A Day Trip to Menton from Nice, France – French Riviera

July 2024

A Day Trip to Menton from Nice, France – French Riviera

Menton is the most eastern town in the French Riviera – it actually neighbors Italy! Known for its lemons, Menton has a unique microclimate with over 300 days of sun a year that caters to citrus fruits. If you are visiting in February, make sure to time your visit with the festival that takes place each year.

Our arrival was a bit bumpy as the train station and train did not indicate stops so of the two stops in Metnon, we missed the one we really wanted to utilize but not to worry we simply had a longer journey to get to the center of town. 

Menton had a certain look to it that reminded us more of Croatia than some of our previous stops. It is full of shades of oranges, yellows, and browns giving Game of Thrones vibes.

The first priority was visiting the Marche Les Halles or indoor market. Markets in the Riviera close at 1PM and how arrival left us with an hour to do so. I did not have a place in mind for lunch so we decided to make a picnic for ourselves. Kevin and I both picked out a cheese each. Trying to explain that I wanted a funky goewy cheese in French was impossible and those words did not resonate at all with the cheese lady. Instead I opted to ask for the strongest, cow cheese and when she packed it up I feared I made a mistake – I purchased her strongest cheese. Additionally, we got a baguette for 1 euro and a chocolate chip cookie from one of the bakers. I wanted some fruit so we got the smallest container of blueberries for – wait for it – 5.5 euro. We were definitely overcharged for these but then when we visited other markets, the berries were also expensive so berries much be a premium. 

While rain was predicted today, the only place along the Riviera where it rained was Menton at the exact time we were there (so much for picking one of those 300 plus days of sunshine). There were no places to sit and enjoy the purchased items at the market and the beach was soaked from the rain. We found a bench and Kevin ran into the McDonald’s around the corner for some napkins to dry the bench so we were not stuck with wet bottoms all day. Then we finally got to reveal our spread and enjoy. I have to say, the strong cow cheese was amazing and borderline offensive but in a good way. You really have to like the funky cheese to get behind this one. The goat cheese Kevin got was practically tasteless compared to this one. But the key is to get cheeses that spread easily without a knife but just dipping the baguette into it. Overall we made a pretty beautiful picnic despite the weather. 

We walked along the streets dipping in and out of shops in case the rain returned. Many of the shops selling lemon themed items since there is something in the climate in Menton that lemons thrive on. If you ever visit in February, make sure to look out for the lemon festival that is hosted here every year. 

While we were certainly dairy’ed out, I had a well rated gelato place we had to try while we were here so we stopped at Tutti Frutti which is definitely the go-to spot in Metnon for gelato – a solid spot for a gelato fix. 

We made our way to the church and while it had a nice terrace view, we were disappointed to find it closed. Certainly confused as to why the church and surrounding buildings would not be open for the majority of the day was a bit baffling so we continued our way to the cemetery, which was also closed off at the closet entry point.

It began to rain so we hurried to the panoramic point where we could enjoy the covering of an overhang. Point de vue du Port, the view from up here was quite lovely especially seeing the clouds over the hops of the hills. Italy is just a few miles away from Menton and can be seen from here. I am sure the view on a clear day is just spectacular.

We also found the Cimetière du Vieux Château gate that was open and took a very quick walk around in the rain. Dating back to the early 1800s and probably even proceeds that, this cemetery has some insane history and inspired stone work. It is also a great spot for a viewpoint of the coastline.

Unfortunately, we ran out of things to do given that places on our visit list were not open and the rain – crazy lemon loving microclimate. Upon looking at the radar, Menton seemed to be the only destination on the Riviera experiencing the rain so while we were only here for two hours, we made the decision to move onto Monaco. Though our time in Menton was short, we did enjoy our few hours there and there is much more to experience. Things we missed include Jardin Botanique Exotique Val Rah, hanging on the beach, and other areas downtown.

Continue reading about our trip in Nice here!

Read all blog posts for French Riviera here!

See our complete itinerary here!

Planning your own trip? Read the Perfect Itinerary for French Riviera here!

Review our complete carry-on packing here!