What the shuttle bus does, and when it stops
An honest comparison starts by saying what line 81 actually does. Its official timetable, valid from 2 June 2026, is headed express shuttles by highway. One intermediate stop, Le Cannet place Benidorm. Twenty-five runs a day, 50 to 55 minutes to the station. At €21.40 a ticket bought in advance, it is a good answer to a simple question.
Its two limits are limits of time. The last departure from the airport is 21:55. The last departure the other way, station to airport, is 19:50. A late flight, a dinner that runs on, a congress that overruns: the shuttle is gone. That is where a car with a driver belongs, not in a fare-per-ticket contest.
The third limit is where it puts you down. The shuttle stops at the railway station, and you carry and load your own bags. With two suitcases and a child seat, the gap stops being measured in euros.
924 spaces under the Palais des Festivals
The Palais car park publishes 924 spaces on three levels, 15 accessible bays and 49 charging points, with the station six minutes away on foot. It is the useful landmark for setting a meeting point when the Croisette is full.
During a congress it fills before the doors open. A drop-off is then negotiated on the Pantiero or on a side street, not at the main entrance.
Two by-laws that decide where you can stop
Two municipal rules are worth knowing before anyone promises a drop-off at the hotel door. Vehicles over 3.5 tonnes are banned from the Croisette unless a waiver is requested online. Slow vehicles are banned from 1 April to 31 October, under by-law 23/4969 of 7 September 2023.
A saloon and a passenger van pass with no paperwork. A coach does not. Booking a parking bay on the public highway requires a minimum of fifteen calendar days: it is planned, not improvised the night before.