Yacht Charter Itinerary Nice to Portofino including San Tropez and Corsica

Written by Missy Johnston

Nice

Join your yacht in Nice/Cannes and enjoy lunch on the aft deck as you settle in, under the warm Mediterranean sun. Head to Cap du Antibes, and overnight on anchor at Juan Les Pines. This area is a nice location to anchor, with Cote d’Azur scenery all around, to settle in and relax on board. After dinner, head ashore for a taste of the hopping night life available in this little resort town.

Juan Les Pins

Stop for lunch at Eden Roc at Cap du’ Antibes, coming into the restaurant private tender dock by ship’s tender. In the afternoon head to San Tropez, a busy cosmopolitan “village”. Once a sleepy fishing village, San Tropez is now a center of the chic and the arts. Many artists find the lighting in San Tropez unlike anywhere else in the world. This is a place to spend time shopping as between the couture and the unique little shops, San Tropez has it all. Hit the streets and many little alleyways of this dynamic village. And for a refreshing break, step into the Pan Dei Place Hotel in town, an oasis behind tall walls, for a drink. This is the town that never sleeps. As night falls, the street cafes come alive with the nightlife of this quaint village of the very chic. This is a great spot to enjoy and see the night life of the French Riviera. Overnight cruise to Corsica.

San Tropez

Wake up in The Île Rousse, which takes its name from the porphyry red rocks of the Isle of Pietra, just to the north of the town. As an ancient Roman trading post, its boom years date back to Pascal Paoli who built a port and ramparts to rival the sea trade between Gênes and Calvi. Its climate is so mild that it could be called the “Mild Isle”. Nothing is more pleasant than strolling through the shade of the 100-year old plane trees in the Place Paoli that is edged with date palms. On the Île Rousse, tour around the marketplace with its 21 columns and go for a lovely stroll along the Marinella and visit the traditional coffee-making plant. Overnight on anchor.

Northern Corsica Beach

Spend another day exploring the fishing villages of northern Corsica and enjoying the beautiful waters in the Bay of Acciolu on the northern end of Corsica. Here along the shoreline, and against the somewhat desert landscape are pearl white sand beaches and clear turquoise waters and very few people or other yachts. Anchor overnight around the fishing village of St Florent. St Florent is a quaint seaside town set below a backdrop of tall black mountains. This quaint village has a good beach, and plenty of local restaurants.

Inside Eze

Cruise to Villefrance early in the morning. Once in Villefrance, visit St. Jean Cap Ferrat for lunch. Then, take a walk up to the fine gardens along the coast. Enjoy this little village anchorage for swimming and water sports, and perhaps wander the shops in town. From here, a taxi will be arranged to the famous town of Eze, and enjoy a walk around this very quaint town built onto a hillside, and dinner at the Restaurant Chevre d’Or. Overnight on anchor in Villefranche.

Monte Carlo Casino

Leave to cruise to Monte Carlo and back into the hub of life along the Cote d’Azur. Dock in the main harbor of Monte Carlo. Old City Monte Carlo, known as Monaco-Ville, is just a short walk from the port and is the location of the Grimaldi Family Palace and grounds. 15 rooms are now open for viewing as well as the gardens and don’t miss the changing of the guards at 11:55am. Spend time in Monaco-Ville as located here is also the Romanesque/Byzantine Cathedral of Monaco, the burial location of Princess Grace and other important members of the Royal Family. Also be sure to visit the Musee Oceangraphique et Aquarium, once headed by Jacque Cousteau, for a maritime history of the area. The aquarium is extremely well known and is considered one of the best aquariums in Europe with over 4000 fish species in tanks on display.

In the evening enjoy cocktails and dinner on deck under the stairs and then head out in Black Tie for an evening at the Casino and other top night spots in Monte Carlo.

Portofino

Leave for Portofino early in the morning and anchor off of Portofino for the afternoon and night. Often called the “Pearl of the Riviera” Portofino has long been fashionable with what was once called ‘the jet set’. Originally a billet for Genoa’s merchant seamen, by the turn of the twentieth century it was a quiet, though very beautiful, fishing village. To add to its mystique, Portofino has a history buried in myth. Pliny the Elder claimed the Romans founded the town, naming it Portus Delphini, or Port of Dolphins, because of the large number that frolicked in the Tigullian Gulf.

Discovered by German and British holidaymakers in the 1920s, by the 1950s tourism had supplanted the fishing boats. Portofino thus became a favorite with, among others, Princess Grace and Richard Burton and Liz Taylor. Set within an area of stunning natural beauty, the protected Parco Naturale Regionale di Portofino, the town today is a chic berth for yachts and offers exclusive boutiques, wonderful outdoor restaurants, and beachside cliffs that are speckled with pastel-colored villas.

Portofino

Disembark in Portofino.