The Cote d’Azur has different cities in which you might be sailing, all of them worth knowing! This area is a little bit more expensive than other places in the Mediterranean due to the luxury lifestyle in this area. So stepping off the yacht after a long season will be a hit to your pocket, but hopefully, those charter tips make up for it.
If Antibes is your first port of call as a green yacht crew member, you are in the right place to dockwalk the entire Cote D’Azur. If you are looking to get your first job on a superyacht check out our mega post on starting out in the industry. It will give you extra tips and pointers to help you land your CV on the captain pile.
If you are wintering in Antibes and looking for some long weekend ideas, head up to the French Alps
Contents of the Antibes Port guide for yacht crew
Getting Around
Uber works as a perfect option if you are in a rush, but keep in mind the high costs. A short trip will easily cost 15 euros, and going between ports will jump closer to 100 euros. Your best bet is getting the local train which runs the entire distance and frequently stops at the main stations.
More crew are starting to buy electric scooters, which are handy. Otherwise, keep your bike or skateboard handy. It gets hot in summer, and it’s a bit faster to get around. Antibes port is near to the old town but be prepared for a long walk if you want to hit up the beach bars on the other side. Wear comfortable shoes!
Expect to pay about 1.50 EUR for each minute distance in Uber (approx for consideration) whereas the single train ticket cost starts from 3,10 EUR. Bargain! (side note, you can buy snacks and wine on the train!)
What Ports to dockwalk at in Cote D’Azur
Marseille Old Port – not within walkable distance, you will need a vehicle or Uber to get into the city (10 min ride)
Capitanerie address Address: 44 Quai Marcel Pagnol, 13007 Marseille
La Ciotat – well known for refitting at MB92, you will need a vehicle to move around or Uber Address: Quai François Mitterrand, 13600 La Ciotat
St. Tropez Port Grimaud – located right in the middle of the city Address: Allée du Quai de l’Epi, 83990 Saint-Tropez
Mandelieu La Napoule Port de Cannes Marina – walkable distance to city Address: 150 Allée Calypso, 06210 Mandelieu-la-Napoule
Old port Cannes – walkable distance to city Address: Jetée Albert Edouard, 06400 Cannes
Port Pierre Canto Cannes – walkable distance to city Address: 1 Boulevard de la Croisette, 06400 Cannes
Vieux Port Golf Juan – walkable distance to city Address: Quai Saint-Pierre, 06220 Vallauris
Port Gallice Juan Les Pins – walkable distance to city
Address: 47 Boulevard Edouard Baudoin, 06160 Juan-les-Pins, Cap d’Antibes
Antibes Port Vauban – walkable distance to city Address: Avenue de Verdun, 06600 Antibes
Antibes Marina – walkable distance to city Address: Port Vauban, 06600 Antibes Juan les Pins
Nice Port – walkable distance to city Address: 1430 Quai Amiral Infernet, 06300 Nice
Port de Villefranche-sur-Mer – walkable distance to city Address: 1 Chemin du Lazaret, 06230 Villefranche-sur-Mer
Port de Fontvieille – walkable distance to city Address: Quai des Sanbarbani, 98000 Mónaco/Monte Carlo, Monaco
Monaco port – walkable distance to city Address: Quai l’Hirondelle, 98000 Monaco
Local Restaurants
There are plenty of great restaurants along the coast, but these are a few of the standout ones suggested to us by yacht chefs.
Brasseries Foch – Steakhouse Address: 20 Boulevard Gustave Chancel, 06600 Antibes
Romagna Mia – italian restaurants Address: 3 Boulevard Dugommier, 06600 Antibes
La Taille de Guêpe – French restaurant Address: 24 Rue de Fersen, 06600 Antibes
Other popular yacht crew restaurants include Michelangelo, Petit Cageot, Bistro Margaux, Le Figuier de St Esprit and Le Phenicia.
Fine Dining
Restaurant Jan – Michelin Star Restaurant Address: 12 Rue Lascaris, 06300 Nice
Bruno Oger – La Villa Archange Address: Rue de l’Ouest, 06110 Le Cannet
Mirazur – Menton 30, avenue Aristide Briand 06500 Menton
Le Louis XV-Alain Ducasse à l’Hôtel de Paris Address: Place du Casino, 98000 Monaco
Bars in Antibes
This wouldn’t be much of a yachtie guide to the French Riviera if we didn’t include a list of the bars yacht crew tend to spend most of their shore time at!
