San Remo and Dolceacqua

Leaving Beaulieu-sur-Mer, we follow the coastal D6098 then hop on Italy’s A10: 42 km to Sanremo with the Ligurian Sea on your left and the ridge rising toward Monte Bignone on your right. Expect 35–40 minutes via Ventimiglia, border traffic permitting. The morning is for Liberty-era façades along Via Matteotti, the covered market on Piazza Eroi Sanremesi, a look at the 1905 Casinò, and a climb into La Pigna’s medieval lanes. After lunch, it’s a 20 km drive inland to Dolceacqua, famed for its humpback bridge painted by Monet in 1884 and for rossese grown on terraced slopes of the Nervia valley.

Your driver meets you at the hotel and keeps the Mercedes on standby all day, handling border queues and the SS1 Aurelia while you explore, taste, and take photos. With a private driver in Liguria, the plan flexes: espresso at Caffè Manara, a stop at the Madonna della Costa, or the flower market if it’s trading. Then Dolceacqua for a cellar tasting of rossese and a stroll up to the Doria castle. We return via Menton in late afternoon, strolling the old town as the light softens and pausing by Les Sablettes for a citrus note if time allows.