2 guests = €400 · 4 guests = €200 · 7 guests = €114. Payment by card, bank transfer or cash (EUR).
Questions.
Plain answers.
At boulevard Jean Hibert, on the lower harbour — the tender landing pier, directly in front of the dock. We will be there with a name board before your tender arrives. Any difficulty, WhatsApp us: +33 6 69 96 22 72.
The full Cannes–Antibes–Saint-Paul route typically runs 5 to 5.5 hours. Antibes is 12 kilometres east, about 20 minutes. Saint-Paul is another 25 minutes inland. We can shorten the day if needed — usually by skipping the Cap d'Antibes circuit or reducing time in Saint-Paul. Send us your departure time when you enquire.
No. We drop you at the entrance to each place and wait with the car. Both Antibes and Saint-Paul are small enough to explore independently. We brief you on what to see and where to find it before you go in.
We wait. No extra charge for tender delays. We stay in WhatsApp contact throughout the day. If the shore window is reduced, we adapt — usually by going directly to Antibes and keeping Saint-Paul shorter. Cannes ships anchor in the bay; tender delays are standard and we plan for them.
Yes, if modern art is of any interest to you. The permanent collection includes major works by Miró, Giacometti, Braque, Léger, and Calder, in a building purpose-designed for them. It is not a compromise collection. Budget 60 to 75 minutes and go first, before the village.
Yes. Skipping the Cap d'Antibes circuit saves 30 minutes and gives more time in the old town or Saint-Paul. Skipping Saint-Paul entirely gives 75 minutes more in Antibes and is a reasonable option if you prefer a slower pace in one place. Tell us your preference when you enquire.
