This is Monte Carlo

The independent guide to Monaco

Monaco, by day.

How to get here, what is on this week and what is worth your time, for a day or a few. Every fact checked, dated and sourced.

One day in Monaco What’s on

Facts checked on 24 October 2026

Port Hercule full of yachts below the Rock of Monaco, seen from high above
Port Hercule and the Rock, seen from La Turbie. Photo: Tobi 87, CC BY-SA 3.0

The numbers worth knowing

€21.80Nice airport to Monaco on the Zou line 80 Express, one way, paid on board. Details
23 minBy TER train from Nice to Monaco-Monte-Carlo. Details
€1.50A bus ride by contactless card, capped at €5.50 a day. Details
11:55The changing of the guard, every day at the Palace. Details

Of almost 6.7 million visits to Monaco in 2025, 92.5% were day trips, says the Government of Monaco’s tourism survey. This guide is written for them: practical, honest and quick to read on a phone at a bus stop.

This week in Monaco

National Day week, and the Jazz Festival starts

Sample issue 16 to 22 November 2026

Read the issue

  1. Wednesday 18 NovemberFree

    Monte-Carlo Jazz Festival opens

    The 20th festival opens with the annual concert by the young musicians of the Académie Rainier III at the Salle Garnier. Admission is free, booking recommended.

  2. Wednesday 18 November, 20:10Free

    National Day fireworks

    The traditional fireworks for the Fête Nationale are fired from Port Hercule on the eve of National Day.

  3. Thursday 19 November

    National Day: what is open

    National Day is a public holiday. The Nouveau Musée National (Villa Paloma) and the Jardin Exotique are both closed on 19 November. The Oceanographic Museum lists only 25 December and the Grand Prix weekend as closure days. The Mairie’s free shows at Espace Léo Ferré are by invitation for Monégasques and residents.

In pictures

Six places, one small country

Photo credits
The curve of Larvotto beach with pale sand, clear turquoise water and tall apartment buildings behind, under a deep blue sky

By the sea

Larvotto, a bus ride away

Monaco’s beach is on the eastern side of the Principality: pale sand, a long promenade and a bus stop at each end. Lines 5 and 6 run there from the town.

The beach guide

Larvotto beach. Photo: Benoît Prieur, CC0

The diary

Coming up

The full planner

Plan your day

One perfect day, in five stops

The full route and map
  1. 10:00

    Oceanographic Museum

    Opens at 10:00 from October to December.

  2. 11:55

    Changing of the guard

    Every day on the Place du Palais.

  3. Midday

    The market

    Traders on the Place d’Armes until 15:30.

  4. Afternoon

    Jardin Exotique

    Closes at 17:00 from November to January.

  5. Late

    Larvotto

    The seafront promenade, by bus 5 or 6.

Filled red markers are fixed times from the venue; the others are ours to suggest. Hours apply from November to January.

Map of Monaco and its quarters Monaco runs along the coast from Fontvieille in the south-west, past Monaco-Ville on the Rock, La Condamine around Port Hercule, Monte-Carlo and Larvotto to La Rousse by the French border in the north-east. Jardin Exotique and Moneghetti are on the hillside behind. France surrounds the Principality on the landward side.
Drawn from OpenStreetMap data (© OpenStreetMap contributors, ODbL) and simplified: positions are approximate, so use a navigation app for directions. The ringed cross marks Monaco-Monte-Carlo station, which is underground.

Where things are

Small, steep and by the sea

The whole Principality covers about two square kilometres, according to Monaco Life, and much of it climbs steeply from the sea. Monte-Carlo is one of its districts, the one around the Casino square. The Rock, the port and the beach each feel like a different place.

Tap a district on the map to read about it.

A guide to the neighbourhoods
The sheer cliff of the Rock with the old town along its top, above the boats of Port Hercule
The Rock, from the foot of the Jardin Exotique. Photo: Tangopaso, Public domain

Year planner

The big dates of 2027

Every date, with sources
Port Hercule packed with yachts on Grand Prix race day, under a wide sky with the town behind
Port Hercule on Grand Prix race day. Photo: 35mmMan, CC BY 2.0

  1. MotorsportProvisional

    95th Rallye Automobile Monte-Carlo

    21 to 24 January 2027

  2. Festival

    49th International Circus Festival of Monte-Carlo

    22 to 31 January 2027

  3. Motorsport

    29th Rallye Monte-Carlo Historique

    27 January to 3 February 2027

  4. Sport

    Rolex Monte-Carlo Masters 2027

    3 to 11 April 2027

  5. Motorsport

    Monaco E-Prix 2027

    1 to 2 May 2027

  6. Motorsport

    Formula 1 Grand Prix de Monaco 2027

    4 to 6 June 2027

  7. Show

    Monaco Yacht Show 2027

    22 to 25 September 2027

After dark

When the sun goes down

Evening events, with dates

In November the Monte-Carlo Jazz Festival fills the Salle Garnier in the evenings. Concerts, fireworks and late openings are in the planner, each with its source.

Sources

Each fact on this page comes from one of these. If you spot something that has changed, please tell us.

  1. 2025 tourism survey: Monaco records more than 6.7 million visits, Government of Monaco (gouv.mc). Last checked 24 October 2026.
  2. Ligne 80 Express timetable, Nice Aéroport, Monaco, Menton (valid from 2 June 2026), Zou!, Région Sud. Last checked 24 October 2026.
  3. Getting to Monaco by train, Visit Monaco. Last checked 24 October 2026.
  4. Fares for one-off trips, Compagnie des Autobus de Monaco (CAM). Last checked 24 October 2026.
  5. Le Palais Princier, un incontournable de Monaco, Côte d’Azur France (regional tourist board). Last checked 24 October 2026.
  6. Public holidays 2026, Government of Monaco (monentreprise.gouv.mc). Last checked 24 October 2026.
  7. Mareterra: Monaco’s six-hectare waterfront district to be inaugurated on 4th December, Monaco Life. Last checked 24 October 2026.
  8. Practical information, Musée océanographique de Monaco. Last checked 24 October 2026.
  9. Le Marché de la Condamine, Mairie de Monaco. Last checked 24 October 2026.
  10. Préparer ma visite: horaires et tarifs, Jardin Exotique de Monaco. Last checked 24 October 2026.
  11. Lines and timetables, Compagnie des Autobus de Monaco (CAM). Last checked 24 October 2026.