A visual overview of Menton
Menton, nicknamed the Pearl of France, is located on the Mediterranean Sea at the Franco-Italian border, just across from the Ligurian town of Ventimiglia. Menton station has rail connections to Paris, Marseille, Cannes, Antibes, Nice and Ventimiglia. The smaller Menton-Garavan station is situated between Menton and Ventimiglia.
Menton has always been a frontier town. Since the end of the 14th century, it was on the border between County of Nice, held by the Duke of Savoy, and Republic of Genoa. It was an exclave of the Principality of Monaco until the disputed French plebiscite of 1860, when it was added to France. It had been always a fashionable tourist center with grand mansions and gardens. Its temperate Mediterranean climate is especially favorable to the citrus industry, with which it is strongly identified.
Menton is known for its Old City, gardens, culture, and its citrus festival every February.
The Regional Express Train, or TER, connects major coastal cities throughout the Riviera, from Fréjus to Ventimiglia, the first town over the Italian border. Trains run about every 30 minutes and most of the stations sit within walking distance of the town center, or offer a bus service from the station. You can purchase tickets from machines at each station, just be sure to stamp your ticket in one of the validation machines before hopping on board.