San Remo to Monaco, the train with a change at the border

On the map San Remo is almost next door to Monaco, but there’s a border in between and two railway companies. That changes everything, because the trip isn’t one ticket or one train. Planned well, you’re in the Principality in a little over an hour. Planned badly, you spend half an hour staring at the departure board in Ventimiglia. Here’s how I’d make sure you end up in the first group.

How do you get from San Remo to Monaco by train?

The journey comes in two halves. The first is Italian, a Trenitalia regional from San Remo to Ventimiglia, which its planner says takes 15 to 22 minutes for €3.50. The Intercity covers the same stretch for €8.50 and barely saves any time, so I’d only take it if it lines up far better with the next train. The second half is French, a TER from Ventimiglia to Monaco-Monte-Carlo. Visit Monaco puts it at 26 minutes, while the services shown in the Trenitalia planner for October 2026 take 30 to 33.

Put together, on a Tuesday in October 2026 the full trip ranged from 1 h 04, leaving San Remo at 11:45, to nearly an hour and a half on the worst-matched connections. The difference is almost always the wait at Ventimiglia. In the morning there are about two TERs an hour towards Monaco, so it’s worth choosing the regional that gets you there with ten or fifteen minutes to spare.

The ticketing is what trips people up. The planner links both trains but won’t sell the whole journey, so it’s two purchases. The Italian leg in the Trenitalia app or at the machine in San Remo. The French leg in the SNCF Connect or TER app, or at the machine in Ventimiglia. I couldn’t read that TER fare on TER’s website, which blocks automated reading, and I’d rather not give you a figure I haven’t seen.

Ventimiglia, the change and maybe a detour

Ventimiglia is the border station, and Visit Monaco notes that Intercity trains run from there to Genoa, Turin, Milan, Bergamo and Rome. For you it’s just a change of train, although on a Friday I’d be tempted to step out for a while. Its big open-air Friday market is one of the draws of this stretch of coast, and I cover it with the other outings in day trips from Monaco.

Two things to know as you enter Monaco

The first is your phone. Since Brexit, every UK network sets its own European charges, and Monaco isn’t in the EU, so it may not be treated like Italy. The train drops you inside the Principality, so check what your network does in phone and roaming in Monaco.

Then there’s the station. Monaco-Monte-Carlo is underground, with four exits spread across town and lifts at three of them. Which one suits you depends on where you’re heading, and I explain each in Monaco train station.

The way back, earlier than you’d think

Plenty of people slip up at this point. On Tuesday 6 October 2026 the last TER from Monaco to Ventimiglia left at 20:51, and the last one connecting to San Remo at 20:22. For anyone planning dinner in Monte-Carlo, that’s early. Miss it and a Monaco taxi to Ventimiglia costs €105 per car on the official table of 17 September 2026, and you’d still need to get on to San Remo. If I wanted a relaxed dinner, I’d stay the night in Monaco and go back in the morning.

One more warning, SNCF plans no trains between Nice and Ventimiglia before 17:30 on 10 and 11 November, so check first if you’re travelling then.

What about driving or the bus?

By car it’s about 42 km and roughly 45 minutes without traffic, on my OpenStreetMap calculation. It’s the comfortable option if you’re carrying on along the Riviera. In Monaco you pay nothing for the first hour in public car parks and no more than €24 for a whole day, but only cars registered in Monaco or the 06 department may drive up to the Rock. If you’re thinking of renting, what you need to know is in car hire for Monaco.

The bus only gets you halfway. Riviera Trasporti line 2 runs along the coast from San Remo to Ventimiglia, through Ospedaletti and Bordighera, in about 40 minutes and every quarter of an hour mid-morning on weekdays. I haven’t found an official line continuing from Ventimiglia to Monaco, so you’d end up on the same TER.

My pick

Train there, choosing the Ventimiglia connection with care, and train back before 20:00. If you’re travelling from further afield, say from the UK, everything else is in getting to Monaco.