Nice Travel Forum

We are flying in to Nice but would like to spend a few days in the Santa Margherita/Portofino area. Should we drive or take a train from Nice airport to the Ligurian coast ? My concern is whether or not we will need a car to explore the area around SML ? I would prefer not to pay for a car that could be sitting in a garage for 4 days. Thanks for any help you can provide.

I can't help you much about the SML per se without a car, but I would use the train. I was able to walk, take the bus (Monoco) or water taxi (Portofino)on my last trip and my daughter did the same with no issues. The car might ofter more flexibility along the route but unless there was a specific spot you needed to get to, I'd still go for the train.

Best take the train from Nice to Genoa,and change for local train to Santa Margherita, from where you can get a bus or boat to Portofino.

Thank you so much. Do I understand you to mean that we would not need a car once we are in the area of SML ? We are certainly interested in exploring the surrounding areas. I am just trying to determine if a car is an asset or a liablility in this area. Thank you again for your insight.

Portofino's on a peninsula so you use the train line that skirts the mainland coast with stations Santa Margherita and Rapallo either side. The train runs along all the main villages there on to Cinq Terre.

Many of the places are unspoilt precisely because they are not so easily accessed.In season cars back up for miles and parking is impossible, many would say train is better. But then there are people who feel "helpless" without a car. I am not a fan of cars - life through a widscreen - so I'm not the best person to advise. Over to you.

Cheers!

I love touring by car, the freedom it gives me and the improved view - i always feel i miss a lot of the view when travelling by train with only one side at a time, windows that are often dirty or glare.
I usually get to do so much more with my time and off the beaten track places and so on, can drive suggested scenic routes and so on.

have a car booked to pick up from the airport at Nice on Friday when I arrive and will drive to see the Gorges of Verdon and hopefully also get along as far as San Remo along the coast past Monaco.
but of course its personal preference and the route involved.