Rounding off my posts from a short trip to Nice, I knew I had to make the short 30 minute journey in to Monaco, one of the world’s smallest countries. I’ve been fascinated by this tiny place for a while now, having recently got in to Formula 1 and seeing the mythic race around the Monaco streets a few times on TV.
So off I headed on a visit. I thought it a lovely little place, needing no more than a full day to enjoy all the main sites, making it a perfect day trip option along the French Riviera.
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How to get from Nice to Monaco
Getting from Nice to Monaco is easy, with a direct train from Nice Ville to Monaco, taking around 30 minutes.
Buying tickets is not so simple. At Nice Ville there are no service desks with people and all tickets have to be purchased from machines which aren’t the easiest to operate and even in offseason had queues of around 10-15 people. It took us around 45 minutes to get our tickets. When we did get our tickets they didn’t work at the barrier and we had to jump the barrier as there were no staff at all in the station to help.
Note: The next day we were back on the trains so bought tickets online in advance, but those barcodes didn’t work either and we had to jump the barriers again. Ridiculous.
A bit about Monaco
Monaco is such an interesting place so here are some of my favourite facts:
- 1 in 3 people who live in Monaco are millionaires! It also has a poverty rate of zero. Madness.
- Monaco is smaller than New York’s Central Park, being less than 1 square mile big. It still packs in 38,000 inhabitants though, making it pretty busy!
- Monaco’s residents are actually banned from entering the Casino, which is crazy when it’s home to one of the most famous casinos in the world. Only foreigners can actually gamble there and there’s a passport check on entry.
- Monaco has the world’s highest life expectancy at nearly 89. I assume there’s a direct link to wealth and living standard.
- Lots of wealthy famous people live/have lived in Monaco. Lots of F1 drivers live here (and Charles Leclerc is actually Monagasque by birth), and people like Bono, Shirley Bassey, Ringo Starr and Grace Kelly have all lived here at some point.
Things to do in Monaco
Monaco is a very walkable city, and we thoroughly enjoyed exploring. It’s basically split in to two areas – the new area consisting of the Casinos, shops, F1 route and restaurants, and the old town area home to the palaces and museums. We spent the morning in the Old Town and afternoon in the newer area.
The Prince’s Palace
Probably the most famous attraction in Monaco, the Prince’s Palace sits at the heart of the Old Town. It’s still the residence of the Grimaldi Family, the Prince of Monaco Albert II and his wife Charlène. Part of the Palace is open from April – October and you are able to see:
- The main courtyard and its marble staircase
- The Hercules Gallery and its incredible frescoes
- The State Apartments
I’d have loved to have seen inside, but as I visited in March I wasn’t able to. One for next time!
Saint Martin Gardens
Just down the road from the Palace are the absolutely amazing Saint Martin Gardens. This place is special for it’s views out across the crystal clear bright blue water, and lots of sculptures and plants on the cliff side. I really liked it and it was my favourite thing to do on this list.
Monaco Cathedral
Still in the Old Town area, Monaco Cathedral is well worth a visit, mainly because it is in this cathedral that Prince Rainier married American actress Grace Kelly in 1956. She later died after suffering a brain aneurysm whilst driving in Monaco and went off a cliff! The tomb of Princess Grace of Monaco, as well as that of the deceased Princes, can be seen inside.
Museums of Monaco
Monaco offers a number of great museum options. In the old town, we had a quick sweep around the Oceanography Museum which was amazing, home to a large aquarium and a marine museum. You could also choose to visit any of the below – I had wanted to visit the car collection but it was closed on the day of my visit.
- Oceanography Museum
- National Museum of Monaco
- Private Car Collection of the Prince of Monaco
- Monaco Naval Museum
Monaco Old Town
Before leaving the Old Town, a final stroll is well worth it. Take in the views down to Port de Fontvielle, see the incredible Palais de Justice, stroll the ramparts and visit the Panoramic view point. I also recommend lunch in the Old Town before heading down the hill to the newer area of the country.
Walk/Drive the legendary F1 Track
As the Monaco Grand Prix was happening only a few weeks after my visit, everything was in full flow being set up and areas of the road were already set up for spectators and closed off. The Monaco GP is held as a street race, meaning it’s not on a track, but instead just round the existing streets. Monaco is narrow and hilly so it’s a really legendary track. Lots of people were driving the track route in hired Ferraris, but I settled on walking it. I particularly liked the ‘most famous bend in the world’, and wonder how on earth people drive cars at 100mph round it!
I’m an F1 nut job (I’m Team LH so am having to ditch my Merc merch for Ferrari next year which I’m not happy about), but even I was delighted to watch Charles Leclerc (Monagasque by birth) win the Monaco GP just a couple of weeks after my visit – especially as he had awful luck previously so this was his first win here.
Casino of Monte Carlo
Another Monaco icon is Monte Carlo Casino. Even if you are not a fan of slot machines or roulette, you should at least see the building as it’s beautiful (it was built by Charles Garnier, he of Paris Opera Hall fame).
I was annoyed with myself as you can visit inside the Casino in the morning just to see inside the building for a small fee, but from 2pm, entry is restricted to gamblers. Arriving at 2.03pm, I cursed myself.
Japanese Garden
Right on the river front down from the Casino is another gorgeous garden, the Japanese Garden. It was such an odd find amongst the ever growing skyscrapers of the city, but it was peaceful and beautiful as well.
Port Hercules
At this point we’d walked a lot, so we decided to head to the port area and get some ice-cream while watching the mega yachts and boats come in. There are also some nice restaurant options around. If you’re visiting in Winter, this is also where you’ll find the fun fair (Oct – Nov) and Christmas markets (Nov – Dec).
Metropole Shopping Centre
As a final stop before heading back to Nice, we went in to the Metropole Shopping Centre. Whilst Monaco is all about luxury shopping so I didn’t buy anything, it was fun looking in the windows and the Metropole Shopping Centre is beautiful in and of itself as a place to visit.
So there you have it – a long day exploring Monaco and some of its main attractions. I would go back to take in a couple more of the museums, and go inside both the Palace and the Casino, but I felt a day was long enough to see all the main sites. What do you think? Stay safe and happy travelling!
Saasdia Travel Gid
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