Casino Monte Carlo

Casino de Monte-Carlo: The Building Is Better Than the Gambling

In 1856, the Principality of Monaco was facing bankruptcy. Prince Charles III opened the casino in 1863 as a revenue source to save the state, designed by Charles Garnier, who was simultaneously designing the Paris Opera House. The casino worked: within two decades, Monaco had abolished income tax, and it hasn’t had one since. The principality’s 40,000 residents pay no income or capital gains tax because the casino and financial services generate sufficient state revenue. Gambling saved Monaco’s finances 160 years ago and the consequences are still fully operational.

The Casino de Monte-Carlo is a Belle Époque palace on the Place du Casino, with a façade of ornate columns and a terrace overlooking the Mediterranean. It’s free to enter the ornate atrium and the Salle des Amériques, the public slot machine and lower-stakes table game rooms. The Salles Privées (private rooms with higher stakes roulette and baccarat) require a €17 entry fee, a valid ID, and you must be over 18. The dress code for the private rooms requires a jacket for men; casual dress is rejected at the door.

The Spectacle vs. the Gambling

For most visitors, the casino is worth entering for the interior: the painted ceilings, the chandeliers, the Belle Époque decoration that Garnier did almost as extravagantly as in Paris. Whether you need to gamble is a separate question. Most people lose small amounts, take photographs, and leave. The tourist experience of standing at a roulette table in the Casino de Monte-Carlo for 20 minutes is entirely valid.

The terrace in front of the casino, overlooking the Mediterranean and the harbor, is excellent at any time of day and free.

Around Monte-Carlo

Port Hercules below the casino holds some of the most expensive private yachts in the world at any given time. The Monaco Formula 1 Grand Prix in May briefly makes the surrounding streets one of the most famous racing circuits on earth; the hairpin at the casino itself is one of the most photographed corners in motorsport.

The Palais Princier, the actual Prince’s palace on the Rocher de Monaco headland 15 minutes’ walk south, offers guided tours of the state apartments from April to October (around €12 entry). The changing of the guard happens daily at 11:55am. The old town around the palace (Monaco-Ville) is the most authentic part of Monaco, a genuine medieval town with narrow streets, rather than the financial and luxury commerce of Monte-Carlo.

Getting There

Monaco is 20km from Nice by road. The fastest option is Nice–Monaco by train (25 minutes, around €4, multiple daily departures from Nice Ville station). The train station in Monaco is underground; the principality is compact enough to walk most of it once you arrive.

Monaco has no airport. Helicopter transfer from Nice Airport (15 minutes, Héli Air Monaco) costs around €200 per person.