Here's your essential guide to getting the best out of a holiday in Monaco.
Location nickname: The Rock
Don't miss: Casino de Monte Carlo
Best avoid: Tourist trains to anywhere
Don't miss: Stuffed pastry Barba-Giuan
Best avoid: Alan Ducasse's Louise XV restaurant unless you're on expenses…
Bateau Bus: If wandering among the multi-million Pound superyachts of Port Hercule has made you feel like an underachiever the Bateau Bus will put a smile on your face. €2 buys a ticket across the port by solar electric ferry, surely the cheapest sightseeing cruise through the most expensive thoroughbred yachtflesh in Europe.
Casino de Monte Carlo: For €10 foreign visitors can at least stick their heads inside this most famous casino's Belle Epoque atrium. Entry beyond the slot machines to the Black Jack tables and roulette wheels of the gaming salons requires smart dress. If you have to ask the way to the high rollers' Supers Privés you really don't want to go there.
F1: Monaco's Grand Prix turns the principality's public roads into a race track and maintains a reputation as one of the most testing events in the Formula 1 calendar. Prices skyrocket for weeks before and after the race, but petrolheads can ride the circuit at other times by combining €2 municipal bus rides…
Helicopter: Yes, there are trains, buses and taxis but for an exhilarating arrival into Monaco there's little to beat a helicopter flight from Nice airport. There are 50 flights a day and although €135 is a little steep for seven-minutes in the air, on a clear day the adrenaline buzz lasts for hours.
Jardin Exotique: Opened to the public in 1933, the collection of over a thousand varieties of colourful cacti and succulents high on the cliffs above Monte Carlo has matured to forest-like proportions. Perfect for views over the principality, there's also an imaginatively lit cave with impressive stalactites and stalagmites.
Le Metropole: With over 80 shops, boutiques and designer stores this shopping centre focuses on luxury retail. But it's not all high living. Amongst the eye-watering price tags of Louis Vuitton, Gucci, Chanel and Prada there's a pizza place, an excellent boulongerie and even a Spar shop.
Opera de Monte Carlo: The Salle Garnier as it was known formed a cultural extension to the established casino and shared an architect with the much larger Paris Opera House, the Palais Garnier. Today's performances focus on opera but include jazz, silent cinema accompanied by full orchestra and live bands.
Plage du Larvotto: This is Monaco's only public beach with free access. Though in parts rocky, thousands of tons of shipped in sand have created a remarkably good plage that's kept immaculately clean. Inevitably the beach can be quite busy. If the crowds get too close, a cooling dip in calm sea is only a few steps away.
Port Hercule: Beneath the ramparts of Monaco-Ville and the Prince's Palace, this is one of the only deep water ports on the Riviera, with up to 700 yacht moorings and berths for several cruise ships. Cafes and restaurants line the waterfront, ideal for a lunchtime splurge.
The Prince's Palace: Over 700-years the original 13th century Genoese fortress has undergone a procession of makeovers. Today, an opulent royal residence in the style of Louis XIV, those visiting the Grimaldi royal state rooms pass through the Mirror Gallery, inspired by Versailles and decorated by sumptuous 16th century frescoes.
This article has been produced in association with www.talkholiday.com
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