Superyachts, luxury Monaco real estate, trackside restaurants and even for free!
Of all the sport in Monaco, the Monaco Grand Prix is anticipated above all others and draws an audience from around the world. As the streets are transformed into the track and hordes of racing enthusiasts descend on the Principality, a buzz fills the air in the weeks – even months – leading up to the race. The most glamorous city circuit on the F1 Championship calendar, the options for watching the race are endless and offer so much more variety than that of the custom-designed tracks that host many of the remaining races.
If you are planning a trip to the French Riviera for the 2018 Monaco Grand Prix, here’s our insider’s guide to five-star hotel packages, trackside restaurants, and a select few vantage points only locals know:
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€€€ High Range
1) 2018 Monaco Grand Prix Yacht Charter | Yachts and motor racing are the perfect pairing and chartering a superyacht for the Monaco Grand Prix ensures you and a lucky group of family and friends will enjoy a front row vantage point in truly luxurious surrounds. From Monaco’s harbour, Port Hercules, there’s no better view of the drivers speeding along the Chicane, towards the Tabac corner and along the Piscine, than on the deck of your yacht – you’re that close to the action that ear-muffs are a necessity! With a professional crew and every amenity imaginable at your fingertips, a Monaco Grand Prix yacht charter is definitely at the highest end of the price spectrum but the memories are guaranteed to last a lifetime.
- A more affordable yachting option, the Amber Lounge Celebrity Yacht is a two-day race viewing package designed by the team that hosts the Monaco Grand Prix parties. The VIP package includes meet and greet with F1 drivers, an open bar, buffet breakfast and lunch and, most importantly, the chance to watch the race on a tri-deck yacht with a trackside mooring. Packages cost €3950 per person.
2) Hôtel de Paris | While the iconic Hôtel de Paris on Casino Square is fully booked over the Grand Prix weekend, its menu of unforgettable dining options means there’s still a chance to reserve a table with a view. The hotel’s three Michelin-starred restaurant, Le Louis XV – Alain Ducasse, will welcome guests inside the gardens of the new Rotonde wing, offering wonderful views of avenue d’Ostende as the cars climb the harbour towards Casino Square. A four-course meal, drinks not included, is proposed.
- Saturday package costs €600 per person
- Sunday package costs €1500 per person
Located on the eighth floor, the luxurious dining room of Le Grill opens out onto a terrace with panoramic views over the Grand Prix track and out to the Mediterranean Sea. Diners can enjoy a three-course meal, including drinks.
- Saturday package costs €600 per person
- Sunday package costs €1500 per person
3) Fairmont Monte Carlo Hotel | The Fairmont Monte Carlo Hotel is situated on the most famous – and notoriously difficult – corner of the entire Monaco Grand Prix circuit – the Fairmont Hairpin – and, as such, its rooms make for a wonderful, and eventful, viewing platform. The hotel still has rooms available with a track view on the 3rd, 4th, 5th, and 6th floors. Prices start from €13,990 for the four days of the Grand Prix event.
4) Rent a property in Monaco with a view of the F1 track | Much Monaco real estate offers at least a glimpse of the circuit, but there are some lucky residences that are actually trackside and offer you front row access to the race without having to leave the comforts of your own home. The epitome of luxury, short-term rentals over the Grand Prix week range from one bedroom apartments with a balcony overlooking the starting grid to penthouses with expansive terraces and unrivalled views over whole sections of the race. Many of the properties, such as this penthouse-villa in the prestigious Carré d’Or, are POA for the Grand Prix weekend.
€€ Mid Range
1) The Paddock Lounge by Hotel Hermitage | With both a direct view of the track and a big screen on the terrace, The Hermitage Hotel is a hard option to beat. Add in two driving simulators and model racing car circuits with augmented reality driving glasses and this is one package designed to offer the complete F1 experience. Packages include unlimited Champagne, mineral water and coffee:
- Saturday package costs €380 per person
- Sunday package costs €820 per person
2) Café de Paris | Watch the cars sweep past you as you wine and dine on the terrace of the Café de Paris on Casino Square. Always a venue that sells out well in advance of the race, this year’s Grand Prix package includes a lunch buffet on the Saturday and a three-course menu on the Sunday, as well as a half-bottle of wine and mineral water on both days.
- Saturday package costs €180 per person
- Sunday package costs €300 per person
3) Official Grandstands | Apart from two grandstands, or tribunes as they are known, the official seating is concentrated around Monaco’s Port Hercules and the start/finish line. While many of the Automobile Club de Monaco’s lower priced seating is already sold out for the Sunday, seating in the prestige tribunes are still available, some also offer a view of pit lane. Prices range between €1000 and €1200 per ticket.
€ Value Range
1) Le Rocher | The hill that overlooks the pit lane and Rascasse corner is known as Le Rocher and are the best priced official tickets for the Monaco Grand Prix. There is no seating as such – many fans bring their own camp chairs – and it’s a case of first come first to secure the best vantage point in the gardens. In the lead up to race day, many fans reserve their places by securing chairs to anything immovable, some of the most determined even camp out days in advance. Tickets for the Sunday, priced at up to €100, are already sold out.
- Saturday tickets are priced up to €60
Watch the Monaco Grand Prix 2018 for Free
1) Work at the Monaco Grand Prix | The Automobile Club de Monaco recruit temporary staff for a variety of roles over the Grand Prix weekend that allow you to get up close to the action, including checking tickets and seating spectators. There’s still time to submit your application. The catch? You have to be present in Monaco on Saturday April 14th to apply.
2) Go on the Friday |So, it’s not the weekend, but Friday is officially free. Although a rest day for the Formula 1 drivers, the morning has a full schedule of Formula Renault 2.0 and Porsche Mobile 1 Supercup qualifying as well as the first Formula Two race.
3)Tête de Chien | The Tête de Chien is a dramatic rockface in the vertiginous village of La Turbie. Set high above Monaco, this popular climbing spot overlooks the Principality and offers panoramic views of the Grand Prix circuit – there’s no better way to gain a free glance of the Grand Prix. Just don’t forget your binoculars!