- Rue Aubernon (Drinkers Club, Café Brun, Melting Pot, Pablo, Happy Face)
- Boulevard d’Aguillon (Latinos, Happy Face)
- Blue Lady
- The Absinthe Bar
Provisioning
Yacht chefs looking for great provisions for guests or crew are in a great spot being located on the Cote D’Azur. Antibes, Nice and Monaco are all well located to receive provisions and delivery is a breeze.
Download the provisioning contact list here.
GOURMET DELIVERIES delivers all the coast within 2 hours and no delivery fee. If someone contacts me directly, I can offer a discount if they come through your website or recommendation! https://www.gourmet-deliveries.net/
Local Markets
Marseille Farmers Market (Only Wednesdays)Address: Cours Julien, 13006 Marseille
St. Tropez Local Market Address: Place aux Herbes, 83990 Saint-Tropez
La Ciotat Marchè du Port Address: Quai François Mitterrand, 13600 La Ciotat
Cannes Marchè Fortville Address: 6 Rue du Marché Forville, 06400 Cannes
Antibes market Marchè Provençals Address: Cours Masséna, 06600 Antibes
Nice La Gare du Sud Address: 35 Avenue Malaussena, 06000 Nice
Monaco La CondamineAddress: 11 Rue Terrazzani, 98000 Monaco
Supermarkets
Carrefour is the main supermarket along the coast. There are several locations near by each of the ports, just google to find them.
Metro, you will need a card to enter, if you are a commercially registered boat you can register at the entrance with the boat’s papers.
There are several Metro in the Cote d’Azur, below address for the one in Nice Address: CCPlaine 1, 60 Avenue Pierre Isnard B.P. 215, 06200 Nice
Crew days off
All of the cities are coastal cities, therefore, all of them have beautiful beaches.
Stroll the laneways of old Town Antibes, find the beautiful markets and have lunch at a local cafe.
Visit Grasse, the city famous for the creation of perfums (30 minutes ride by car)
Hike Cap D’Antibes for sports lovers (2 hours Trekking) and find the Plage of Garoupe, a hidden public beach.
You can hire kayaks off the beach in Juan Les Pins.
Things to do in the surrounding city if you had a full day to explore
Visit Eze, a beautiful city to walk and explore (City between Nice and Monaco) The hike out there is popular, and you can have a chilled glass of rose at the end of it in the village!
Visit Cannes, Antibes, Nice, Monaco all of them are just 30-40 minute distance between them – if you are in any of these cities you will love to visit these neighbouring cities and explore. You can easily take the train and walk to your destination.
For something totally different- try Tandem paragliding in Greolieres.
Hire a car (or take the crew car if you can!) and drive out to the Gorges du Verdon. It’s a stunning spot just a few hour’s drive away where you can kayak, white water raft or do Via Ferrata.
If you take the train to San Remo, there is a cycle track that loops from the railway station to San Lorenzo and back. It’s 30 km in total and San Lorenzo is the perfect place for a nice lunch before you cycle back. You can easily rent a bike from one of the many places around the station carpark.
Take the crew car again, and go Paddleboarding at Lac St Cassien or the Esterels. The tourist offices have guidebooks for mountain biking, horse riding and local hiking trails.
Hiking, there are so many, some are close by, for example, a walk up a valley from Biot to Vallbone. Download the app called AllTrails for more ideas.
There is a forest canyon ropes courses and zip lines in Ville Neurve Loubet which make for a great day out. Also, plenty of bike trails winding through castles, and villages and offering something different from Antibes usual vibe.
If you are wintering in Antibes and want to get away, Isola or Auron, are ski stations less than 2.5 hours drive from Antibes.
Antibes Beaches
Being based in Antibes has its perks for you- there are so many beaches to explore. A word of caution though, during summer these are absolute hot spots, so get there early to claim your patch of “sand”
- Plage de la Gravette (aka the toilet bowl) is a sandy beach right in the heart of town, located right beside Port Vauban – it gets busy in summer because of its location.
- Plage de la Salis and Ponteil are two sandy beaches a short distance from old town Antibes – there are ‘snacks’ (food kiosks) located there, public toilets and a sailing club where you can hire kayaks, windsurfers etc.
- If you want a private beach, Royal Beach has a nice outlook on the sea and offers loungers and umbrellas for a fee.
- A bit further from Antibes, Plage de la Garoupe has a small public beach (super busy in summer) and private beach clubs at Plage Keller and Plage Joseph.
Currently i am working in costa cruises as a commi de cusine before i used to work in cargo vessel and i have valid c1 d us visa also others documents