Riviera Pebbles Blog: Monaco Grand Prix

Posted on 1st Mar 2023 in Go & Do

The infamous Circuit de Monaco

How’s this for motor racing irony? The shortest and slowest race of the Formula One calendar requires the most skill to win.

The ability to weave a 200cm-wide vehicle through 19th-century streets at speeds of 260kmh is one that few drivers can master. Indeed former champ Nelson Piquet claimed that "victory here was worth twice as much as one anywhere else”. In short, the Monaco Grand Prix is the race every driver wants to win.

It's also the race that everybody wants to see. Bookending the Cannes Film Festival, moguls, showgirls and assorted celebrities stay on to watch the end-of-May event. Mooring a superyacht in the Port de Monaco during race weekend can cost over €100,000. Although yachties would be wise not to anchor near the Fairmont Tunnel that dazzles drivers with a quick switch from shade to sun. Italian driver Alberto Ascari sped his Ferrari over the crash barrier here in 1955 - and ended up in the harbour. Regular viewers should take in the race from Grandstand K, which overlooks the water at Piscine Corner. Bank on around €175 for a ticket for the Grand Prix Friday and over €300 during weekend and over €500, on race day weekend.

Visiting outside race time? Fear not. The Monaco Grand Prix lives on by way of memorabilia, supercar hire joints and the splendid 3.3km street circuit. The latter can be strolled around in 60 minutes - or longer allowing for stops at the Café de Paris, the Rascasse restaurant or the Norman Foster-designed Yacht Club de Monaco. Such timings aren’t in the same league as Max Verstappen's 74-second lap record, but speed isn’t everything.

www.acm.mc