Is Monaco Worth Visiting?
Is Monaco worth visiting? Here’s everything you need to know!
Monaco is one of the smallest countries in Europe — and the world! In fact, after Vatican City, Monaco is the second-smallest country on Earth with an area of just 0.8 square miles.
Surrounded by the France on all sides aside from its tiny stretch of coastline, Monaco is well-known despite its small size. The country is famous for its over-the-top displays of wealth, from the extravagant Monte Carlo Casino to the sports cars whizzing down its streets to the yachts docked in its harbors.
Monaco is also known for annual events like the Formula 1 Grand Prix race and the Monaco Yacht Show. It attracts wealthy residents because it’s a tax haven, with no taxes on personal income, capital gains, investments, or property. It’s also popular for luxury shopping, with tons of designer boutiques.
One interesting fact about Monaco is that it’s a constitutional monarchy. The Grimaldi family has ruled Monaco for over 800 years, making it the longest-running royal family in Europe.
Should You Visit Monaco?
I think Monaco is definitely worth a visit. As I’ll talk about more below, Monaco is very easy to get to from Nice and the rest of the French Riviera. And its tiny size means you don’t need much time there.
I have a goal of visiting as many countries as possible, so of course I wasn’t going to skip Monaco. Even if you’re not a country counter like me, Monaco is still worth a visit when you’re in the area.
Even if you aren’t rich and famous, you can still have a good time exploring Monaco.
How Many Days Do You Need in Monaco?
You only need one day in Monaco. As I mentioned above, the country is absolutely minuscule — it has an area of just 0.8 square miles. You can walk from one end of the country to the other in under an hour.
Because of this, you really don’t need a ton of time in Monaco.
In fact, you don’t even need a full day. If you have limited time, you could visit Monaco for just half a day and still hit many of the highlights. I personally visited Monaco twice on two separate day trips while traveling around the French Riviera, and that was more than enough time in the country for me.
Frankly, there are tons of other places that are more interesting and more beautiful than Monaco located all along the French Riviera. You really don’t need more than a day to visit this little country.
Should You Stay in Monaco?
In almost all cases, I would say no, you should not stay in Monaco.
Monaco is an extremely expensive destination, and that goes for everything from hotels to food and drinks to entertainment. You’ll pay a premium by staying in Monaco rather than France.
For example, hotels in Nice or some other destinations along the French Riviera might literally be half the cost of hotels in Monaco. You also have limited options to choose from in Monaco.
Unless you have tons of money to burn and you’re attending an event in Monaco like the Formula 1 Grand Prix, I really don’t recommend staying here — a day trip is more than enough time.
If you are interested in staying here, I’ve rounded up the best hotels in Monaco.
How to Get to Monaco
Getting to Monaco for a day trip is very easy.
The closest major city to Monaco is Nice, France. Monaco does not have its own airport, and the closest one is Nice Côte d’Azur International Airport, which is located about 18 miles away.
The easiest way to get to Monaco is by train. The TER train is the regional train that runs all the way along the French Riviera, connecting dozens of towns. You don’t have to make reservations for this train. You can just buy your tickets from the machines at any station, or online on your phone.
From Nice-Ville (the main station in Nice) to Monaco-Monte-Carlo (the only station in Monaco) it takes about 35 minutes by train. Trains run very frequently, up to four times per hour.
You can also take the TER train from any other town along the French Riviera with a train station like Cannes, Antibes, Menton, and so on. Depending where you’re coming from, the journey might be a little longer. (For example, from Cannes to Monaco it’s an hour and 10 minutes on the train.)
It’s also possible to get to Monaco by driving although I wouldn’t recommend it. Between the cost of a rental car, the traffic, and trying to find somewhere to park in Monaco, it’s not worth the hassle.
Tours to Monaco
If you don’t want to visit Monaco independently, another option is an organized tour.
This is a good choice if you’re short on time and want to visit multiple destinations along the French Riviera in just one day. This half-day tour combines a visit to Monaco with a visit to the charming hilltop village of Èze, France, with a guide and pickup and drop-off from your hotel in Nice.
Another option is this full-day tour includes Monaco and Èze, as well as the glitzy city of Cannes and another quaint hilltop village, Saint Paul de Vence. This tour also starts and ends in Nice.
The only downside to tours like this is your time in Monaco (you might only have an hour for a quick exploration) but if you’re short on time and want to see other places, it might be worth it to you.
However, I would personally recommend taking the train yourself. Although I don’t think you need more than a day (or even a half-day in Monaco) you do need more than an hour if you want to actually have time to see the main attractions and get a feel for this tiny country beyond a quick glance.
Things to Do in Monaco on a Day Trip
If you take the train to Monaco, it’s less than a 15-minute walk to Monte Carlo Casino. This is by far the most famous place in Monaco. There’s a restaurant nearby called Café de Paris Monte-Carlo with great views of the casino and the main square. It’s ridiculously overpriced but they have an outdoor terrace where you can get a coffee and a pastry in the morning and enjoy some people-watching.
Monte Carlo Casino
When it comes to visiting Monte Carlo Casino, tourists are allowed inside from 10 AM until 12:15 PM for a fee of €19 which I found to be an outrageous price to pay to walk around an empty casino, even with the included audio guide. After 2 PM, the gameplay starts, and if you are over 18 years old, you can pay €18 to enter the casino which includes a voucher of €10 you can use towards gambling.
The other option for visiting Monte Carlo (which is what I did) is to eat at one of the restaurants inside the casino. If you have a reservation for a restaurant, you don’t have to pay to enter the casino. I ate lunch at Le Salon Rose which is surprisingly priced quite reasonably. It offers a beautiful setting for lunch and you can feel free to peek around the casino without having to pay to enter, which I appreciated.
Monaco Ville and Prince’s Palace
After you finish in the Monte Carlo area, you can walk along the waterfront admiring all of the yachts in the harbor. A 20-minute walk will take you to Monaco Ville, the historic part of Monaco.
This area has a totally different vibe compared to the modern high-rises, designer boutiques, expensive restaurants, and flashy cars in the rest of Monaco. It feels more like a quaint French Riviera town. I recommend spending some time walking around the area before visiting the Prince’s Palace.
The Prince’s Palace is home to Monaco’s royal family, and much of the palace is open to the public for a visit. Tickets €10 which I found to be worth the cost. You can pay extra if you want to visit the Prince’s massive car collection. This did not interest me at all so I just visited the palace.
Is Monaco Worth Visiting?
Overall, I do think Monaco is worth visiting on a day trip.
Is it a place I’ll be rushing to get back to? No. I found Monaco to be gaudy and flashy with almost none of the charm you’ll find in other destinations all along the French Riviera. That being said, it’s a unique experience being able to pop into the second-smallest country in the world for a quick visit.
Since Monaco is so easily accessible from Nice and the rest of the French Riviera, I’d recommend the trip.
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