Beach morning, Cap Ferrat, and returning the car
Monaco's public beach — free, clean, turquoise Mediterranean water. Pebbles, not sand (welcome to the Riviera). Morning swim before the day gets busy.
Pink Belle Époque villa on Cap Ferrat with 9 themed gardens — French, Spanish, Japanese, Exotic, Florentine, Stone, Rose, Provençal, and Sèvres. Musical fountains in the French garden. Baroness Béatrice built it in 1912.
Peninsula between Nice and Monaco — one of the most expensive real estate zones in the world. Coastal walking path circles the cape. David Niven, Somerset Maugham, and Charlie Chaplin all lived here.
Roman victory monument on the cliff above Monaco. Built 6 BC to celebrate Augustus's conquest of the Alpine tribes. Panoramic views of Monaco and the coast from 480m altitude.
Return rental car at agencies near Nice-Ville station. Allow 1+ hour before train departure for gas, return, and getting to the platform.
Last morning on the Riviera. Start with a swim at Larvotto Beach — Monaco's public beach, free and clean, turquoise water, pebbles instead of sand (this is the Mediterranean, not Miami).
Then: Cap Ferrat, the peninsula between Nice and Monaco where billionaires hide behind hedges. Villa Ephrussi de Rothschild is the showpiece — a pink Belle Époque mansion with nine themed gardens and musical fountains. The Baroness who built it in 1912 required her construction workers to wear berets so they'd match the color palette. That's Riviera energy.
Alternative: La Turbie, above Monaco — a Roman victory monument from 6 BC with sweeping views. Or simply: a slow morning, pack the car, enjoy the last hours.
Afternoon: drive to Nice, fill the gas tank (KEEP THE RECEIPT), return the rental car near Nice-Ville train station. Allow at least an hour before the overnight train — the return process plus getting six people and fourteen bags to the platform is not a 15-minute operation.
Evening: board the overnight train to Paris.
Nice Ville → Paris Austerlitz
Departs ~19:00–20:00, arrives ~08:00–09:00. Book two 4-berth couchettes or one 4-berth + one 2-berth for Ricki & Maritza. €50–100/person.
Villa Ephrussi's musical fountains are synchronized to music — hydraulic engineering as art. Also: the overnight train's couchette berths fold down from the wall — built-in space optimization.
Swimming in the Mediterranean! The water is warm, clear, and turquoise. Also: the overnight train bunks — sleeping on a train is an adventure. She'll want the top bunk.
Villa Ephrussi has garden paths that are mostly flat — a beautiful, manageable visit. On the overnight train, request the lower berths for Ricki and Maritza. The 2-berth sleeper cabin (if available) gives them privacy and a sink.