Arles and Nice – Contiki Mediterranean Quest Tour

by thetogetherlist · Published October 10, 2015 · Updated May 20, 2017

Day 1: Contiki Mediterranean Quest Begins

We woke up in Barcelona super excited because this would be the real first day of our 10 day Contiki Mediterranean Quest tour! When we started planning our European adventure, we went back and forth on whether or not we wanted to incorporate a tour into part of our trip. Ultimately, we decided that a tour might be a nice way to break things up a bit, meet new people, and see/do quite a few togetherlist items in a relatively condensed amount of time. Our Mediterranean Quest tour, including our tour start in Barcelona, we will visit 6 countries in 10 days. Contiki, if you haven’t heard of it, is a tour company specifically designed for people aged 18-34, and the trips are designed to be fast paced and high energy, so it should be a good time!

Our Tour Itinerary Map!

We met up with our Contiki group, and by 8:15 am we were in the bus singing along to our trip song, Simple Pleasures by David Myles (this song would subsequently be played every morning that we got on the bus… blasted at the bars we went to… and if it wasn’t playing, there was a solid chance someone was quietly humming it), and on our way to Nice, France! The journey to Nice was quite long, so our tour manager also arranged a pit stop in Arles, France. In Arles, we had some time to stretch our legs by taking a walk around the quaint old town section, and visit an ancient Roman amphitheatre, which is listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

Our Contiki Bus!

Arles Ampitheatre

Arles, Old Town

Night out in Nice at Wayne’s Bar

After more driving, we arrived in Nice around dinner time. We were greeted with free lasagna at the hostel – not bad. Then it was time for a night out with our 40 or so new Contiki friends. Our tour manager took us out to a place called Wayne’s Bar. At the bar, there was an awesome cover band called the Killer B’s. They took requests and belted out so many of our fave 90’s songs, plus they were awesome musicians. The atmosphere was great too – this was definitely the first bar we’ve ever been to that asked us to get up on the tables and dance. We of course couldn’t be rude and turn that offer down, so we proceeded to dance on the tables and sing along to the band for the rest of the evening!

Erin (our new Contiki friend!) and Desta in Place Massena

Day 2: Le Château de Nice

It was time to climb Le Château de Nice – the Château boasts 360 degree views of the city of Nice and the gorgeous blue Mediterranean Sea. When we got to the top, the sun peaked out from behind the clouds and we were all smiles!