Cannes day trip from Nice: 36 to 41 minutes by train, the Forville market, Le Suquet and the €19 ferry to Île Sainte-Marguerite

💡 The Short Version: Cannes is 36 to 41 minutes from Nice-Ville by train. The ferry to Île Sainte-Marguerite is €19.00 return from Trans Côte d’Azur, runs every day except Sundays from 1 November to 1 April, and the fort museum there is shut on Mondays. The Forville market is open each morning, and the climb to Le Suquet, the old town, gives the view over the bay. The 2027 Film Festival is 11 to 22 May. Prices are in euros. Or book now: the Sainte-Marguerite ferry ticketad is from €19, and the Cannes, Antibes and Saint-Paul half-day tourad from €65 (GetYourGuide).

Tickets and prices

The ferry is Trans Côte d’Azur’s own, bought on its Sainte-Marguerite page. Boats leave Cannes at 9:00, 10:00, 11:00, 12:00, 14:00, 15:00, 16:00 and 16:30, and return from the island at 9:15, 10:15, 11:15, 12:15, 14:15, 15:15, 16:15 and 17:00. It takes cash, cards, American Express and holiday vouchers. The operator’s page lists a port and customs fee of €1.91 beside the fares.

The Fort Royal on Île Sainte-Marguerite, seen from the water. Photo: Abxbay, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 3.0.

GetYourGuide sells the same crossing in two listings: From Cannes: Return Ferry Ticket to Sainte-Marguerite Islandad from €19, rated 4.6 from 1,079 reviews, and Cannes to Sainte-Marguerite Island round trip ferryad from €21, rated 4.6 from 2,660. The second is €2 above the operator’s adult price.

Tours worth paying for

Cannes is one direct train from Nice, so a tour earns its price only by adding other towns or a class. The listings do not say whether entries are included.

The half-day tour is a drive past three towns; Saint-Paul-de-Vence and Antibes are better visited on their own.

What to see

Le Suquet, with the castle tower and the church of Notre-Dame-d’Espérance on the hill. Photo: Mike is Michi, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0.

1. The Forville market and rue Meynadier. The Forville market is a 3,000 square metre hall built in 1884 at the foot of Le Suquet, open each morning, with market gardeners, fishmongers and florists; the tourist office names socca among the things to eat there. Rue Meynadier, lined with delicatessens, leads to it. On Mondays the hall holds the flea market instead.
2. Le Suquet. The old town on the hill, where Cannes began as a fishing village. At the summit, the Castre, stand the church of Notre-Dame-d’Espérance and the medieval castle of the Lérins monks with its square tower, which houses the Musée des Explorations du Monde. From the Castre you look down over Cannes, and an electric bus runs up if you prefer not to climb.
3. The Palais des Festivals and the Croisette. The tourist office is inside the Palais, and the Chemin des Étoiles around it has 150 handprints.
4. Île Sainte-Marguerite. A few minutes by boat from Cannes. Marked trails run from the Batéguier pond, where migratory birds stop, to the Pointe de la Convention. The Fort Royal was built by the Spanish between 1635 and 1637 and became a prison, the one that held the Man in the Iron Mask; its museum sits in Roman cisterns and shows finds from a Roman wreck of the 1st century BC and a Saracen wreck of the 10th century. The museum is open every day except Mondays, and guided visits of the fort run from June to September. The underwater eco-museum, sculptures by Jason deCaire Taylor 3 to 5 metres down, is free to anyone with a mask and snorkel.
5. Île Saint-Honorat. The second island has a working abbey and its own ferry company, Planaria.

Palms along the Boulevard de la Croisette. Photo: Florian Pépellin, Wikimedia Commons.

What to skip: the island on a Sunday from November to March, when the ferries do not run. The order that works: the market in the morning, the 12:00 or 14:00 ferry, back by the 16:15 boat, then Le Suquet before the train.

A berry stall at the Forville market. Photo: Iswoar, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0.

Practical information

• By train: Cannes takes 36 to 41 minutes from Nice-Ville. Day trips from Nice has the passes, including the Pass Journée at €20.
• On the island: drones, bicycles and scooters are banned, spearfishing is forbidden and dogs are welcome on a lead. The restaurant La Guérite is open from April to October, and kiosks serve fast food.
• The Film Festival: the 80th edition runs 11 to 22 May 2027, the dates the festival publishes.
• The one thing that ruins a day: planning the island for a Sunday between 1 November and 1 April, or the fort museum for a Monday.

Day trips from Nice compares every trip, and Antibes is about 15 minutes back along the line. Grasse is on the train line inland from Cannes. What to book in Nice lists the closed days in the city, and Nice public transport has the fares. Where to stay in Nice compares the areas.