By train + bus
The nearest train stations to Les Courmettes are: Cagnes-sur-Mer : 22 km/40 min or Grasse : 16 km/35 min.
- From Cagnes-sur-Mer railway station (probably the easiest option): take the 655 or 9 bus for Vence where we can arrange a shuttle (see below).
- bus 655 : direction ” Vence -Halte routière de l’ARA “.
- bus 9 : be careful : choose the direction ” Vence -Halte routière de l’ARA “, because there is also a bus n°9 direction ” Le Gué – Polygone riviera ” which does not go to Vence!
- From Grasse railway station, take the 651 for « Pont du Loup » and get off at the « Courmettes » bus stop.
A useful site for working out your routes using public transport in the Alpes Maritimes is Sud Mobilité.
A single fare ticket costs between €1.5. and 2.5€. you can usually buy it in the bus, but you have to give the exact amount.
By plane + bus
Airport Nice Côte d’Azur.
From the Nice Côte d’Azur airport, walk (3 min) to the « Aéroport/Promenade » bus stop (outside terminal 1, cross under the bridge) then take the 9 bus to Vence. Be careful : choose the direction ” Vence -Halte routière de l’ARA “, because there is also a bus n°9 direction ” Le Gué – Polygone riviera ” which does not go to Vence!
A useful site for working out your routes using public transport in the Alpes Maritimes is Sud Mobilité.
A single fare ticket costs between €1.5. and 2.5€. you can usually buy it in the bus, but you have to give the exact amount.
Shuttle
For seminars and events organised by A Rocha, we provide a shuttle (10€) between the bus terminal in Vence and Courmettes. Please contact us and consider the following information before booking your flight or train tickets: for your departure, calculate for a 30 minute drive between Courmettes and Vence, plus 1h15 bus journey between Vence and the airport or railway station. Where possible, please avoid flights or trains which leave early in the morning. For a flight at 11am for which you must arrive two hours before, this means leaving Courmettes around 7am. Please choose flights or trains with departure times after 11am, or consult us if you need to leave earlier (it it also possible to book a hotel near to the airport).
By car
From Grasse: Go through Pont-du-Loup towards Tourrettes-sur-Loup. After 3 km, turn left at the « Courmettes » sign (this is on the right-hand side of the road).
From Nice and Italy: take exit 48 Cagnes-sur-Mer, towards Vence and then Tourrettes-sur-Loup. Go through Tourrettes-sur-Loup heading towards Grasse/Pont-du-Loup. After 5 km turn right at the sign for « Courmettes », which is a short distance after the bus stop marked « Saint Antoine » and road marker 26.
The « Route de Courmettes » is narrow and winding for 4 km. After the farm on your right continue for 300 metres when you will see the buildings on your left.
You can then park in the free area near the buildings.
GPS: enter: 1 Route de Courmettes as the address (or for GPS taking intersections, the intersection of the Route de Courmettes and the route de Grasse). NB: some GPS offer a route via the route du Caire (a road which rises very steeply from the centre of Tourrettes-sur-Loup). If this is the case, turn round again as the track between Le Caire and Les Courmettes is unsuitable for cars (forestry track) and closed to traffic.
On foot
For those brave enough you can walk up to Courmettes along the paved but quiet mountain road from the « Courmettes » bus stop (route de Grasse, Tourrettes-sur-Loup). Allow a good hour for the climb of 4.5 km and more than 500 metres of ascent.
It is also possible to walk up using various footpaths (superb views) from the centre of Tourrettes-sur-Loup. The distance is about 5 km and involves more than 500 metres of ascent. Find here a possible route