Menton is the northernmost city of the French Riviera. It is considered a ‘Pearl of the Cote d’Azur’.
Location of Menton:
It is located above Monaco and is an exclave of the independent, tiny nation and the Las Vegas of Europe.
Reaching Menton from Paris and Genova.
Look at the map of the French Riviera below.
Just 10 km separates the two big tourist places in South France.
If you want to reach Menton from Paris,
You have to take a fast train to cover nearly 1000 km. The travel time is 6 and a half hours.
Interestingly, and also enticingly, Florence one of the tourist hot spots in Italy, is closer to Menton at 180 km northeast.
There is a train that gets you to Menton from Genova. The duration of travel is two and a half hours.
Best Things to do in Menton:
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The Basilica of St. Michael Archangel
Remember, you are in France that is known for magnificent cathedrals, churches, and basilicas.
The foremost thing to do in Menton is to visit this beautiful basilica that is easily visible from several parts of the city.
It was built in the 17th century. The basilica is an orthodox Catholic Church.
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Jardine Botanique
Some words in French sound wonderful when pronounced-right? For example, the word, ‘botanique’, and Jaques’.
Incidentally, this botanical garden is located in St. Jaques Avenue. Visiting the garden is one of the things to do in the evening as the forenoon, and the afternoon can be scorching in southern France, on the Mediterranean coast.
It is not a very big botanical garden. Nonetheless, the gardeners did a wonderful job of planting, and nurturing a range of flowers including some water flower species.
The local Government was so impressed with the diverse flora range that it created a Mediterranean Flora Research Center right in the botanique.
I think you will be engaged for a full two hours admiring the rice flowering plants, oak trees, and fruit trees.
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Serre de la Madone
It’s another garden that was developed on an elevated site. One of the attractions in the garden is a terraced grove of olive trees.
The public garden was tastefully planted with rare subtropical plants. In addition, two little ponds were created and planted with water lilies.
I watched a video of this garden. It was awesome. The gardeners created a mini tropical forest that formed a terrific canopy.
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Pearl of France
You would wonder why a small city on the Mediterranean coast is called the “Pear of France”, overlooking Paris, Lyon, Nice, and Cannes!
Menton’s location on the French Riviera is absolutely beautiful. The views of the lovely blue Mediterranean Sea, and the backdrop of snow-clad mountains of the Italian Alps, and of the course, the city’s unique cuisine warranted the award of Pearl of France.
The whole of France is for the tourists who are blessed with fine, and aristocratic taste. Mention is a perfect blend of all the intrinsic beauty of France.
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Visit the old town of Menton
If you want to see how the earliest French pirates lived in Menton, you must leisurely stroll through the cobbled old town.
The boutique shops, cafés, bakeries, and the brightly painted town homes on the cobbled streets, will be marvellous. You will be glad you heeded to my recommendation.
As your stroll nears the beach, you will go through Plage des Sablettes, a sort of wide street lined with shade-giving trees.
Here are the scene changes completely with brightly-lit restaurants, noisy bars, and numerous shops to buy French pastries, perfumes, and fashionable dresses.
Watch the video here. You will realize you let out an audible gasp at the beginning of the video, in appreciation of the breathtaking beauty of the place.
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Lemon Festival
Have you ever heard of a festival that is dedicated to lemons? Somehow, over several centuries, lemon cultivation has caught up the fancy of agriculturists of Menton.
Look at the image below.
Can you believe those life-size figures were made of lemons alone?
Watch a video till the end. The look of disbelief will be written large on your face as you watch the video of the Lemon Festival.
When is the Lemon Festival?
It used to be conducted towards the end of February every year. Watch out for the announcement of the exact date to plan your trip to Menton accordingly.
Watching the unique lemon festival is one of the fun things to do in Menton.
Don’t miss it, buddy. You can drink myriad lemon concoctions, buy lemon flavoured soaps, and other lemony things.
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Play gambling
You might have always wanted to visit a casino to experience how it feels to lose some money in the gambling consoles. Besides, you may be longing to go to Las Vegas, the gambling capital of the world.
Here comes an opportunity knocking at your hotel room door in Menton. The Las Vegas of the Europe, Monaco is only a few minutes away from Menton.
Take an evening off from Menton and go to Monaco. In fact, there is train service available between the two hot vacation spots in Europe.
Menton in the French Riviera is definitely worth visiting.
