Monaco Beyond the Show: Where We Eat, Drink, Stay and Dance

Arriving the easy way

The coast road from Nice is beautiful, but in show week it moves slowly. We much prefer the helicopter: a few minutes over the water from Nice Côte d'Azur Airport, and you land at the Monaco heliport with the whole Principality laid out below you. It is the first moment the trip starts to feel like the Riviera.

Send us your flight details and we'll book the transfer and have a car waiting at the heliport to take you on to your hotel or the port.

Where to stay

Hôtel de Paris Monte-Carlo is Monaco at its most classic. It sits right on Place du Casino and has been at the heart of the Principality for more than a century, with Alain Ducasse's Le Louis XV downstairs and Le Bar Américain just off the lobby. Step outside and you are in the middle of everything.

Hôtel Hermitage Monte-Carlo is a short walk away, a Belle Époque building on the cliff above the harbour. It feels softer and a little calmer, with views over the port and the Rock. It is also home to Pavyllon, one of our dinner favourites.

When we want peace after long show days, we choose The Maybourne Riviera. It stands on the cliffs of Roquebrune-Cap-Martin, just along the coast, and looks straight back across the bay to Monaco. Every room faces the sea, and the evening light there is something special.

Hôtel de Paris →Hôtel Hermitage →The Maybourne Riviera →

Morning coffee

Before the show opens, we like to start slowly at Café de Paris. Take a table on the terrace facing the Casino and watch Monaco wake up: the first supercars rolling round the square, people heading down to the port, the day's plans taking shape over a coffee and a croissant.

Café de Paris →

Seeing Monaco

Give yourself one slow morning away from the pontoons. Start at the Oceanographic Museum, built into the cliff face on the Rock, with its aquarium and its view straight down into the sea. From there, wander through the old town: narrow lanes, pastel houses, the cathedral and the Prince's Palace, all a few minutes apart.

In the evening, dress up and try your luck at the Casino de Monte-Carlo. Even if you don't play, it is worth going in just to see the rooms.

Oceanographic Museum →Casino de Monte-Carlo →

Dinner

Amazonico — lush, green and lively, with Latin American food made for sharing. Dinner here easily turns into the night.

Coya — Peruvian cooking full of colour and spice, with a pisco bar that sets the mood for the evening.

La Môme — Mediterranean food on a rooftop above the port, looking out over the harbour and the Rock. Come for sunset.

Nobu — the Japanese-Peruvian classics you know and love, at the Fairmont, right by the sea.

Pavyllon — Yannick Alléno's restaurant at the Hôtel Hermitage. Sit at the counter to watch the chefs at work, or out on the terrace facing the old town.

Song Qi — refined Chinese cooking in a golden, elegant room. The kind of place for a quieter dinner when you want to really talk.

Amazonico →Coya →La Môme →Nobu →Pavyllon →Song Qi →

A long lunch away from the crowds

Once the show gets busy, we slip away for a lunch that takes its time. La Pinède sits right on the water at Cap-d'Ail, just outside Monaco: sunny Mediterranean dishes made for sharing, and the sound of the sea. It is a short drive away and feels like another world.

Les Perles de Monte-Carlo is a small oyster bar at the very end of the pier in Fontvieille, below the Prince's Palace. You sit on wooden benches and eat oysters raised right here in Monaco, with a glass of organic wine. It is simple, honest and one of our favourite places in the Principality. Booking is a must.

La Pinède →Les Perles de Monte-Carlo →

Up to Èze Village

If you have a free afternoon, drive up to Èze. It is a medieval village perched on a rock high above the sea, only a short drive from Monaco. Leave the car below and walk up through the stone lanes to the exotic garden at the top. The cactus and succulents are lovely, but the real reward is the view along the whole coast.

Then stay for a long lunch, a sunset drink or dinner at Château de la Chèvre d'Or, whose terraces hang right on the edge of the cliff. It is one of the most romantic tables on the Riviera.

Château de la Chèvre d'Or →Exotic Garden of Èze →

Drinks and cocktails

Le Bar Américain at the Hôtel de Paris has been Monaco's meeting place since the 1920s: wood, velvet, leather armchairs and live music every evening. Order a classic, sit back and enjoy the atmosphere.

For a cocktail with a view, drive along the coast to The Maybourne Riviera and watch the sun go down behind Monaco. And when you're ready for something livelier, Amazonico's bar is always full of energy.

By the water, The Blue Gin at the Monte-Carlo Bay Hotel is Monaco's waterfront lounge: a heated terrace facing the sea, creative cocktails and a DJ later in the week.

Le Bar Américain →Amazonico →The Blue Gin →

Party, after-party and clubbing

Monaco in show week doesn't sleep much. We start the party at Amazonico or at Buddha-Bar, set inside the old Cabaret of the Casino, with its seven-metre ceilings and its giant Buddha. Later, everyone ends up at Sass Café for the after-party. And for real clubbing, there is Twiga, by the sea at the Grimaldi Forum, or Jimmy'z, Monte-Carlo's legendary nightclub. Both keep going until the early hours.

Buddha-Bar →Sass Café →Twiga →Jimmy'z →