Crystal Serenity – Villefranche
On day four of our cruise we woke up anchored off of the coast of Villefranche, France.
After breakfast in the Lido Cafe, we headed to the Tender Boat to transfer us to the dock in Villefranche.
Today we would be boarding a bus in the morning as we were participating in a shore excursion to visit the Village of Sainte-Agnes and to tour of a old World War II fort that was part of the Maginot Line.
The drive to Sainte-Agnes had us climbing up into the mountains which presented us with some spectacular views.
Sainte-Agnes is a beautifully small village situated in Provence, France and is considered to be the highest coastal village in Europe.
As you can imagine, with it’s higher elevation, Sainte-Agnes was much cooler than the temperatures that we experienced on the ship. With it’s mountain location, the village also presented some steep and narrow passage ways for us to navigate.
At the heart of our visit to Sainte-Agnes was a tour of L’Ouvrage de Sainte-Agnes, a WWII Fort built to protect France from forces coming from Italy.
After our tour of the fort, it was time foe lunch which was included in the cost of the excursion.
We were given some free time on our own to tour the village prior to boarding the bus back to Villefranche.
There were actually quite a few cats in the village…
After returning to Villefranche, we explored the area by the docks where we would later take our Tender Boat back to the ship.
Villefranche is quite picturesque with wonderful little cafes and boutiques.
The south of France has amazing soap made with olive oil.
After strolling through Villefranche, we headed to the dock to catch our tender boat back to Crystal Serenity. They had refreshments waiting for us as wee waited for the boat to arrive.
A view of Crystal Serenity as we approached aboard the tender boat.
In the afternoon, there were various activities to participate in on the ship. One such activity was a Pilates class in the gym. Other activities included Afternoon Tea, a TaylorMade Golf Clinic, and an iPhone Photography class. Some of these require a reservation, so make sure to check before making your plans to participate in an activity.
Our afternoon snack delivered by our butler today was an assortment of cheese and crackers.
As we sailed out of Villefranche on our way to St. Tropez, we headed to the main dining room for dinner.
Dessert was delicious… don’t worry about the size, you can always order a second serving as the meals are included with the cruise.
We had a fantastic day in Villefranche and could not wait to visit St. Tropez in the morning.
Villefranche Shore Excursions
We participated in the Village of St. Agnes & WWII Fort excursion, the total list of shore excursions offered while in Villefranche included (prices are per person, applicable only to this sailing, and in USD ):
- French Riviera by eBike $199
- Azur Helicopter and Independent Exploration of Monaco $589
- Village of St. Agnes & WWII Fort $159
- Cannes, Grasse Perfume Factory & St-Paul-de-Vence $199
- Eze & Cap Ferrat $119
- Nice, Monaco & Monte Carlo $259
If you would like to learn more about schedules and different Crystal Cruises, please visit my Virtuoso page here.
If you would like to receive more information, or book a Crystal Cruise, you can contact me here.
Vision Travel is proud to be able to provide my clients with special deals and shipboard credit. These can be combined with promotions offered by Crystal Cruise as well.
