Despite occupying just 200 hectares - the world’s second-smallest country - Monaco has been a magnet for high-rollers and hedonists (but not lovers of architecture) since the early 20th century, being renowned as one of the world's most notorious tax havens and home to the annual Formula One Grand Prix. Despite its prodigious wealth, by the standards of most pretty French Riviera towns, Monaco is something of an ugly duckling. Monte Carlo (Ligurian for 'Mount Charles' in honour of the prince) is a testament to concrete and glass, dominated by high-rise hotels, super yachts and monolithic apartment blocks that press themselves into the hilly backdrop, plonked into an utterly bewildering street layout seemingly designed to confound lowly pedestrians and confuse the hapless visiting motorist.
In dramatic contrast, the rocky outcrop Le Rocher, jutting out on the south side of the port, is crowned by a rather charming old town and is home to the principality's royal palace.
The Casino
Image Credit: Brian Scott
A look around Monte Carlo’s legendary marble-and-gold casino is a Monaco must. The building, open to visitors every morning, including the exclusive salons privés, is Europe's most lavish example of belle époque architecture. Prince Charles III spearheaded the casino's development and in 1866, three years after its inauguration, the name 'Monte Carlo' was coined. To gamble here, visit after 2pm (and make sure you’re over 18).
Blackjack, English and European roulette, punto banco (baccarat), Texas hold'em poker and trente et quarante entertain in the main gaming room, the Salle Europe. If the vulgarity of slot machines is more your style, head for the Salles Renaissance and Amérique, which are the other two salons ordinaires that open to the general public for gambling. For frequent clients, the casino reserves the salons privés, which offer all of the same table games but in a more exclusive setting, sans slot. But it needn’t stop there. In the salons super-privés you’ll find the James Bondesque pros and other dirty rotten scoundrels playing tailor-made games where the sky truly is the limit.
Trainers (perish the thought) and gym apparel is strictly forbidden and a jacket and tie is strongly recommended in the gaming rooms for men in the evening (and is compulsory for the salons privés). Dress code for the ladies is somewhat lacking.
The F1 Grand Prix
Image Credit: Pat Guiney
If you’ve not gambled it all away, why not book yourself a grandstand seat to watch Formula One’s most iconic event? For four days in late May, Monaco goes completely car-crazy and every street in town is closed for the Grand Prix. At other times of the year, fans can walk the 3.2km circuit through town - maps available from the tourist office. Friday's cheapest tickets go for €30, but figure €1400 for a prime casino-side Sunday spot.
Musée Océanographique de Monaco
Image Credit: Mathieu Marquer
Stuck dramatically to the edge of a cliff since 1910, the world-renowned Musée Océanographique de Monaco, founded by Prince Albert I (1848–1922), is a stunner. Its centrepiece is its aquarium with a 6m-deep lagoon where sharks and marine predators are separated from colourful tropical fish by a coral reef. Upstairs, two huge colonnaded rooms retrace the history of oceanography and marine biology (and Prince Albert’s contribution to the field) through photographs, old equipment, numerous specimens and interactive displays.
In all, there are around 90 tanks in the aquarium containing a dazzling 450 Mediterranean and tropical species, sustained by a quarter of a million litres of freshly pumped sea water per day. School holidays usher in free hourly light shows in the Salle de la Baleine (Whale Skeleton Room) and feel-the-fish sessions in the kid-friendly tactile basin (40 minutes, €6); tickets for the latter are sold at the entrance. A new outdoor turtle tank, scheduled to open in early 2019, will allow the public to observe marine turtles while marine biologists work to rehabilitate injured animals.
Don't miss the sweeping views of Monaco and the Mediterranean from the rooftop terrace and cafe. You can save a few cents by buying a combined ticket covering same-day admission to both the Palais Princier and the Musée Océanographique.
Palais Princier de Monaco
Image Credit: Niels Mickers
Built as a fortress atop Le Rocher in the 13th century, this palace is the private residence of the Grimaldi family. It is protected by the blue-helmeted, white-socked Carabiniers du Prince, who perform their changing of the guard ceremony daily at 11.55am, when crowds gather outside the gates to watch.
Most of the palace is off limits, but you can get a glimpse of royal life on a tour of the glittering state apartments, where you can see some of the lavish furniture and priceless artworks collected by the family over the centuries. It's a good idea to buy tickets online in advance to avoid queuing.
Combined tickets including Monaco's oceanographic museum or the Prince's classic car collection are also available.
Jardin Exotique
Image Credit: Jean-Pierre Dalbéra
Home to the world’s largest succulent and cactus collection, from small echinocereus to 10m-tall African candelabras, the gardens tumble down the slopes of Moneghetti through a maze of paths, stairs and bridges. Views of the principality are spectacular. Admission includes the Musée d'Anthropologie, which displays prehistoric remains unearthed in Monaco, and a 35-minute guided tour of the Grotte de l’Observatoire. The prehistoric, stalactite- and stalagmite-laced cave is the only one in Europe where the temperature rises as you descend. Bus 2 links Jardin Exotique with the town centre.
Le Rocher
Image Credit: Roland Turner
Monaco Ville, also called Le Rocher, is the only part of Monaco to have retained its original old town, complete with small, windy medieval lanes. The old town thrusts skywards on a pistol-shaped rock, its strategic location overlooking the sea that became the stronghold of the Grimaldi dynasty. There are various staircases up to Le Rocher; the best route up is via Rampe Major, which starts from place d'Armes near the port.
On your way up, look out for the statue of the late Prince Rainier looking down on his beloved Monaco, created by Dutch artist Kees Verkade in 2013.
Collection de Voitures Anciennes
Image Credit: Thomas Bersy
Starting in the early 1950s, car-mad Prince Rainier amassed an impressive array of over 100 classic automobiles, which he opened to the public in 1993. His haul includes various Ferraris, Maseratis, Lamborghinis, Rolls-Royces and several F1 and rally cars, along with the Lexus which carried the current prince to his wedding in 2011. The museum itself is basically an exhibition hall, but will move to its new purpose-built home by the harbour when it's completed in 2020.
Roseraie Princesse Grace
Image Credit: Sarah Cronk
Thoroughly revamped in 2014, this exuberant collection of over 4000 rose bushes – along with the adjacent Parc Fontvieille – stands out in dramatic contrast to the otherwise sterile high-rise environment of Fontvieille. The garden bursts with colour in springtime, with multi-hued roses climbing up arbours and encircling the trunks and branches of olive trees.
Cathédrale de Monaco
Image Credit: Larry Koester
An adoring crowd continually shuffles past Prince Rainier’s and Princess Grace’s flower-adorned graves, located inside the cathedral choir of Monaco's 1875 Romanesque-Byzantine cathedral.
Title Image Credit: Trish Hartmann (Image Cropped)